This year, the tulips were exceptionally slow to bloom due to the extended winter we endured, so hubs and I waited until the last possible weekend to visit.  Luckily, the tulips were in full bloom and their sweet aroma filled the air, making our visit all the more memorable.  It’s one thing to see these flowers in pictures, but quite another to experience these world-class gardens in person.

I’ve always loved flowers, but my deep passion for photographing them was realized during our trip to Holland.  Capturing flowers on camera allows us to enjoy the beauty of them even after their season has passed and their petals have fallen.  Although I may have gone a little overboard snapping pictures of the flowers at Keukenhof {and believe me, there are many more}, I’m excited to share some of my favorite shots so that you too can experience their beauty long after the season is over and they are gone.

The post Tulip Time at Keukenhof appeared first on Design Eur Life.

While you’re in Holland:

Sample local cheeses and customize your own wooden clogs at Clara Maria Cheese & Clog Farm
Visit the fishing villages of Volendam and Marken
Drive the Bloemen Route
Tour the Kinderdijk Windmill Park
Visit Keukenhof Gardens

The post Holland in Pictures appeared first on Design Eur Life.

keukenhof gardens ● tulips for miles ● pretty in pink
tulip covered in water droplets ● fine dining in holland ● fishing village of marken island
holland’s wildlife ● kinderdijk windmill park ● dixie’s bathroom with a view
holland’s tulip fields ● orange among a field of red ● so grateful the sun came out to play

For your viewing pleasure, here’s a little video made up of Instagram pictures and Vine videos from our trip to Holland {my first “movie” and pictures/video were taken on my phone, so please don’t judge too harshly}

Brennon and I fully understand how blessed we are to live overseas and have the opportunity to travel to so many amazing European destinations, and we love sharing it with you!

As much as we’d love to invite you to join us on all of our trips, it isn’t exactly practical… so instead, we invite you to travel with us virtually!  For those of you who would like to come along on our European adventures but just can’t find the time to slip away from your busy schedules, we will now be sharing the details of every trip with you via Twitter!  Through lots of photos, videos, and real time accounts of what we’re doing and things we’re trying, you will feel like you’re practically there with us!  And I want you to get in on the action… feel free to ask questions, share your experiences, and make suggestions of things you think we should try or places we should explore!  Sure, it may not be the same as you physically being there, but it’s definitely the next best thing!

For those of you who already have a Twitter account, simply visit @DesignEurLife to join us on our next trip to France’s Champagne Region and Memorial Day Celebration at Belleau Wood beginning this Thursday!

And if you don’t have Twitter but would still love to join in on the fun, no worries, it’s actually really easy to set up an account!  All you need to do is enter your name, email address, password, a username, and you’re done!  Click here to start now and then visit me here!

I am looking forward to our next trip together!

The post Weekend Whereabouts appeared first on Design Eur Life.

Here are 10 simple projects to recycle some of your old clothes:
{click each image to enlarge}

1. Simple Summer Headscarf

2.  Rolled Flowers

1. Gather supplies: old t-shirt, sheet of felt, scissors, and glue gun.
2.  Cut a 1 inch wide strip of fabric horizontally from a t-shirt and tie a knot at one end.
3. Fold strip of material in half and wrap twice around your knot and glue in place.
4. Then, twist and wrap fabric around center, gluing every half turn.
5. Keep twisting and wrapping and gluing.
6. When you have wrapped all of your fabric, glue the end of the fabric to the bottom of the flower.
7. Glue bottom of flower to felt.
8. Cut around the base of the flower so that none of the felt is visible.

You can use your flower to decorate an outfit in the form of a brooch, necklace, hat or your home by accessorizing a pillow, wreath, gift or anything else you can think of!

3.  Sweater Cowl Scarf

1. Gather supplies: an old sweater, scissors, and hemming tape.
2. Cut the sweater horizontally right underneath the arms and discard top half.
3. Hem rough edge of the bottom half of sweater with hemming tape.
4. Slip the scarf over your neck and it’s is ready to wear!

4.  Ruffled Scarf

1. Gather supplies: old clothing {I used hubs old linen pants}, large and small plate, scissors, and thread.
2. Trace four large circles and two smaller circles on one side of your clothing.
3. Cut out circles through both thicknesses {both sides of pants in this case}… you will end up with 8 large circles and 4 small circles.
4. Cutting though both thicknesses, cut each circle into a spiral… no template needed, just freehand it!
5. Uncoil all of your circles and divide into two sections, making sure 4 large circles and 2 small circles are on each side.
6. Attach the top end of each section together using a sewing machine or needle and thread.

Here are some fun ways to wear your ruffled scarf:

1. Simply let the scarf hang around your neck
2. Drape scarf using a brooch
3. Tightly wrap around neck
4. Loosely wrap around neck

One Shirt, Four Accessories

5.  T-Shirt Necklace

1. Gather materials: old t-shit {seamless works best} and scissors.
2. Cut off the bottom hem of shirt and then cut 1 inch wide strips horizontally across the shirt {I wanted to use both the orange and the grey so my strips were a lot smaller than 1 inch}.
3. You will now have several strips of fabric, still connected on the ends. Stretch strips so that the raw edges roll inwards and tie together using the bottom hem or scrap fabric.
4. Trim the loose ends and tuck knot underneath the wrapped fabric.

6.  Fabric Covered Beads

1. Gather materials: old t-shirt, fan chain, scissors, and thread.
2. Cut the fan chain to the size of  your wrist.
3. Place a strip of fabric on a table and lay the chain on top of the fabric. Using thread, tie fabric in between each length of chain.
4. Knot thread to secure fabric at the end of your beads and trim off excess fabric between each length.

7.  Braided Bracelets

1.Gather materials: old t-shirt, colorful rattail cord, and scissors.
2. Cut three 1 inch strips of fabric from t-shirt and stretch them so the raw edges begin to curl.  Cut three matching lengths of cord.
3. Add a strand of cord to each strip of t-shirt, secure with tape on one end, and start braiding.  When you reach the end of your strips, tie a knot around each end to secure.
4. Tie one end to the other end and double knot.  Slip them around your wrist and you are ready to go!

8.  Braided Workout Headband

1. Gather materials: old t-shirt and scissors.
2. Cut off the bottom hem of shirt, and then cut five 1 inch wide strips horizontally across the shirt.
3. Stretch the strips until they become long and the raw edges start to roll inward.
4. Cut the five strands in half so that they become long strands instead of circles.
5. Gather strands and secure them onto a hard surface with tape.
6. Take the outside left strand and place it one over to the right.
7. Take the middle strand and place it one over to the left.
8. Take the middle strand and place it one over to the right.
9. Take the outside left strand and place it one over to the right.
10. Take the middle strand and place it one over to the left.
11. Take the outside strand and place it one over to the left.
12. Take the middle strand and place it one over to the right.
13. Once you have finished braiding, trim the headband to fit your head, leaving enough at the ends for knotting.
14. Start by double knotting one strand from each end of the braid together.
15. Match each end with another strand from opposite side and double knot.
16. Trim the ends.

9.  Workout Tank

1. Gather materials: old t-shirt and scissors.
2. Cut away the bottom hem and ribbed neckline.  For the sleeves, cut downwards starting from shoulder and then begin to curve down below the armpit seam.
3. Cut neckline according to how low you want it.
4. Flip the shirt over and make a narrow racerback, curving inward from the armpits.  The cut a “V” shape from the top neckline.
5. Using bottom hemline, stretch it out until it becomes one long string of fabric.  Knot the string a couple of inches above the bottom of the “V” shape.
6. Wrap the string all the way down the center of the racerback, and back up again to meet the other end.  Now tie the ends together tightly and trim excess.

10. Doggie Chew Toy

1. Gather materials: old clothing of some sort and scissors.
2. Cut 10 strips of each colored fabric.
3. Alternating colors, lay strips together in one bundle.
4. Using an extra strand of fabric, tie a double knot around one end of the strips, leaving several inches on the end.  Separate strands into three sections and start braiding.  Once you are near the end of your strips, tie another double knot using an extra strand of fabric.

And now here are a few pictures of my sweet little girl modeling her new toy {I just couldn’t resist}.

I hope you enjoy these unique and fun ways to reuse and recycle your old and outdated clothing.  Next time you are considering throwing out your old stuff, think about how you might re-purpose it into something else.  These creative and easy projects not only give you a reason to make room in your closet, but they also allow you to hang on to some of those memories that you can’t quite seem to part with just yet.

The post 10 Ways to Recycle Old Clothes appeared first on Design Eur Life.

About a month ago, I found a chalk paint recipe, and after slightly modifying it by substituting ingredients with things that can be found here in Germany, I put hubs to work.  What used to be a boring beige dressing table has now been transformed into a perfectly pink makeup vanity, and I couldn’t be happier with how it turned out!

If you have been trying to get your hands on some chalk paint but don’t know where to find it, try making it yourself with this simple recipe!

Step 1: Mix Plaster of Paris {Modelliergips or Gips, for those of you who live in Germany} with water, adding a little bit at a time until you get to a smooth consistency.

  Add more water as needed to break up the powder and eliminate all lumps.

Step 2: Once the plaster of paris is thoroughly mixed, add the mixture to the paint color of your choice and mix well using an egg beater or a drill with a spindle.

Step 3: Now you are ready to paint!

After your furniture has had time to dry, lightly sand until smooth.  For a distressed look, sand in areas where natural wear would occur, such as corners and edges, until your piece is distressed to your satisfaction.  When finished, rub with furniture wax and let dry.

Now that I know how easy it is to make chalk paint, I will be searching for more things to paint {or repaint}!

The post Chalking It Up appeared first on Design Eur Life.

The task of de-cluttering your vanity can be overwhelming, so today I’m sharing some of my favorite vanity organization tips to make your spring cleaning a little bit more manageable:

1. Utilize your dishes

Tea cups & saucers, tiered cake stands, decorative plates, and trays are perfect storage vessels for sorting all types of jewelry and organizing your accessories.  On my vanity, rings and small charms are tucked away in tea cups, jewelry for special occasions rests on cake plates, and jewelry I wear most often, like my wedding ring, are conveniently located front and center on a decorative plate.

2. Hang your necklaces

Space saving wall organization is a perfect way to display accessories and maximize valuable closet real estate.  Simply hang an empty frame and install small hooks on a wall in your closet.  Gone are the days of jewelry being hidden away… now necklaces are out where they can be seen and displayed as art!

3. Chain up your sunglasses

Instead of keeping sunglasses tucked away in a drawer or shoved down in the bottom of your purse, display them on a wall in your dressing area, along with other jewelry and accessories, making it that much easier to find the perfect pair on the go!  Just attach a small chain or wire to the backside of an empty frame and hang on your wall.

4. Easy DIY earring storage

If you are short on counter space, hang earrings on the wall using this easy DIY frame.  Simply attach wire mesh or window screen to the backside of an empty frame using a staple gun.  The screen is great for holding every kind of earring, even tiny studs!

5. Not just a towel rack

Paper towel racks are great for storing bracelets and necklaces.  I just spray painted an old towel rack that we had stored away, fastened necklaces from the tallest bar {which is usually used for hanging kitchen hand towels}, and hung bracelets from the lower one {usually reserved for paper towel rolls}.  Now my jewelry is organized and the days of tangled messes are over!

6. Organize your hair accessories

Organize hair accessories in your vanity drawers by utilizing cupcake/muffin pans {pink spray paint optional}.

7. Apothecary jars to the rescue

Place make-up products like lipsticks, brushes, and foundation wedges in apothecary jars on your vanity to keep messy drawers at bay.

8. Line your drawers

The best way to keep accessories from getting nicks and scratches is by keeping them organized in shallow, velvet or felt lined drawers.  Simply cut velvet to size {I actually used a really soft $5.00 IKEA blanket that resembled velvet}, and place them over rubber carpet stays in each drawer for a non-slip solution.  Now your jewelry and delicates will have a plush home!

9. Keep your drawers tidy

Insert office organizers in your vanity drawers for catch-all organization.  Anything random like extra car keys, spare buttons, on-the-go sewing kits, and loose change are nicely organized, so that you never have to go searching again!

10. Create a manicure station

With the addition of our new closet island, which is actually an old desk, I gained a perfect little manicure station.  I have to admit, I love collecting nail polishes… I just can’t resist all of the beautiful colors that come out each season!  So instead of hiding them away in my vanity drawer, I displayed my favorite polishes on a cake stand, which I then topped with all of the manicuring essentials.

Glass jars are used to store nail files and clippers, cotton balls, and nail polish remover.  With the addition of my new manicure station, I never have to go to the nail salon again!

* * *

Organizing your vanity may seem like a daunting task, but with a few hours and a little creativity, your space can easily be transformed into an organizer’s dream!

If you are on a spring cleaning roll, check back tomorrow to see how I transformed a make-up vanity, and fun projects for your cast away clothing on Friday!

The post Top 10 Tips for Organizing Your Vanity appeared first on Design Eur Life.

Check out my top 10 closet organization tips to make your spring cleaning a little bit more manageable:

1. Closet purge

First, turn on some loud, upbeat music, or blast your favorite cd, and grab a glass of wine… it’s going to be a long day.  Then start clearing everything out of your closet… make piles on the bed, on the floor, whatever you have to do to get everything out.

Time to clean… wipe down all of your shelves, insides of drawers, and vacuum areas that are usually hard or impossible to get to when your closet is full.  This is the most time consuming part about a closet clean out, but trust me, it’s worth it, and you’ll feel so much better when it’s done!

Now you’re ready to bring clothes back in your closet, but before you reach for those hangers, make sure you only keep the clothes that you absolutely love.  To make the process a little bit easier, create three piles:

✓ Clothes you absolutely love and make you feel great… these are the keepers.

✓ Clothes you love but don’t see yourself wearing again… perhaps something you paid a lot of money for but just doesn’t fit right anymore, or something that’s in good condition, but you aren’t crazy about the color.  Whatever the reason may be, if you aren’t 100% about it, or have an excuse about why you haven’t worn it, then don’t bring it back into your closet… this is the pile that you can give to friends, sell online, or bring to a consignment shop to recoup some of your cash.

✓ Clothes that have seen better days, you don’t care for anymore, or haven’t worn in years can be put in the third pile… this pile can be donated to your local thrift shop.

2. Divide closet into zones

If you have the space in your closet to hang everything, than by all means, hang everything.  Personally, I like to hang as much as I possibly can, so dividing my closet into sections and hanging clothes according to category helps keep everything organized.  For instance, I have a designated hanging section for dresses and skirts, a section for sleeveless/short sleeve/summer tops, bulkier items like long sleeve shirts and sweaters hang in their own section below, another for athletic t-shirts and sweatshirts/lightweight jackets, and on the far end, I have a section for heavy winter jackets.  It’s best to use multiple smaller hanging rods, rather than hanging clothing from one single rod.

In addition to dividing your wardrobe into categories, make it easier to find what you are looking for by hanging your clothing according to color!

3. Maximize your vertical space

The majority of closets in Europe are tiny, that is, if you are lucky enough to have a closet at all.  Although we love where we live, we ended up renting a house that is completely void of closet space, which is why we had no choice but to turn our master bedroom into a closet… and now we just sleep on the floor.  Kidding!

Limited storage space is a common complaint, so if you are living in a house that is closet challenged, try increasing your storage square footage by maximizing vertical space.  We took advantage of a small area of empty wall space by adding floor to ceiling hooks and towel bars.  Hats are hung all the way to the ceiling from hooks, and beach bags & large handbags are hung below from bathroom towel bars.

4. Hang scarves where you can see them

Since moving to Europe, my scarf collection has grown exponentially.  I used to keep them folded {ha, yea right} in a drawer, or for added confusion, hanging next to the front door or down in our mud room, but this made finding the perfect coordinating scarf difficult… I just ended up wearing the same couple of scarves over and over.

During our recent closet clean out, we replaced our small closet island with a large vintage desk… this was a perfect opportunity for me to hang all of my scarves in a way that I could keep them all organized and easy to find!  On the back side of the desk {the side that faces my side of the closet}, we installed a long curtain rod that we purchased from IKEA.  The rod spans the entire length of the desk and is the perfect place to hang my growing collection of scarves.  Now they are all in one place and out where I can easily find them!

5. Utilize suitcases for seasonal storage

Every spring, we store away our winter clothing that we won’t be needing again until the end of the year.  Last year, I was storing hats and gloves in bulky plastic bins but this year decided to utilize our vintage luggage!  Now, I can keep a few pieces of luggage tucked away for easy access, all while adding a vintage feel to the room… form and function at its best!

6. Keep swimwear in ziplock bags

To be perfectly honest, when I first started storing my bathing suits in ziplock baggies, I didn’t know how long I would be able to keep that up.  I am one of those people that won’t stick to something unless it’s easy and convenient, so ziplock bags seemed like a good idea at the time, but perhaps something I was unlikely to maintain.  Well, I am proud to say that the bathing suits are still in baggies!

The benefit of storing swimwear in baggies completely outweighs the inconvenience of having to zip them up rather than just throwing them into a drawer.  The plastic bags keep separate pieces of the same suit together so that you won’t need to fish around for what you’re looking for, and are airtight so more suits fit in one drawer!  When packing for a trip, just throw them in your suitcase, ziplock bag and all, to maximize your luggage space and keep everything nice and neat!

7. Display shoes on bookshelves

We organize our shoes on inexpensive floor to ceiling bookshelves that we purchased from IKEA.  The shelves can be easily moved around, added to, or taken away, so this is an easy, completely customizable way to store shoes and an essential part of organizing your closet.  Brennon’s shoes are on the highest shelves since he is taller, my boots are lined up at the bottom, and everything else is within easy reach.

8. Repurpose wine bottles into boot stands

Using stands prevents boots from slouching over and helps maintain their form so that they look great year round.  Well if you are like me and don’t have boot stands lying around the house, try repurposing empty wine bottles!  Wine bottles fit perfectly in boots, are tall enough to keep them from slouching, and the best part, they are free {that is, if you are a wine drinker}!  So go enjoy a glass of wine and remember to save the bottle for your closet!

9. Make it convenient to put things away

No matter what size closet you are working with, it’s easy to turn your daily dressing routine into a closet nightmare.  I know that when I’m in a hurry and searching for the perfect outfit combination, I rarely… okay, NEVER fold or hang anything back up.  I just discard the day’s rejects into a pile on the floor or a careless stack over the back of my vanity chair.  Shoes end up scattered across the floor, and accessories overtake every empty tabletop in the entire room.  Making it convenient to put things away is the best way to avoid your closet turning into a tornado disaster zone.  Housing shoes in open book cases, hanging jewelry on easily accessible hooks, keeping folded clothing on open cube shelving, hanging scarves on curtain rods, and throwing flip flops in large baskets are all great ways to organize your closet, while keeping everything out in the open, easy to find, and convenient to put away.

10. Separate Your Laundry

Sure, everyone separates their laundry, but imagine how much time you could save if you separated dirty clothes well before laundry day!  We keep three laundry baskets {purchased from IKEA} in our closet, making it simple to separate lights, darks, and delicates.

Also, have a large canvas bag handy for clothes that need to be taken to the dry cleaners.

* * *

Now that you’ve finished cleaning and organizing your closet, are you ready to tackle your jewelry and beauty supplies?

If so, stay tuned for my top 10 tips for organizing your vanity!

The post Top 10 Tips for Organizing Your Closet appeared first on Design Eur Life.

Last year we turned our master bedroom into a large walk-in closet, complete with a customizable IKEA closet system, designated his & hers sides, and everything organized to perfection.  But after spending an alarming $2000.00 on the closet system, we had to skip some corners and short-cut certain aspects in order to complete the room at no extra cost.

Well, a year has passed and our pockets have fully recovered, so while reorganizing this spring, we decided that it was time to fix last year’s short-cuts in order to add a little extra functionality to our closet.

Before {what the room looked like before we turned it into a closet}:

After last year’s closet remodel {click here to see that post}:

Our closet now:

One of the newest additions to this space is the huge pink rug positioned in the center of the room.  I spotted it during a recent flea market trip and absolutely had to have it… and I have to say, it’s one of my favorite things in the room!

Another one of my favorite closet additions is the over sized crystal chandelier, pictured below.  We’ve gone through quite a few chandeliers in this room, but this is definitely the one… it’s insanely large and over-the-top, and after countless hours of cleaning, the crystals shimmer so beautifully!  It’s most definitely the wow-statement of the room!

In addition to a few new pretty things, our closet island was a big short-cut that desperately needed to be replaced.  A large, vintage desk now sits in place of the small, flimsy table that we had created last year from scraps found by the IKEA dumpster.  We had spent more than we ever anticipated spending on a closet, so the free flimsy table was our best option at the time… it definitely wasn’t pretty, but it would have to do.  Luckily, we came to our senses during this year’s closet cleanout and decided to chuck that thing right back where we found it in order to make room for a proper closet island!

The new closet island provides more storage space in the way of desk drawers, performs double duty as a nail painting surface, and is large enough to fold laundry on all while displaying some pretty things!

Before {again, what the room looked like before it was turned into a closet}:

After last year’s closet remodel:

Our closet now:

Brennon and I rearranged some of our closet system pieces for improved functionality.  We both added a 4 ft hanging section on either side of the room, as well as another pair of drawers for me, and extra cube storage for hubs.  We have tons of storage and rather than shoving everything into crammed spaces, our clothes now have room to breathe.  Sometimes just a little tweaking here and there can make all the difference in the world!

Another corner of the room before:

After last year’s closet remodel:

Now:

Little has changed in this area of the room; however, I just wouldn’t have been completely satisfied without doing something here as well… I still have the make-up vanity in front of the window where it was last year, but now it’s pink!  {more about that coming up this week}  We hung an antique full-length mirror and stacked vintage luggage, repurposed as seasonal storage, next to the vanity.

Other new closet additions:

Shoe Storage

Where a dresser once stood to store my random things, now stands new shelving to store shoes!  We had an empty wall here and figured what the heck, let’s go all out and add form and function by creatively displaying our shoes in an organized way!

Little nook on the right side of the picture before:

Little nook after:

Welcome to my new dressing area!  Our closet doesn’t get very much natural light, just one large window that doesn’t even face south {very important in Germany}.  Rather than constantly having to turn on the huge, 21-light crystal chandelier, we keep the room’s window blinds open all of the time.  In order to dress in private, we have cleared out this little nook located just off the main closet area and designated it our dressing area… it may sound fancy, but it’s actually quite practical!

We’ve added tons of drawers to store undies, socks, belts, and anything else in need of drawer space.

As you can see, this is also where I now keep my jewelry and accessories.  By using things around the house to organize my jewelry so that everything is out where I can see it, I enjoy picking out accessories rather than searching for {and then giving up on} my outfit’s finishing touches!

* * *

This week the blog will be completely devoted to the closet cleanout and reorganization!  Each day I will be sharing tips, tutorials, and creative ways to revamp your closet and vanity areas, so stay tuned if you are ready to get organized this Spring!

The post Day 1 of Closet Cleanout: A Closet Reworked appeared first on Design Eur Life.

We had so much fun shooting this beautiful couple, and after looking through their pictures, it’s easy to see that Liz and Curtis have many amazing years to look forward to!

Liz + Curtis’ Vintage Castle Wedding Sneak Peek

The post A Wedding Fit for A Fairytale appeared first on Design Eur Life.

The beautifully manicured lawns are always full of Germans napping on blankets under the heat of the sun, parents watching their children play in the fields, and friends enjoying picnic lunches under the shade of flowering trees.  Hubs and I spent a couple of hours sharing a bottle of wine next to a colorful bed of tulips… we didn’t have anywhere else to be, anything else to do, we just sat and people watched, snapped pictures, talked, laughed, relaxed, soaked up the sun, and thoroughly enjoyed our day off.

We also got around to touring the green houses, botanical gardens, aquarium, insectarium, and of course, visiting the many animal exhibits throughout the park {the monkeys being my favorite}.

Here are a few pictures from our day at the zoo…

I hope you enjoyed your weekend!

The post A Day At The Zoo appeared first on Design Eur Life.