Top 10 Posts of 2018

Weekend Inspiration: No. 28

Of all the years I’ve been blogging (this March marks DGD’s eighth anniversary!), I have to say that 2018 was my very favorite. It was one of those years where I felt the creativity coursing through me on overdrive, a fact I credit to my somewhat random start with pottery last January. There’s nothing like learning a new skill to take things up a notch, and learning pottery really gave me the extra dose of energy that, I guess, I had been missing in order to come up with fresh ideas here on the blog, too.

To commemorate all of that creative crafting, I thought it would be fun to take a look back at 10 of the most popular projects that published here on Dream Green DIY last year. The posts I list out below are a combination of the most popular in terms of traffic and the ones that really struck my own fancy as I live with the finished products day in and day out. Keep scrolling to see which ones took the “Top 10” prize, and feel free to click back to any of the ones you might have missed or need a refresher on.

An Updated Home Tour And New Interview!

1. DIY Faux Mid-Century Paneling Using Paint: Frankly, I still can’t believe this project actually worked! And it seems like a lot of you agree that the results are pretty darn cool. It’s my all-time favorite project of the year, and I’m definitely planning to reuse the technique in another room of our house, only this time I’ll use white paint to get the look of shiplap. Stay tuned.

Week 6: My One Room Challenge Reveal

2. My One Room Challenge Reveal: This was my first time taking part in the One Room Challenge, and I had such a blast working on our master bedroom for the design event. Having a timeline really helped me stay on track, and I was able to finish it so much faster than had I just been working at my own leisurely pace. Should I do it again this new year? Let me know in the comments if there’s a room in our house that you think could use a refresh—I promise not to be offended!

Retro Mid-Century Modern Home Tour

3. Our Home Tour Now Live On Domino.com: Speaking of our home, I’m still pinching myself over the fact that Domino.com featured our 2018 tour. See the story here, which includes lots of photos by my friend Meredith Sledge, plus an interview where I talk about everything from what inspires me during a room makeover project, to what I hope the previous homeowners would think of our renovations. 

DIY Wooden Rings Wall Hanging

4. DIY Wooden Rings Wall Hanging: Another one of the most exciting things to come about from 2018 was a new collaboration with Hunker.com. I started writing monthly craft tutorials for the minimalist-based site, and had so much fun dreaming up new ideas with my editor there. My most-read Hunker craft of the year? This DIY Wooden Rings Wall Hanging, which was actually inspired by a photo spotted in a back issue of Domino Magazine, of all places.

How We Keep Our Home Clean With Pets

5. How We Keep Our Home Clean With Pets: It might not be the most glamorous topic, but cleaning up after pets is clearly something we’re all interested in because this was definitely one of my most popular posts from 2018. Hop back here to find out how we keep our space clean with four pets running around.

DIY Vinyl Records Shelf Display

6. DIY Vinyl Records Shelf Display: I’m notorious for getting an idea in my mind for a home project, only to whip it together on my own while John’s not looking. That project for me last year was our new set of vinyl records shelves in the family room. I’m so glad I went for it, though, because they have been so fun to change up with new records every other week or so.

How To Make A Macrame Wall Hanging

7. How To Make A Macramé Wall Hanging: I promise I’m not exaggerating when I say that I was astonished at just how easy it really is to macrame. I thought it was going to be a multi-day (maybe even a multi-week) project, but I was able to pull it off from start to finish in just a couple of hours. See the tutorial to try it out for yourself here.

8. Our Functional Kitchen Décor Secrets: If you’re feeling the itch to declutter now that we’re into a new year, this post is the perfect one for you. It’s packed with functional décor ideas, and even though it’s all geared toward a kitchen, you can probably adapt the tips for just about any room in your house.

DIY Yarn Wall Hanging With Brass Rings

9. DIY Yarn Wall Hanging With Brass Rings: This is the perfect DIY craft to work on when you have a free afternoon this month. It only requires a few supplies, but boasts lots of high impact style when complete. I also love that you could change up the yarn to completely customize the look. What color yarn would you use?

DIY Embroidery Hoop Earring Holder | dreamgreendiy.com + @orientaltrading

10. DIY Embroidery Hoop Earring Holder: Finally, this is one of my favorite projects from my work for Oriental Trading last year. It was so cool to see just how many of you gave the tutorial a shot in your own homes, too! 

Our Functional Kitchen Décor Secrets | dreamgreendiy.com + @tuesdaymorning #ad #TuesdayMorningFinds

Did I miss a past DGD post or project that you fell particularly hard for in 2018? Do tell in the comments below, and feel free to click here for a great big walk down memory lane. That page holds each and every one of my DIY projects going back years and years, so you’ll find plenty of creative inspiration to carry you through the rest of winter. HINT: If you scroll back far enough, you can see exactly where I transitioned from pastel DIYs, to my current more minimalist, earth-toned projects!

Top 10 Posts of 2018

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2019 Dream Green DIY Goals & Plans

2019 Dream Green DIY Goals & Plans

Welcome to 2019! Here’s hoping that you enjoyed a wonderful holiday season, however you chose to celebrate it. Now that we’re into a brand new year, it’s time again for me to share a mini manifesto on my philosophy for the blog as we move into the next 365 days.

Last year, if you remember (click here if you don’t!), I had announced that I wanted to abandon a more-is-more attitude in 2018 and, instead, focus on appreciating and maintaining the items we already used and loved. The point of that shift was, first, to cut down on my spending and shopping, and also to minimize the amount of freebies that somewhat inevitably come through our front door thanks to my job as a blogger/influencer.

I wanted to learn how to tell brands no more often because I know first-hand that it’s no fun being subjected to what might feel like overly-sponsored blog content, plus I’m just one human being—I don’t need a lot of stuff to survive! John and I already have so many beautiful things to love within our home, pieces we’ve hand-chosen and invested in, that I wanted to refocus on in 2018. I also thought that a more minimalist blog philosophy could turn into a fun challenge for all of us to try out in 2018 in order to save a bit of money and gain back storage spaces in our homes.

If you want to understand more of my perspective from January 2018, feel free to revisit last year’s manifesto here, but I’m excited to say that I feel like I really made big strides in learning to say no to extra stuff. It meant that I took on fewer sponsored posts last year, and that you might not have seen quite as much rapid change in terms of décor and arrangements in blog posts, but I feel mentally and physically lighter now that we aren’t hoarding an excess amount of items in our house.

2019 Dream Green DIY Goals & PlansSo, now it’s time to turn our attention to 2019. To be completely honest, I can’t exactly say that I have a clear picture of what’s coming for the blog this new year. I certainly plan to continue living a more minimalist, less shopping-heavy lifestyle, but I’m also feeling the itch to learn how to really take full advantage of the furniture, accents, and even the clothing inside our house. How can I change things around at home using mostly items we already own? Can I “shop” our house to refresh spaces in a totally new way?

I’ve always been a little hesitant to change things around in our house just for the sake of a fresh-looking blog photo because this is a REAL house and we’re just two NORMAL people living on modest incomes. But this blog is my livelihood, after all, and my ultimate goal with anything and everything I do in this space is to inspire you. I want to get really creative and think way outside the box with the things I show you in 2019, so John and I are considering some pretty major room rearrangements, lots of furniture swaps, and tons of free décor ideas that really do cost absolutely nothing to recreate.

The other thing I’d really like to focus on in 2019 (of course!) is my pottery. I hadn’t even discovered pottery when I spoke to you on New Years Day last January, but now it’s something that completely consumes my mind on a weekly basis. I want to come up with bigger ways of incorporating pottery-themed stories here on dreamgreendiy.com, and I want to get better about sharing the creative process, too. I think the main reason most of you visit the blog is to get DIY inspiration, and pottery certainly fits that bill, so I’d love to start documenting the process in a more relatable way to, hopefully, inspire you to try the craft out for yourselves.

I’m a huge proponent of education, and also feel so strongly that learning a new skill can change your life. That’s really the entire basis for this website, so I hope to get even better about teaching you how to do everything from decorating on a next-to-nothing budget, to making your own art (like pottery!). Stay tuned for brand new features —both here on the blog and on social media—that make learning even easier, plus a new and improved website design that allows for better project search-ability and conversation.

My dream for DGD from the beginning has been to foster a digital space that promotes the idea of doing just about anything yourself, and I have a feeling that 2019 is going to be the year that you and I take that concept to an entirely new level. Cheers!

2019 Dream Green DIY Goals & Plans

*Photography by Meredith Sledge; Don’t forget to sign up for the Dream Green DIY newsletter! The next issue hits everyone’s inboxes tomorrow, and will includes three of my personal New Year’s Resolutions for 2019. Sign up here.

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