Feeling creative but don’t want to make a big mess, or spend a lot of money or time? These quick and easy boho DIY crafts will deliver a big bang for your buck. You may already have most or all of the supplies you need, and if not, don’t worry – creative substitutes are often where the real fun comes in! Best of all, most can be completed in an hour or two!
I can picture these DIY boho door tassels in so many color combinations, maybe with a bell or two added.
Gathering your own stones for these painted mandalas could be part of the fun. You can also buy small bags of stones at Dollar Tree, or bigger bags at Home Depot or Lowe’s. This craft takes a little longer than the others because you have to be pretty careful (PRO TIP: practice making your dots on a “test rock” before you start), and you have to wait for each coat of paint to dry before adding the next layer.
Here’s another project with infinite possibilities: this DIY boho chic tray. Any tray with a relatively smooth surface + any paint + any paper/fabric (like: wallpaper, wrapping paper, tissue paper, memorabilia, maps, I could go on forever…) + Mod Podge (or something similar) would work.
These quick & easy 3-D framed botanicals are made with thrifted frames + fake flowers and greenery. You could use dried leaves, twigs, and flowers instead, or feathers, or jewelry. It’d be fun to change out seasonally.
If you were going to pick one of these crafts to make, which one would you choose? Tell me in the comments below! (I’d make the beaded windchimes. Honestly, I probably have enough stuff to make several!)
Watercolor inspired decor can be lovely in any room, but it’s perfect for a bedroom, especially in the heat of summer. I love the looks of these watercolor walls:
Here’s a tutorial from HGTV if you want to try it yourself (it looks pretty straightforward).
Even if you can’t (or don’t want to) paint an entire wall with watercolor, you can still create the mood with colors, textures, bedding, and art.
Maybe you’d like to try your hand at creating a watercolor painting; it’s easier than you think, and fun even when you “mess up”. Here’s a great place to get started: watercolor for beginners.
Click through the graphic below to see an ideas board full of inspiration!
Click though for more inspiration and ideas!
SO what do you think? Are you ready for a watercolor inspired bedroom? Would you watercolor paint a whole wall? Let me know in the comments, I’d really like to know!
Actually, it’s all of the above, and although they’re very different, they all share some common elements.
Think: sea and beach colors, weathered patinas, natural elements, and lots of light.
Depending on the look you’re going for, adding ocean, beach, and nautical themed home accessories can be a simple way to incorporate a touch of coastal style to your space.
Defining your coastal style
It really all comes down to this: where’s your dream coast? Is it someplace you’ve been, or hope to go someday? When you think of those places, how do you feel? Relaxed, carefree, happy-go-lucky? Cozy? Limitless? Inspired? Dreamy? Grounded? I say this about everything, but it’s important to start with the feelings you want to invoke, because from there it’s easy to figure out what invokes those feelings for you.
Let me explain…
These are the coasts I dream of, the ones I’ve visited and loved, and love still. They’re all on the Atlantic Ocean or the North Sea, misty and wild, sun and clouds and sand and wind:
Berneray Hostel, Scotland
Isle of Berneray, Scotland
Isle of Skye, Scotland
Isle of Lewis, Scotland
Isle of Orkney, Scotland
When I even think of these places, I feel magical, expansive, full of wonder. I remember the constant sounds of the sea and wind, the smell of salt water and peat. I feel deep peace, and a thrum of something – ancestral memories? – so strong that it’s a physical sensation. That’s how I want my coastal memories to make me feel!
Throughout my home I have bowls and jars of shells and sea glass and shards of pottery I’ve found on beaches near and far. I rescued this little vintage wooden boat from a junk shop; it lives in a jar of shells, and reminds me of the wooden boat in the Abbey on Iona, off the coast of Scotland.
Seaside Memories
Iona Abbey, Scotland
Another favorite ocean memory is of a pivotal New Year’s Eve I spent camping on the beach at Port Aransas, Texas. I gathered dried (dampish, honestly) seaweed and sea grasses, then made a wreath using those, a tangle of fishing line I’d found in the grass, driftwood, and a few seashells and feathers I’d collected there. It hangs in my bedroom now, to remind me I am strong and resilient and brave and free.
Port Aransas, Texas
Sea Witch Wreath
I have tiny jars of sand, too, some with bits of long-dried seaweed in them. Sometimes I open them just to smell the sea.
Creating your coastal style
Maybe your coast is different, filled with lighthouses and ships’ wheels, or mermaids and sea glass, or sailboats and knotted ropes and anchors. Wherever it is – even if it’s only in your dreams – you can bring some of it (or all of it, if that makes you happy!) into your home by using color, textures, and themes that invoke the feeling you most want to create.
Much of what constitutes “coastal style” decor is achieved through color, texture, and materials. Do you have something you can repaint or repurpose? Items that are the right piece, but the wrong color? Things in the right colors and textures that you’ve never thought of as “coastal”? Shop your home!! Maybe you already have some of what you need to get a seaside vibe going. If not, there’s always thrifting…
Coastal style home decor is not a new trend. Thrift stores are a great source for beachy, coastal, ocean themed items at bargain prices.
Thrift stores are also a great place to find home accessories in your chosen color scheme. When you start looking for it, you’ll see it everywhere! Also: baskets galore!
Here’s a small sample of coastal inspired home decor and accessories I spotted at two local Goodwill stores in one afternoon…
If you just can’t wait, or want some more ideas, here’s a whole idea board full of lovely coastal inspired accents for your home. (Affiliate link; see full disclosure here.)
Have fun! Follow your best beachy feelings when deciding how to incorporate a coastal style into your space, and I promise, you won’t go wrong.
Pinnables!
Where’s your dream coast? Do you have any coastal vibes going on in your space? Let me know in the comments, I’d love to hear from you!
