DIY Foam Board Head Board

I've been working on redecorating my apartment and have loved torturing myself over all the details. But, I recently got a new bed and was really overwhelmed with the cost of an upholstered headboard.  I'd been researching going the DIY route, but everything I found revolved around plywood.  Well guess what...I have zero tools and I'll be damned if a cab will pick you up toting plywood sheets, not to mention the putting together of it all.  I had an 'AH HA' moment while wandering around one day and through FOAM CORE!  Lightweight, cut it with a knife, duct tape, staple gun, I'm in!  So here's how it works:

Materials:
- 1/2" Foam core / foam board - art supplies stores carry this. 
- Fabric - I used two yards of 54" width for a full-sized bed.
- Batting - I got four yards
- Staple gun - I got 1/4" staples, but looking back I should have gotten 1/2"
- Duct tape
- Scissors
- Knife or Exacto knife
- Measuring tape

 

Measure the frame of your bed and cut foam board accordingly.  Remember the batting and fabric will add an inch.  I purchased 40x30" board which worked perfectly.  Don't tell any of my cook friends, but I cut the board with a serrated knife.  Haha.  

 

Use a few passes of duct tape on both sides to connect the two foam board sheets.

 Lay down your batting underneath the board.  I used two layers leaving the outermost layer longer for wrapping/stapling.

 

Use the staple gun to staple all around.  I cut out the overlapping fabric at the corners so they wouldn't be thicker than the rest of the board.

 

 Drape your fabric so the pattern is level and centered.  I chose a print that did not have an obvious vertical direction so I could lay the two yards horizontally and not have a seam.

 

 Staple the fabric to the back of the board.  Lesson learned: 1/4" staples were barely long enough to go through the batting and fabric and still stick, so either have the fabric exceed the size of the batting or get longer staples---hence the duct tape for extra protection.

Instructions I found online suggested using 3M Command stickies to adhere the headboard to your wall.  This did not work for me.  The batting made the space between the foam core and the wall too great for good contact.  Still looking for another option, but for now the mattress is holding it in place quite nicely.

 TA DA!

Here's the cost rundown:

Fabric: $60 for two yards (from Mood)

Batting: $32 for four yards (also from Mood)

Foam Board: $30 for two 30x40" sheets (A.I. Freidman)

Staple Gun + Staples: $15

Duct Tape: $4

3M Command Strips: $6

Total: $147 and about an hour and a half of actual work.  SCORE!

How To: Saber a Champagne Bottle

I always find it fun to have a few parlor tricks up my sleeve when going to a party, and I think learning how to saber a champagne bottle puts you on that 'renegade meets bon vivant' level of fabulous.  This trick is pretty top tier, so if you don't have the guts to pull it off in front of a crowd I suggest either practicing at home until you can't stand the taste of bubbly or stick to helping your hostess refill drinks. 

Important things to remember:

- Not all champagne bottles will work.

- Keep the metal basket on the cork.

- Use the dull side of the chef knife.

- Do not perform at homes where people have kids (fleshy, pink toes + tiny glass shards = disaster).

- It's more of a punching than a slicing motion.

Cheers!!

How To: Take Better Pics with Your Point-and-Shoot

I am a self-proclaimed frustrated photographer: I just never seem to be able to take pictures exactly how I want them.  For the past year I have been toying with the idea of buying a DSLR (fancy large camera with cool lens), but I just can't give up the portability and ease of my good old Sony point-and-shoot.  So, I am going to work with what I have and embrace my small sensor, low megapixels, and auto-everything.  Inspired by an article on GQ.com, here are a few tips to taking cooler pics with your pocket camera...along with some of my favorite pictures I have managed to take.

• Think of your camera as a visual diary.  Memories fade so take a snap of any time, place, or person you want to remember when you are old and senile.
• Go for candid shots.  Forget cheesy fake grins, the sorority squat, and other equally boring photos.  Go for the sneak attack and get much more interesting pictures.  I recently read an interview of Annie Leibovitz where she said she died a little inside the first time she saw her daughter put on a fake smile for a camera.  Go for real.
• Fill your frame.  Get close up, use the macro setting, and shrink the background.  
• Get down on their level.  When shooting kids or pets, get to their eye level.
• To flash or not to flash.  I personally hate the flash, and I try to take every picture without one.  If you are looking for a very Terry Richardson/American Apparel look, stick with the flash.  Otherwise, try to loose it when you can.
• Take the un-obvious angle.  You don't shoot postcards for a living, so mix it up.
• Portrait of self taken by self.  I am so incredibly guilty of this it is sick.  I am the queen of the arm in front holding the camera hoping to get more than a sliver of my face in a shot.  I must remember: A) just ask someone to take my picture if I'm alone, B) almost all cameras have self-timers.
• Put your camera away at concerts and sporting events.  Enjoy your concert and sport events and keep the cameras to a minimum.  I saw Lady Gaga over a year ago at Terminal 5 and so many people were taking pictures and video, she actually stopped the performance to tell people to put that crap away and just enjoy the show.  Looking back I am glad I snapped a few shots, but most of them turned out horribly anyway.
• Black & White.  Change up the tones with your photo software.  Black and white or sepia give pics a cool vibe and a classic look.  Perfect for weddings.  I also totally dig toy cameras.
• Trash them.  For every 5 pictures you take, delete four.  Only keep the best, most interesting ones.  Everything else it just clogging your computer.
• Get prints made.   Don't just upload your pics to Facebook...actually get copies made.  For Christmas this year, I am going jump on Snapfish and get my friends prints of the best pics they have taken this year.  I like to opt for the glossy finish and white border to add a dash of class.