DIY Garland: Family Playroom Update

Happy Monday, friends! I hope you had a great weekend. We celebrated our little guy’s first Tae Kwan Do belt promotion. Proud mama, for sure. We have made some fun progress in the family playroom which I wanted to show you today. I made my own garlands to hang over the children’s toy corner. I had seen them  here and here and knew I needed my own. I chose to save money and created my own DIY version for less than $10. Even better, my daughter helped me in the process. I love that they add a fun and whimsical touch to the space. They are made from paper rather than felt, but you could easily use felt too. This area is of the playroom is home to all of the toys. We lined the corner with Ikea Expedits. I have a love affair with them for their practicality and their clean lines. They hold such nice big bins for toys. I happen to use these bins but Ikea sells many choices as well. The garlands also remind me of the motif on the rug.   In the photo above you can see a sneak peek of the costume tree we made not too long ago. And you might also be able to see that the Expedit covers part of the window and so the drape could not fall to the floor. A little tip with that is to just tie it in a knot and let it rest on the bookcase. It looks casual and can be untied at any point if you move your furniture around.   The kiddos love using their costume tree and play dress up or put on shows at least once a week. It’s also fun for them when friends come over. The toy corner is right next to our round table. I love this table. My hubby and I bought it from a consignment store when we were first married. I only painted the bottom of it and it has been so great for crafts, games, projects and sewing.   Speaking of sewing, the garlands were really simple to make. Just pick up your favorite colors of cardstock at your local craft store. I freehanded the triangle shapes by cutting long strips of paper an cutting them at a 45 degree angle. The circles were created from a punch. To make the garland literally ran them through the sewing machine pausing about 2 inches in between each one. TIP: As you run them through, hold on to the one that you already ran through firmly. . . that will help as you feed the next one through. I left a long enough amount of thread on each end so that I could hang them from the ceiling. And I only used blue thread because my machine was already threaded with blue. Gotta be honest!   The labels on the bins are actually luggage tags I picked up years ago. They came with the letters on them and the stand for what is in each bin. ie: balls, trains, cars, etc. The art above the bookshelves is a DIY project I will share with you soon. They are a great spot for us to display some of our favorite Instagram photos.   To attach the garlands to the ceiling I used thumb tacks. They were originally silver so I stuck them in a cardboard box and gave them a quick shot of white spray paint. Now they blend right in with the ceiling. I wrapped the end of each thread around the thumb tacks a few times an then inserted it into the ceiling.   The toy corner is off to one side and this photo lets you see the playroom update I showed you last time.  That is where we have our art gallery made by the children and our TV. It’s definitely our family movie watching spot! … The chess table was also a DIY project from a while back. It is actually a reversible table.  Lately we have been throwing down some mean games of Monopoly Junior there. Some of our favorite toys include the money set. The kids love playing restaurant especially with the felt food I showed you not too long ago. And the toy below belonged to me when I was little so it is extra special. In fact, most of our toys are either from us when we were young or passed down from our nieces and nephews.   ..   My kids love to lay down and look up at the garlands. I must say they look pretty cool when you are under them. And just to be clear, the rug is rarely cleared off. Most of the time it is a restaurant or a full train set up! And I wouldn’t have it any other way. {The rug is from Target but they no longer carry it}. … So there you have it! Easy DIY garlands and our toy zone. And if you are not up for making your own you can find a cute rainbow colored one here. This room is usually a disaster on a daily basis and I am totally ok with that. It is upstairs and tucked away so I don’t have to look at the mess. I love that the kids enjoy being creative up here and often make forts, create art projects, or put on shows. Once a week we do a major clean up {they know where everything goes and really do a great job of making it look like the above photo}. I need to get a lens that will take a photo of the whole space for you. It’s a rather large room and is hard to capture. I will share the blue and white polka dot art makeover with you soon! Enjoy your day. I am off to plan my Thanksgiving menu. I better get on it. Can you believe it’s next week. Where is time going? UPDATE: Toy Storage Bin Link