Everyone loves a good IKEA hack, and I’ve truly been so excited to share this DIY IKEA Billy bookcase hack since the day I started the project. Kate here, and today I’m finally sharing the full step-by-step process I followed to create my studio office built-in bookshelves!

When we moved in, this room off the garage was pretty much a plain box and a blank canvas. This separate space was a huge selling point for us in this house, because my ultimate goal has always been to have a standalone music studio and office. I knew there was a ton of potential here, and after pinning a ton of photos of built-in bookshelves I knew that would be the perfect focal point for my office.

of all the seasons to decorate for, I have to say that fall is by far my favorite. there’s something magical about the crisp air, the autumn colors, and though it sometimes pains me to admit it, even the #PSLs.

as someone who has always pinned pic after pic of fall front porch decorations and painted pumpkins, (see our roundup of favorite pumpkin decor ideas here) I knew I had to DIY my own take on minimalist halloween decor this year.

I’m not one to go too crazy in the fake leaves and scarecrow department, so I wanted to find something that still felt like it fit with our sunny and 75 LA weather this October. The perfect solution? Pumpkins painted to look like a desert oasis!

I don’t exactly know when it happened, but at some point in my early adult life I think I accidentally stopped having hobbies. Can you relate?

Today I’m sharing some of the best life advice I ever got, and spoiler alert - it’s all about how having hobbies makes us happier.

I’ve been wanting to write about hobbies and why we should be deliberate about having them for awhile, because it’s a topic that gives way to an even bigger conversation about how we choose to spend our time and what’s important to us.

There’s nothing I love more than an easy DIY project that packs a big punch, and this wallpaper art in my music studio is a perfect example!

I installed this wallpaper art as a feature wall behind my music desk to ground it in the space, but you could also use this exact technique to make a really easy DIY wallpaper headboard (which I kind of want to do in another room now!) This wallpaper feature wall was one of the quickest and easiest DIY projects I’ve done in this house, but it makes a huge impact and I really love how it turned out.

Ever since I can remember I’ve loved testing out every new kind of pen, marker, or paintbrush I could get my hands on, and today I’m taking you guys through the basic fundamentals of one of my favorite art forms at the moment - brush lettering!

If you follow me on my personal/musician IG account you’ve probably seen me post about how much I love brush lettering, especially in watercolor paint and India Ink. I’ve been brush-lettering my song lyrics for a few years now, and after many requests for a how-to series I thought it would be fun to show you guys the basics!

In this post, I’m going to take you through the basic technique of brush lettering, because once you have that down you’re pretty much good to go. I’ll take you through the steps and best practices for creating consistent letters every time.

Throughout 2020, I picked up more hobbies than the last ten years combined. I guess that’s what happens when we’re homebound for nine months straight, right?

Hey guys — Courtney here, and today I’m talking about my recent fascination with sewing and everything I did to get started.

I have absolutely loved learning how to sew over the last few months and am excited to share my go-to beginner sewing supplies and how I got started.

If you’re anything like me, the craziness of 2020 has motivated me to pick up a plethora of new hobbies. Once the pandemic started, I realized that when I got bored, I would just pick up my phone and doom scroll. I quickly learned that it was not good for my mental health, so I decided to switch up my routine and began exploring different crafts.

Courtney here — and today I’m showing you how to make macrame coasters! This DIY macrame tutorial video. Macrame coasters create the perfect, boho-inspired gift for birthdays, holidays, and even for yourself (we have like ten in our living room!). It’s so cool to me that you can start with just six pieces of string and see it turn into this amazing work of art that’s functional too. I have loved experimenting with different colors and patterns and I’m excited to show you all how to do it!.

If you’ve been following us on social media, you’ve probably seen a bunch of dreamy desert scenes pop up in your feed this past week. That’s because I (Kate) have spent the past 6 days running around sunny Palm Springs, CA speaking at an extremely cool conference for creative women entrepreneurs called Altitude Summit - and I haven’t been able to stop taking pictures of literally everything.

If you’ve never heard of Altitude Summit, or ‘Alt’ Summit for short, you’re not alone. I didn’t know what it was until about six months ago, but I’m definitely glad I do now. It’s basically a super inspiring coming together of artists, entrepreneurs, writers, speakers, and creators of all kinds - and it’s full of nothing but dreamers!

Today I wanna share a little photo diary of some of the highlights of my week at Alt, and a few powerful takeaways I left with.

Every year I wait in anticipation to see what color Pantone will choose as their color of the year (proud design nerd here) and it’s always fun to find ways to work that color into my life. It felt like this year there was extra pressure to choose a great color for 2020, because after all, this is the debut of a new decade!

As far as I’m concerned, Pantone did not disappoint. Turns out the color of the year for 2020 is Classic Blue, and it seems to be a crowd pleaser. After all, we’re talking about the color of blue jeans, the ocean, and one of three colors on the freaking American flag. Feels like a good choice to kick off the 20s.

I usually do some kind of roundup of favorite ways to rock the Pantone color of the year, and this year I thought I’d focus on independent designers and small labels.

After replacing my phone last week due to yet another phone shattering episode, I glanced at the number of photos on my camera roll to discover that there were - wait for it - 22,375 pictures in there. The photos date back to 2017, but STILL - that number is ridiculous.

This same digital photo overload is what prompted me to start rethinking my photo organization when I first started printing my photos back in 2015. Now that we all pretty much have a super sophisticated camera in our pocket wherever we go, we take a LOT of pictures. and I’m not just talking about the 48 selfies it takes to get a good one (been there). We’re capturing so many aspects of our lives every day, but the question is what on earth do we actually DO with all of them?

with crunchy leaves season upon us, I wanted to share some of my favorite easy, non-cheesy Halloween DIY ideas. i love a good DIY, but nothing makes me more bummed than when I attempt one and it comes out looking like something I made when I was 12 during the Halloween day at school where everyone came in costumes and got to DGAF around all day gluing stuff and eating candy corn. so i thought i’d round up some of the web’s best DIY Halloween projects that are fun, quick, easy, and sophisticated spooky.

today's color crush post is down to earth AF- literally. i'm so into all of the natural, earthy tones popping up all over the place lately, and terracotta is my current standout fave. it's showing up in home decor, textiles, makeup, and even workout gear right now, and it gives everything such an inviting warmth. another thing i love about this color? it pretty much works all year round, season to season. 

when i was a kid, i used to bring a little notebook along on vacation (more than likely it was some super lit Lisa Frank one) and write about all the stuff we did on our trip. i SO wish i knew where those notebooks were. not only does travel journaling help you preserve awesome memories, it also provides a really cool on-the-go creative outlet. i find that when i'm traveling, i don't get as many chances to be creative unless i'm really mindful about it, and this new style of travel journaling that seems to be all over insta just might be the answer. the notebooks are small, easy to pack, and the pages are blank which means endless possibilities. my favorite journals are the ones that combine writing/diary entries, photos, and sketching or drawing. 

with spring in full swing, i'm diving deeper than ever into my houseplant obsession. i regularly stress dream about my fiddle leaf fig, and i'm not sure if i should be admitting that on the internet but it's true. plants have brightened up my house so much, and they're kind of like tattoos (strangely addicting) so once you start it's tough to stop. since the weather's getting warmer, i'm also getting ready to outfit my balcony with a few new plant adoptions, and i've been on the hunt for some fun, relatively easy ways to DIY some cool planters. luckily, the internet overfloweth with such ideas.

in the midst of my new year closet cleanout kick, i've recently found that- like probably every chick ever- i own WAY. TOO. MUCH. JEWELRY. jewelry used to be the thing i'd add to my pile of stuff on the way to the register, because when it's inexpensive it feels pretty harmless. but the thing is- now i have tons of those cardboard multipacks of stud earrings still lying around, and the couple pairs that i didn't like as much as the others are still attached to the cardboard and just sitting there. it's driving me nuts and i decided it's time to control it. not just the earrings- ALL of it.

it's the holiday season, and these chilly wintery months are perfect for bold, rich, jewel tone colors. i'm currently obsessing over everything aubergine- a gorgeous, deep shade of violet with a really beautiful blend of both warm and cool tones. it's beautiful on pretty much anything- dresses, shoes, accessories, interiors, exteriors, lids, lips, and just about everything else. i think a bold aubergine lip would be totally amazing for a holiday party, and i'm officially on the hunt for the perfect lipstick in this swoonworthy color. read on for some serious velvety aubergine inspo.

ok guys, it's officially crunch time. for those of us who consistently put everything off until the last minute, including holiday gifts, this week is that week where you realize it's time to get your shit together. i'm a huge fan of holiday gift shopping- it's been really fun to shop some of my favorite local boutiques and small businesses this year, and it's a blast picking out something you know someone you love will love. so, in the spirit of checking everyone off the list this week, we rounded up some of our favorite creative ways to wrap your those awesome gifts you spent so much time selecting this year.