{DIY} Pine and Copper Shelving Unit

Two weeks ago my husband was on a business trip in Switzerland for 1 full week and left the three of us behind, I am including the dog too. I thought it would be a great opportunity to do some remodeling of our master bedroom, something that has been an eye sore from the first time I attempted to make it nice. Unfortunately due to Pinterest and it's popular demand, everything that I wanted for the bedroom is on back order and I am still waiting for the missing pieces to complete the room. So I am going to give you a little sneak peek to the Master. This is a going to be a great tutorial on a shelving unit I came across on Pinterest. I saw this on Treasure and Travels, she is the original brain to this masterpiece. Her pictures were priceless and I also needed to have it. The only thing is, there weren't directions. So that is what I am here for.

Get a piece of paper and pencil and jot this down:

10 Floor Flanges
2 Copper Slip Elbows
12 Copper Pipe Straps
6 Copper Slip Tee Fitting
3 Four Foot Shelves (or however long you want your shelves)
20 Feet of Pine Dowel (you want to make sure you buy 5/8 round so that it fits snug into your 3/4 inch Fittings
Toggles
Screws
Gorilla Glue
Miter Saw
Drill
Level
Stud Finder
Spray Paint (to paint the floor flanges, I went with copper)
Double sided tape

First you're going to cut your pieces of wood. I wanted 4 foot shelves so I didn't cut those down at all. I lightly sanded the corners and left the rest as is.
You are going to need a total of 16 dowels. It is your choice of how much space you need between each shelf. I wanted to put the TV on a shelf so I decided to have one shelf slightly bigger. So, that being said I cut (6) 1.5 ft dowels, (2) 2 ft dowels and (8) 11 inch dowels.
Once you have those cut, put them aside. You now need to cut holes into your shelves so the dowels and tee fittings can come through.  I used a piece of printer paper as a template and placed that on my shelves to mark my holes.

Then drill your holes and sand them until they are smooth and your copper fittings fit snug. The easiest for me was to lay everything out on the floor and put it together and make sure that it worked.

Once you have everything the way you like it, it's time to install. Begin with the bottom. Take your stud finder and mark the studs on your wall. If there aren't any use toggles.

Take (2) 1.5 ft dowels, 2 Tee Fittings, (2) 11 inch dowels, 4 floor flanges (2 for the floor and 2 for the wall), and 1 shelf and set it up against the wall. Mark your holes in the flanges that will attach to the wall. Secure with screws. The 2 flanges that will be on the floor I secured them with strong double sided tape (if you want to screw them to the floor go ahead).

Then add on with another set of 1.5 in dowels followed by copper fittings followed by (2) 11 inch dowels and shelf. Repeat with the same attachment method all the way to the top. The last 1.5 inch dowels will have elbows instead of a tee fitting to finish the look. If you want to put an extra shelf on top feel free. Before decorating go back and gorilla glue all of the wall flanges to the 11 in dowels and secure with copper brackets and 2 screws.

If there are any snags along the way please reach out. I am happy to help. Sometimes its easier to work out the kinks together.

Confession: We're Jealous Of This Haircolor.

I'm actually really surprised that more of our clients don't bring in hair inspiration pictures like these:

Come on !!! Little girls have the most perfect hair color, agree?!

I've heard it a million times, "my hair used to be so blonde when I was little!" 

I'm so happy this natural looking highlight trend is so in style right now. Here are our tips for getting the look the next time you're with your hair stylist:

|1| Bring in inspiration pictures. Your idea of blonde highlights and the stylists vision could be completely different. Here are some of our favorites:

|2| Ask for Bayalge. Instead of using the more traditional foils in your hair, your hairstylist will actually hand paint the haircolor on. That way she can customize the look- blonder and bolder around your face and blonder towards the ends of your hair. ie- just like that natural highlighted hair you had when you were little!!

|3| Balayage can be alittle more time consuming and costly. Please be sure to take great care of your hair at home. It just kills me that my clients will spend hundreds on getting their hair colored and go home and use drugstore hair care. Just don't use it, please!!!  

Are you ready to take the plunge into more natural looking color?!

Leave us your questions or concerns!

Welcome to the Neighborhood!

June 4, 2015 Milwaukee, Wisconsin became home to West Elm. West Elm is only the greatest store to ever exist...well in my opinion. Don't worry Target I have love for you too. But seriously Milwaukee, we are lucky. It has been open for not even 2 weeks and I have been there twice. I also happened to be the first one in on opening day. I sound like a stalker... I kinda am. I got there around 9:30 and watched their ribbon cutting ceremony from across the street and then patiently waited a few seconds to ran over. It is seriously beautiful inside. It is located on the corner of St. Paul and Milwaukee across the street from the Milwaukee Public Market. This location was  the second home for Lindsay and I. It had formally been called the Institute of Beauty and Wellness where Hello Brunette and Hello Blonde learned their craft.

West Elm takes mid century furniture and modernizes to work with all sorts of decor. From tapered legs and clean lines to reclaimed wood furniture. They do it right and really at a good price. They carry beds, dressers, tables, dishes, and pretty much anything you would find at Crate and Barrel...but better.

Thanks to an app called Polyvore I was able to create an inspiration board for my next project with some great pieces from West Elm. I absolutely love the Acorn bed with the nice tapered legs and clean lines. The side table which obviously could be used in a living room would make for a simple night stand. Black and  white artwork is never out of style and looks great with natural wood. And that rug...i love rugs!!!! It is from Etsy and I know they are ridiculously expensive but it adds all the color that room will ever need.

A great addition to the West Elm Milwaukee is their designated area for local artists. I was able to pick up a triangular ceramic hanging planter and airplant. Stay tuned for pictures. It is so beautiful. They also team up with Etsy sellers and display their work through the stores around the US. If you head out to NYC they have a West Elm that will blow your mind. I want to live inside of there.

Not only do they have great items they also have free in home decor consultants. I have no idea if that's what they are called but that pretty much means if you have no idea what to do in your space and need help they will come out for free and give you some ideas.

Sherwin Williams also carries a West Elm paint line that changes 4 times a year. If you sign up for their mailers you will receive coupons for Sherwin Williams and West Elm. The more you spend the more you save. HAHA isnt that funny?

Head over there today and show me what you find @blondebrunetteandbrass

How To Get The Perfect Salon Blowout At Home!

The power of freshly blown-out strands knows no bounds—confidence levels are higher, steps are peppier. If only we could figure out a way to fake the full, bouncy volume of a salon blowout in the comfort of our home, sans credit card… oh wait, we can help you with that!

Rule number 1

Wet hair is MUCH more susceptible to damage. It's much better to avoid brushing wet hair at all- wait until it's at least 80 percent dry to start using a brush. But if you have to use one to detangle the hair, we recommend The Wet Brush. It's amazing guys! The bristles barely pull at your hair- they're more movable and flexible. We use one of these bad boys on every. single. client. 

Rule number 2

BLOT your soaking wet hair. Never rub it or put it up in a towel. This will create friction, which creates frizz!

Rule number 3

Rub in a small amount of product only through your ends. This will help your blowout last sooo much longer. Hello no more greasy roots!

Rule number 4

Begin blowdrying your hair with your fingers and ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS face the nozzle of your blowdryer down. (As shown above) this will help smooth down the cuticle of your hair- again preventing frizz!

Rule number 5

Blow dry your hair using rule number 4 until it is 80 percent dry. THEN you can start using a brush to shape it into your desired style. Note: for all of you who battle with frizz and unruly hair- I feel your pain ^. My hair hates me too. 😉

Rule number 6

Divide your hair into sections. This will actually help speed up the process. I like to do 3 sections since my hair is alittle more difficult to manage. 

Rule number 7

Start blowdrying with your brush at the front hairline first. Tip- everyone's hair is alittle more fine around their front hairlines. That's why you tend to get those cute little curls around your face. 

Work towards the back section by section, again ALWAYS pointing the nozzle of your blowdryer facing down to prevent frizz. 

Voila! Now feel free to curl or straighten your hair how you like. But don't forget to apply a heat protectant on your dry hair before applying more heat. Have any questions? Please ask!

Copper and Wood Shelving

Why Hello!

I am so excited to share the new entry way shelving that I came up with after searching high and low in every store and internet shop ever invented. I knew I wanted copper..go figure, right Ali? I just couldn't find the right shelf.
I headed over to Menard's and searched around. I found these pieces of Solid Aspen and they were the perfect length for what I needed.

Now all I wanted was something copper to hold them in place. Have you ever seen these rods that have holes in them and you can hang the brackets on them where you choose? Well I had them as a kid in my parents house and all I thought was how bulky and ugly they were. Wow, what a difference a can of spray paint can do. If you are looking for copper spray paint the only place that carries it is Menards. I know right? Hello Lowe's and Home Depot can you please join the bandwagon?

So here is what you need

3- 48 inch Single Tracks Standards
9- 8 inch single track wood shelf brackets
1- can of copper spray paint
9- Toggles and Screws
Level
Screwdriver
Stud finder

If you have a stud finder use it to find the studs. In this situation I did not find any that where near where I wanted them. If this happens you must use toggles. They will be able to support anything heavy that you put on your shelves. Mark your holes and drill a hole the size of your toggle.

Take note that your toggle must look like this before being inserted into the wall.

Pinch the toggle together and put it in to the wall until you feel that it has opened inside the wall. Tug on it a bit if you can't pull it back out you have successfully installed a toggle.

Screw 3 toggles and screw combos into the wall per track. Repeat for the next 2 tracks.

 Once you have all 3 set up, install the brackets and shelves.

 I decided to use mine for plants. I can't have enough of them. I love them like a fat kid loves cake.