Young House Love

Home Decorating & DIY Tutorials

Posts by Sherry Petersik

Sherry Petersik is one half of the duo behind the award-winning home improvement and do-it-yourself design blog, Young House Love. Together, she and her husband John have renovated seven homes, published two New York Times Bestselling books, and designed products sold in Target and Home Depot. They are currently enjoying their downsized home on Florida's Gulf Coast with their two kids and their dog, Penny.

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The Best Christmas Trees, Lights, & Holiday Decorations

Over the last 17 years, we’ve decorated a whole bunch of houses for the holidays and it means that we have favorite methods and items when it comes to decking the halls. And why is finding the best Christmas tree lights so hard?! The point is, we’ve tried a ton of holiday decorations, and this post is your one-stop shop for photos, ideas, info, and links to our favorite things – from the faux Christmas trees that we like best to our go-to outdoor lights (if you ask John’s special eyes, there is definitely a correct temperature). In this post we’ll cover all of our favorite: Wherever possible, we’ve linked to the actual items we’ve

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2023 Holiday Gift Guides

Just like for our 2022 Gift Guides and 2021 Gift Guides, we’ve put all three of our gift lists in one place (this post right here). So, without further ado… let’s dive into the 3 categories that we cover every year: We have fun making these each year, and always include things we actually own & love as well as items that we’re actually buying for others in our family (from our own kids to each other – and for relatives and friends). It’s probably helpful to point out that nothing was sponsored/gifted in order to get into this guide. If something is on these lists, we just genuinely love it (and in many cases,

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How We Organized Our Ikea Pax Closets

It feels like a miracle, but we’ve gone from absolutely zero closet space in our bedroom (when we moved in we just had dressers) to having just as much space as our last house’s big walk-in closet! We’ve previously covered how we installed Ikea Pax wardrobes and how we made them look built-in, so today we’re throwing open every door & drawer to show you how we’ve organized them. If you’re looking for tips to maximize your storage & specific products that can make it feel more customized, this is the post for you. It should be said upfront that neither of us have what we’d call a large amount of clothing (although I’ve always

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How To Unclog A Bathtub Drain

Excuse my excitement, but yesterday at exactly 5:41 pm I told our clogged bathtub drain who was boss. I did it all by myself while John was at work (gotta love girl power) and without spending a dime, calling a plumber, OR using chemical drain cleaners like Drain-o or Liquid Plumr. Victory is mine! So we’re gonna share every trick we tried, and what eventually worked best. We received nearly 200 crowd-sourced techniques on yesterday morning’s post (FYI – this post was originally published when we lived in our first home)! We even had some plumbers weigh in with expert advice! Unclogging Techniques We Tried Before we turned to our readers for help, we tried

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Aura Quartz: Crystal Meaning & Properties

Aura Quartz is a special variety of quartz known for its vibrant iridescent coloring. It’s found under many names and varieties, like rainbow quartz and angel aura quartz, depending on its coloring. These quartzes can be somewhat controversial among crystal collectors due to how they get their iridescent coloring. But I own several of them because they’re beautiful. Even more so in person! What is Aura Quartz? Aura Quartz is a natural quartz crystal with manmade modifications to create its signature iridescent appearance. This “aura coating” is created by fusing precious metal particles like gold or platinum to the surface of the crystal in a high-heat vacuum chamber. Some believe this enhances the quartz’s metaphysical

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How To Make An Upholstered Headboard

Adding a headboard to your bed is one of the best ways to add polish and coziness to your bedroom. And, lucky for you, making your own DIY upholstered headboard is super easy and affordable (ours only cost $66!). This means you can customize the fabric, size, and design to get exactly the look you want. Believe us, we’ve done A LOT of them over the years! Today we’re going to take you through the step-by-step process to create the first headboard in the grid above (top left). It’s our favorite, classic headboard tutorial. But you can check out more headboard ideas below: Materials & Tools Your exact supply list may vary from ours, but generally,

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Ocean Jasper: Crystal Meaning & Properties

Ocean Jasper is a beautiful stone known for its rarity, soothing powers, and colorful spherical patterns. It’s prized by collectors due to its unique history and limited availability since the one and only place it exists on Earth is closed to future mining. Ocean Jasper comes in a variety of colors including green, gray, pink, blue, yellow, and white. Its patterns range from wispy banding to bold colorful orbs, meaning no two pieces are alike. It’s typically sold as polished stones, crystal towers, or jasper jewelry. I have both a large tower and a small polished heart. What Is Ocean Jasper? Ocean Jasper is a rare form of jasper found only on remote coastlines in

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Rainbow Fluorite: Crystal Meaning & Uses

Known as one of the most colorful minerals in the world, rainbow fluorite is a mesmerizing multicolored crystal with distinctive purple, blue, and green banding. Beyond its obvious decorative qualities, it’s enjoyed around the world for a multitude of manufacturing benefits – and many believe it has metaphysical properties as well. What Is Rainbow Fluorite? Rainbow fluorite is a multicolored variety of the mineral fluorite, also called fluorspar when used in manufacturing. It is the crystal form of calcium fluoride which, like table salt, is a member of the halite family. Fluorite is an abundant mineral that’s most commonly found in Mexico and China, but also in the United States, Spain, Russia, and more. It

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Green Aventurine: Crystal Meaning & Properties

Green aventurine is a special type of quartz that’s characterized by sparkling metal fragments embedded within it. It’s found in a variety of colors, but green is the most common (and my personal favorite!). Like its color might indicate, it’s thought to be the luckiest gemstone and is said to bring prosperity and good fortune to those who hold it. I definitely love decorating my shelves and tabletops with it. The subtle green color is just gorgeous. What is Green Aventurine? Aventurine is a form of quartz that’s characterized by mineral inclusions that give the crystal a shimmering or glistening appearance. This effect is called “aventurescence.” Different kinds of mineral impurities produce different shades of

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A Quick Way To Hang Curtain Rods

Here’s a simple trick we used to hang curtain rods FAST and EVELY in our duplex rental. We had 16 curtain rods to hang in one afternoon, so we devised a simple & free way to minimize measuring, while keeping everything looking level and equally spaced. This should take a lot of the headache out of hanging new curtains, especially if you’re doing more than one window in your room. Plus, the trick is totally free! For this installation, we’re using affordable curtain rods like these that you can get at most big box stores and these ring clips. We also are hanging simple $14 white Ikea curtain panels using this trick for making Ikea

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Fiddle Leaf Fig – Care Guide

Fiddle leaf figs are equally beloved and notorious in the houseplant world. When they’re big & healthy, a fiddle can make a room. We’ve all seen the glossy magazine shots to prove it. But they can also leave you feeling like a good-for-nothing plant killer when they droop & die. Luckily I’ve got some simple methods to keep your fiddle leaf fig happy, thriving, and looking its best. Fiddle leaf figs (Ficus lyrata) are native to African rainforests, so they thrive in sunny and humid environments. So the better you can recreate those conditions for it in your home, the happier it will be. That’s why keeping a fiddle leaf fig alive boils down to three

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Blue Calcite: Crystal Meaning & Properties

Blue Calcite is a rare version of an otherwise common mineral – and it’s one of my favorites to collect! Calcite is found all around the world and is a key ingredient in limestone, marble, and other building materials. Blue calcite, on the other hand, is a beautiful crystal that’s less common and is said to have calming properties. It definitely has a peaceful look to it – like a soft blue sky or peaceful blue waters. I have several blue calcite crystals in my home, like the large one on the open shelves in our bedroom. Their rich moody color and polished surface looks good with everything, and definitely adds a nice calming vibe.

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