We're celebrating the 10th monthiversary in our new house today! 10. Months. Can you believe it?! I sure can't! I know I'm shocked every month this date rolls around but it seriously still feels like we just moved in last week. Time really does fly when you're having fun!

If you're new here, a monthiversary is where I recap all of the projects I've done around our house in the past month. This month's projects included:

• Our DIY'd $18 giant frame

• The second version of our dining room

• The great ceiling fan debate

• A weekend recap

• Gallery wall art options

• Google Reader changes

• Back patio plans complete with new furniture!

• Our framed vintage Alaska photos

• Our DIY'd gold leaf wood slice coat hangers

…and last but not least!

• Our front patio updates

I'll admit that the month started out pretty slow and I was in a bit of a rut but I feel like I finished strong! I don't want to jinx anything but I've been feeling pretty creative lately and have some fun projects lined up for the future :)

What was your favorite project this month? What would you like to see me do next month?

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Looking for past Monthiversaries?
1st Monthiversary | 2nd Monthiversary | 3rd Monthiversary | 4th Monthiversary
5th Monthiversary | 6th Monthiversary | 7th Monthiversary | 8th Monthiversary | 9th Monthiversary

Happy 300th post to me and happy Friday to you :)

Our foyer wasn't the only thing we fancified over the weekend! We also updated our front patio:

Aside from adding seasonal holiday decor, its pretty much looked like this since we moved in:

So inviting, right? I apologize for the horrible, awful sunny photo...

Anyway, about those updates! They started with the planters that my mom generously gifted me a couple weekends ago:

They're the short and tall Dundee planters from Crate & Barrel and I L-O-V-E them!

Amber at Wills Casa mentioned that they look like Modernica planters when I posted a sneak peek of them on Instagram. They totally do but both of my planters cost less than one Modernica planter which is awesome! I still want a Modernica one for inside though...

Anyway, my mom helped me plant a spineless yucca in one planter ($10 Home Depot score!) and a golden barrel cactus ($15 Home Depot score!) in the other:

Don't mind those blurry yucca leaves, the wind was blowing like crazy!

Both will have to be planted somewhere in our yard in a few years when they grow too big for the planters but that's assuming my black thumb can keep them alive that long haha

The other patio updates include our "M" and our striped doormat:

Why an "M"? Well, my boyfriend's last name starts with an "M" and even though we're not engaged/married, we've been together for 4, going on 5 years. I don't see that changing anytime soon so why not! Plus, an "M" seemed easier to make than a "K" for my last name haha

Stop by next week for a full DIY tutorial on how we made the "M" :)

In the mean time, check out our doormat! Doesn't it scream spring? It's from Target's Threshold line. I can't find it online but I think it was $16.99? Maybe it was only $12.99. I can't remember.

I'll be honest and tell you that I spent a good half an hour in the doormat aisle arguing with my boyfriend over which one we should buy. And then I spent another 20 minutes arguing with my mom about them the next day ... I'm such a delight haha

I wanted something neutral and boring but they kept insisting on the colorful ones. I'm happy we chose the one we did though because it ties in with our house colors so well and fine, I'll admit it, I like it :)

Please live little plants :)

I wouldn't say the patio is done-done but it's about 90% finished. I'd still like to add a door knocker (after I get over my fear of drilling holes in my door) and maybe a small bench under the "M" for seating. I don't want it to look like an outdoor restaurant waiting area or block the planters though so maybe not.

How about a before and after to finish out this Friday?

Ahhh, much better! Thanks mom :)

What do you think of our updates? Would you add anything else to the patio or stick a fork in it and call it done?

Psst: I'll be back on Sunday to celebrate our 10th Monthiversary :)

We added a little somethin', somethin' to our foyer over the weekend:

Can you guess what it is?

In case it's hard to see, I DIY'd a set of gold leaf wood slice coat hangers for less than $3!

To make a set of your own, you'll need the following:

• Wood slices // I used a set of wood slice coasters (from Target) that you may have seen here
• Gold leaf supplies // Gold leaf, adhesive size, sealer, a brush, etc. (all from Michael's)
• Hangers/hooks of some kind // I used vintage school locker hooks I got off of eBay a while ago
• Screws
• D-rings (AKA the only thing I had to buy) // 3 @ 95¢ each = $2.85 total!

I started the project by taking a few of my vintage school locker hooks outside:

So I could spray paint them ORB (oil-rubbed bronze):

While they were drying, I started to gold leaf the edges of my wood slices/coasters:

I used the same method that I used on my gold leaf agate slice coasters so feel free to read that post for more info if you've never gold leafed anything before (it's super simple!):

After the spray paint and gold leaf sealer had dried, it was time to put the coat hangers together.

To figure out where the hooks should go, I held them up behind the wood slices and rotated things around until I liked what I saw. When I did, I made sure not to move so my boyfriend could make marks for the screws (the pink circles):

After all of the marks were made, we screwed the hooks into the slices:

Then we added the d-rings:

Sidenote: the coat hanger on the right only has one screw in it because the wood slice split right down the hook line when we drilled the first screw in. We were worried that it would split completely in half if we tried to drill a second screw in so we left it alone. It doesn't affect the hook's abilities at all though so don't panic if it happens to you too! Or, you know, drill pilot holes like smart people do ;)

And just like that, our gold leaf wood slice coat hangers were complete!

Ready for some after photos?

I love how they make our awkward angled stair bump out feel a little less weird:

Don't need any coat hangers? Make one anyway but hang it in your bathroom to hold your hand towel instead!

I love their subtle gold edges :)

Last month I added a bench for my guests to sit down and take their shoes off on and now this month I add coat hangers for them to hang their things on?! Am I a good host or what? ;)

Who wants to come over and test these babies out?

What do you think of our custom coat hangers? Will you be making a set of your own?

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I'm sharing this project on House of Hepworths and Serenity Now!