Home decor can be so expensive and so exhausting sometimes.  We get caught up in the fanciness of it and sometimes get lost in it and forget about natural, simple decorations that can spice up any space.  Here are a few ideas that you can decorate your space with things you probably already have lying around the house!

{Fill a vase with your favorite fruit- a cheery, organic decoration.}

{Candy jars bring out a youthful energy and add color to your space.  Use any leftover jar and add some sweets.}

{Wine cork memories.  Save your special wine corks from occassions to remember.  Fill a nice bowl with them and it is not only pretty to look at, but a fun conversation starter for guests.}

{Books as home decor.  What we read tells a lot about ourselves and this should be on display, not tucked away.}

I was watching a local show and they were doing this fun, easy recipe that I knew I had to try!  It is very basic- you make a cheesecake filling and use Oreos as the crust… how genius!

Ingredients:

• 1 package Oreo cookies, divided
• 3 bricks (8 oz. each) cream cheese, softened
• 1 c. sugar
• 3 eggs
• 1 t. vanilla

Directions:

• 1. Line muffin pan with 30 cupcake papers, then place 30 Oreo cookies in cupcake papers.  Preheat oven to 325.   
  2. Crush remaining Oreos into crumbs (you can use a ziplock bag to avoid the mess!)
  3. Beat cream cheese until smooth.  Beat in sugar, eggs, and vanilla until blended.  Stir in crushed Oreos. 
  4. Pour batter into cupcake liners, almost to the top.
  5.  Bake 20-25 minutes (until a toothpick comes out clean.)  Cool and keep refrigerated.  Enjoy!

Yellow is such a sweet color that gives a playful and carefree vibe. Everyone should have a couple signature yellow pieces in their closet because everyone can pull off a little yellow energy.  Below are a couple yellow favorites… one top: do not wear them all together!  With bright colors, less is more so choose one or two pieces and keep the rest neutral.

I absolutely love summer and I never am the one complaining about the heat.  To cool off, popsicles are my favorite treat but store bought popsicles never compare to homemade fruit popsicles because they have lots of dye and unnatural ingredients.  I found this recipe on another blog, Armell} the blog.

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups of fresh or frozen fruit of your choice, chopped
1 1/2 cups yogurt, plain or vanilla
1/2 cup milk

Place all the ingredients in a blender and blend well until smooth.

Pour mixture into popsicle molds (or Dixie cups!) and freeze in freezer for a few hours or until solid.

* To do multicolored pops.  You can half the recipe with another color fruit.  Place the mixture in 1/2 or 1/3 of the way full into the popsicle mold.  Freeze for about a half hour, then place the next layer, and so on.  To get the white middle layer, pictured above, add 1-2 tsp of agave nectar to plain yogurt and used it as a layer.  The pink layer is strawberries, and the purple layer is blueberries.

If you have never been to this store, you are definitely missing out.  A friend of mine told me about this accessory store mall.  When I walked in, I was excitedly overwhelmed by the color coordinated plethora of clutches, bangles, hats, earrings, scarfs– you name it, it’s there!  The best part about it is that all of items are extremely affordable.  Think Forever 21 prices but more selection and quality. To find a Charming Charlie in your area and learn more about them, go to www.charmingcharlie.com

Here are a couple items that you can find at Charming Charlie:

Lux Evening Bag, $24.97

Fire & Pearl Earrings, $9.97

Bollywood Necklace, $12.97

Embellished Floral Sandals, $24.97