This week was the official release of a book I’m so proud to have worked on—The $50 Home Makeover by Shaunna West!

It’s a GORGEOUS book, all thanks to Shaunna’s stunning photography. She really has a talent for capturing bright light and pops of colors. She’s also an incredible businesswoman, who’s built her Perfectly Imperfect brand through her blog, online store, and her physical store in Alabama. If you’re not sure how to turn your creative passion into a career and eventually get a book deal, follow her!

She also had a lovely book launch party at her store (read about it here), which made me wish I could jet off to Alabama to buy pretty things in her shop and celebrate this fantastic book.

I acquired and edited this book when I was still an editor, and it’s exciting to finally see it in stores. There are a ton of projects I mentally earmarked to try when I was reviewing the page proofs.

I would love to try her idea for customizing affordable Ikea curtains, especially since we’ll need curtains when we move into our new apartment in September. All you do is buy plain curtains from Ikea and then fancy them up with a swash of gold paint. They look so elegant and timeless—like you spent big bucks on them!

The book also has a great tutorial for painting builder grade cabinets and making them look chic and expensive. And there’s an equally fantastic project for adding a pretty frame to a builder grade mirror, so that it has more personality.

Photo by Shaunna West.

This is the perfect book if you’re feeling very stuck in your home and don’t have the budget or the time to take on big renovations. It’s amazing what a coat of paint and a few bucks can do if you have just the right inspiration.

Go pick up a copy of it, curl up on the couch, and start taking in all the pretty! You’ll be surprised how inspired and excited you’ll be to make your current home your dream home.