Bud vases are kind of the bee’s knees. You can give one away as a gift, cluster them to create an arrangement, or place a single vase on your bedside table for a clean, minimalist look. We’ve embellished a variety of vases in the past, from color-blocked vases to pattern-dipped vases. And now, in time for Easter decorations, Mother’s Day, and belated Valentine’s gifts, here are 10 clever ways to spice up any basic bud vase.
Materials:
– 10 vases
– spray paint
– chalkboard paint
– chalk pen
– flat back pearls
– sequins
– embroidery floss
– paint pens
– lace
– contact paper
– glitter
– washi tape
Tools:
– scissors
– spray adhesive
– hot glue
– paint brush
– painter’s tape
Instructions:
1. Determine designs using all of your materials.
2. Decorate your vases.
3. Add flowers and you’re done!
We raided our supplies closet to find all these colorful goodies for embellishing!
1. Washi Tape: Find two or three rolls of washi tape that look awesome together. Then have at it on your vase.
All you need to do is add strips of tape to create a unique design. Easy peasy.
2. Chalkboard Paint: Oh chalkboard paint, we really do adore you.
Grab your painter’s tape and stick some to your vase to create a straight line. This will block off a section for you to paint. Add a layer of chalkboard paint to the bottom half of the vase. Let it dry and continue to add paint until it’s no longer streaky. Once it’s dry, grab your chalk pen (these create a cleaner look that old fashioned chalk) and write a word or draw a design. This one is so classy.
3. Contact Paper: We went with gold contact paper for these. No surprise there! It looks so good, we can’t help ourselves.
Cut out shapes that you’d like to adhere to your vase. We made triangles, but polka dots, lines or squares would also be cute. Peel off the backing and then stick the paper to your vase.
Flat Back Pearls
How cool are these flat-sided pearls? We’ve used them before to trick out shoes, and we’ll use them again. And again. They are perfect for embellishing everything.
To add them to your vase, just add a dollop of hot glue to the back and stick them on the vase. The glue dries very quickly, so you have to be quicker — just make sure you don’t burn yourself!
5. Sequins: Sequins aren’t only for making gorgeous clothes, they can also bedazzle so many projects. We’re adding some to our vases to get that polka-dotted look.
Carefully squeeze a drop of hot glue to the back and then press them to the vase.
6. Embroidery Floss: This one is SO EASY yet so chic.
Cut a long piece of embroidery floss. Glue one end to your vase with hot glue, and then wrap it around and around and around until you get the desired look. Add another bit of glue to the end and you’re done.
7. Lace: Just like sequins, lace is not only for pretty clothes.
Add a strip to your vase to give it that delicate feel. Hot glue works for this material as well, so place a bit of glue to one end, wrap your lace around the vase, and then glue the other end. We completed ours with two strips, but you could add more or less, or combine it with paint or embroidery floss. There are so many options.
8. Paint Pens: This is your chance to get really creative. All you need to do is draw a pattern on your vase with paint pens.
We did this on paper first to make sure we created a pattern we liked, and then we copied our favorite design onto the vase. You can make shapes, patterns, or intricate drawings with these awesome pens. Or you can write a word or phrase on your vase. Go wild with this method!
9. Color Block: Here’s the trick you’ve been waiting for — color blocked vases.
Stick some painter’s tape to your vase creating a line. Now tape the parts of the vase that you don’t want covered in paint. Spray paint has a mind of its own, so you should make sure the section you want to keep white is completely enveloped in tape. That goes for your clothes too! Don’t cover yourself in tape, but make sure you’re wearing something you don’t mind getting messy. Spray your vase, let it dry, and then peel your tape to reveal a block of color.
10. Glitter Dip: Oh what? You thought we forgot about glitter? Never.
For this vase, you’ll go through the same process as the color-blocked vase. Create your line with painter’s tape and then cover the sides you want to keep white. Add a thin layer of spray adhesive to your vase and then douse it in glitter. So fun! Give it a few minutes to dry and then carefully pull back the tape.
So many vases to choose from!
We recommend choosing three options and then making little clusters. Add some flowers and then adorn your house with gorgeous buds.
Which ones are your favorite? We’d love to hear your thoughts!
Welcome to Selfmade Finance School, our new money series with Block Advisors to help small business owners with their tax, bookkeeping, and payroll needs year-round. This week, we explore the tax implications of bringing family members into your business.
The question for today is this: Does hiring your family members make sense for your business? Let me be clear. This is not a piece about whether hiring your family members makes sense for your relationships with those family members. As someone who is part of a family business, I could fill up a lot more than 600 words on my opinions about that. For today's purposes, we focus on whether it makes sense from an overall "good business and tax implication" perspective. As it turns out, there is a decent amount of tax nuance when it comes to employing your family. Let's break it down based on relationship to the employee:
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Spouses Who Are In Business Together
Personally, if I had to be in business with my husband, it would not go well. However, many couples build viable, strong businesses together and I say, good for them! Depending on how you have your business entity structured, it will make a big difference on the tax treatment of you and your spouse working as partners. Because a business jointly owned and operated by a married couple is generally treated as a partnership for Federal tax purposes, the spouses must comply with filing and record keeping requirements imposed on partnerships and their partners. The election to file two Schedule C (Form 1040) forms, (one for each spouse) permits certain married co-owners to avoid filing partnership returns, provided that each spouse separately reports a share of all the businesses' items of income, gain, loss, deduction, and credit. Under the election, both spouses will be subject to self-employment tax and on net earnings from self-employment and receive credit for Social Security earnings.
One Spouse Employs Another
If you have a dynamic where your spouse is an employee of your business, then your spouse's wages are subject to income tax withholding, Social Security and Medicare taxes. If you are self-employed (not a corporation or a partnership), your spouse's pay does not have to be included in your federal unemployment tax account (FUTA) contributions and payments. However, if your business is a corporation or a partnership you must include that spouse's pay in your unemployment tax contribution calculation.
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You Employ Your Child
First, let's be clear. I work in my family business, but I am an adult, so I am treated just like a normal employee. However, if you, for example, run a family restaurant and want to hire your children under 18 to work for you, there are some tax benefits. But first, you should check with your state for rules on how many hours minors can work (in non-agricultural jobs) and reference the Fair Labor Standards Act for information on limitations on the kinds of work children can perform.
"This is an often overlooked or under-utilized strategy. Paying your children for true services they provide in your business can be a powerful tax-saving tool," says Cathi Reed, Block Advisors Regional Director. "If you are a sole-proprietorship or single member LLC, and the child is less than 18 years of age, the business is not required to withhold FICA or payroll taxes. The child can use his or her standard deduction against income you pay."
You Hire Your Parent
Oh dear. If you are brave enough to do this, know that you will need to pay Social Security and Medicare taxes on your parent's wages and make the appropriate withholdings, but you don't have to pay unemployment taxes. Now all you have to do is convince your parent that you are the boss. Have fun with that!
Is Hiring Family Members Worth It For The Tax Benefits?
"There are some positive tax advantages to hiring family members. It's important to treat a family member like any other employee. Hiring your children can result in substantial savings for businesses. Make sure your child has real, age-appropriate work to do and a reasonable pay rate, comparable to other employees. Consult with a Block Advisors small business certified tax pro to ensure that you are complying with all requirements," advises Reed. "Block Advisors, a team within H&R Block, is dedicated to meeting the tax, bookkeeping and payroll needs of small business owners year-round. To start working with the tax experts at Block Advisors, visit blockadvisors.com."
In my opinion, you should not hire a family member solely because of the tax benefits. You should always hire based on whether that person is right for the job and keep in mind how this hire could materially impact your relationship with that person and others in your family. Finally, as I mentioned, make sure you have a tax professional on your team when making these determinations. As you can see, things can get a little tricky!
*All details were sourced from IRS.gov and blockadvisors.com
The opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and may not necessarily reflect those held by Kestra Investment Services, LLC or Kestra Advisory Services, LLC. This is for general information only and is not intended to provide specific investment advice or recommendations for any individual. It is suggested that you consult your financial professional, attorney, or tax advisor with regards to your individual situation. Comments concerning the past performance are not intended to be forward looking and should not be viewed as an indication of future results. Securities offered through Kestra Investment Services, LLC (Kestra IS), member FINRA/SIPC. Investment advisory services offered through Kestra Advisory Services, LLC (Kestra AS), an affiliate of Kestra IS. O'Keeffe Financial Partners and any other entity listed herein is not affiliated with Kestra IS or Kestra AS Investor Disclosures: https://bit.ly/KF-Disclosures