What Is It?

I'm sure you are asking yourself...What is it?

Well...it was part of a structure that kept the snow off the roof of our camper (which we don't have anymore).  Anyway, I found it out behind our garage and I thought I could put it to good use, so I took it into the shop and gave it a good sanding. 

This is before:

This is after:

I love the color of the wood even if it's just 2 x 4's!

After I finished sanding it, I removed all the dirt and dust and hung it here...

Over our bed.  Hmmmm....does it look like an "architectural" piece or three 2 x 4's bolted together? 

What can I say...our room needs a major makeover!

So, what do you think...does it stay or does it go?  Thanks for stopping by...have a great week!
Lesa

Christmas in May

I've been wanting to paint this little table with a Christmas theme, but as the holidays approach I run out of time and never get it done, so I decided that this would be the perfect time to get the job done.

This is what I started out with...a simple round pine table...

This is what I transformed it into for the holidays...

Thank you for stopping by for a visit!  Have a great week.

Lesa

Message Board

It's nothing that hasn't been done already, but I wanted to share it with you anyway.

I had an old window frame and decided to do the "chalkboard thing" with it.  I didn't make it for myself, but for a craft show that my sister, Jill, convinced me to do.  It's not until November, but it's four days long so that means I need alot of stuff!  This is one project that I will be selling.

So, back  to the chalkboard...here's what I started with...

I sanded the window frame and then applied a couple of coats of creamy white paint.  I sanded it again to expose some of the old paint and wood and then applied a dark walnut stain to the top to give it a warm, aged appearance.  I measured the two window inserts and cut my 1/4" mdf to fit.  I gave the boards three coats of chalk paint by Decoart, letting each coat completely dry.

I secured the chalkboard inserts into the back of the window frame.

I then decided to cut the letters to spell "Messages" out of the same 1/4" mdf.

I just used my computer to print the letters and then traced them onto the board.  I cut the letters out on my scrollsaw, gave them a light sanding to remove any rough edges and then stained them with a dark walnut stain.  I used hot glue to secure them to the window frame.  I then secured a self-levelling hanger to the back for hanging.

One project finished...I have alot of work ahead of me!!  Thank you for stopping by...hope you have a great week!

Lesa

Table Centerpiece

I'm not really sure if this is worthy of posting, but I'll share it just because and, yes, it's another pallet project!!  I needed something for my kitchen table so I started with this...

I cut it down to make it look like a rustic box.  It needed handles on the sides but I wasn't about to head downtown to buy some, so I cut two blocks of wood from the leftover pallet wood, added a large screw to each block of wood and hung these hook thingys (they do have a name) on the screw to make them look like rustic handles - not functional and just for "show".

I had flowers that were given to me so I put them in the box...

I also tried using a bunch of artificial daisies...(real would be much better!)

Whatever I decide to use, I think this will be a suitable and functional kitchen table centerpiece...for now.

Thank you for stopping by and taking a look...have a great day!

Lesa

The Making of a Collage

I finally figured out what to do with one of the two large window frames I bought last year for $10.00.  I decided to make a collage of my kids and use the window as the frame.  I know, this is nothing new, but I wanted to share my "creation" with you.

I started out with this...

One side had glass and the other did not, so I took a hammer and smashed the one remaining pane out of the frame.  Once the glass and all the sharp edges were removed, I sanded the entire frame to clean it up.  I had plans to paint it, however, the green paint on the frame actually matched (almost) perfectly with the green I had painted my entryway, so I decided to leave it as is and apply a dark walnut stain to the surface to enhance the wood grain showing through the bottom.

Next, I cut two pieces of glass to fit inside each window panel.

Now the hard part...finding enough pictures of my kids to make a large collage and, I have to admit, this was the tough part.  I've never been one to take alot of pictures and I discovered that I didn't take very many as they were growing up.  (regrets!)  Anyway, I gathered what I could and started attaching them to acid-free foamcore.  I then matted each collage with a creamy white matboard.  I secured the collage behind the glass and attached picture hanging hardware to the back.

I then cut the letters "love" from 1/4" mdf board using my scrollsaw and a small heart from scrap plywood.  I covered the heart with sheet moss and stained, painted and sanded the letters.  I attached the letters with hot glue and used jute twine to attach the moss heart to the frame.  The window frame already had a hole in it so I thought I'd get some use out of it.

I'm quite happy with the way it turned out.  It measures 5 ft. x 30" so it covers a large area in my hallway.  Now I just need to figure out what to put on either side of it.

Thank you for stopping by...I hope you have a great weekend!

Lesa

Sheet Moss Heart

Here is quick and easy project to create that you can use pretty much anywhere in your home...its a sheet moss heart.

First, make yourself a heart template out of paper...any size or shape.

Then, trace it onto a piece of wood.  I used plywood, but you can use any type of wood because it will be covered.  After cutting it out, quickly sand it to remove any rough edges.  Next, drill a hole at the top of the heart.

Cut the sheet moss into strips and start gluing to the heart.  I just covered the top and the sides and left the back bare.  Once it is entirely covered, staple chicken wire to the back of the heart and trim.

Thread a piece of ribbon or burlap through the hole and tie a bow.  Now its ready to hang.

Thank you for stopping by...have a great week!

Lesa

Rustic Heart

I wanted something rustic looking to lean on the shelf in my entryway and this is what I put together out of, your guessed it...pallet wood.

It was a quick and easy project...I cut these pieces from pallet wood and bought four (4) hinges:

I stained the wood with a dark walnut stain and spray painted the hinges with oil-rubbed bronze spray paint.   (make sure to spray paint the screws as well!)  I then gave the heart a coat of creamy white paint.  When it dried, I sanded some of the paint off to reveal the wood underneath using 100-grit sandpaper.  I then drilled a 1/2" hole at the top of the heart...large enough to thread a piece of jute through the hole.

After gluing the frame together, I attached the hinges at each corner.  At this point, I wasn't sure how I was going to suspend the heart...but I decided to attach a piece of chicken wire to the back of the frame.  Now I can attach the heart to the wire with a piece of jute. 

Very easy and very simple...and, if I get tired of the heart, I can easily remove the wire and insert a picture!

Thank you for stopping by.  I hope you have a great weekend!

Lesa

Pallet Stars

After finishing the pallet storage for my kitchen countertop, I realized I still had another storage piece to use.  I didn't want it to go to waste, however, I couldn't think of where to utilize it.  However, thanks to Holly over at "Down to Earth Style", (which is a beautiful blog by the way) I remembered that she used hers as a flower box and hung it over a doorway...looks great!  I didn't hang mine over a doorway, but chose to hang it over my window seat in the kitchen.
Anyway, it still needed something on either side of it, so I decided to make a couple of stars.  I wanted them to have the same texture as the pallet box so I made the stars from the leftover wood.  Of course, the wood wasn't wide enough to cut out a star so this is what I decided to do...cut all the star points separately and then join them together with twine.

I stained the wood with a dark walnut stain and then thread the twine through the holes I drilled into the points.  I attached a small self-leveling hanger to the back and hung them on either side of the flower box. 

Thanks for stopping by...

Lesa