Shutter Headboard

 This is still a work in progress, but....I've already lost several pictures, so I decided to go ahead and post the progress so far.

 I'm redoing one of the bedrooms in my house to be a beach themed room.  I wanted to make a shutter headboard with some old shutters I have.  I laid them out and lined the top (even though some are a little shorter).  I screwed them to a 2x4 I laid across the shutters horizontally so they remained even.

I then added 2 2x4's (I screwed into the 2x4 that went across the back) to become the legs of the headboard.  I'll eventually mount the whole thing to the wall, but so far...so good...not too shabby for three 2x4's.  The size will depend on your bed.  This one is going with a full size bed, so I just measure the 2x4 I put the shutters on to be the length of the headboard and the shortest shutter begins below the mattress line.

Shabby Chic Bedroom Tour

   

Two years ago I redid my bedroom.  A lot of it was DIY.  It all stemmed around wanting to incorporate a marble dresser that belonged to my grandmother.  Here is a long blog post with links to the before and after.
     Tomorrow, pending breaking news, Good Morning, Texas will be airing a segment I pretapped with some of the DIY projects that literally started at the dumpster.  I'll post that later to facebook.
I decided to do a walking tour of my room too.  So here is that link on youtube.
      It's the first of three bedrooms I've redone.  I'm in the process of collecting items and I just built a shutter headboard for a beach themed room.  So...expect to start seeing those post over the next few months....just as soon as I actually do the projects...and then photograph them!  But...it's coming to a blog near you soon.  A lot is pending on my brother's willingness to get to work on the flooring I want put in, and apparently he doesn't work with my schedule I'm supposed to work with his..imagine.  But....I think the two should be merging soon!

My Great Grandmother's Sister's Desk

 I'll eventually post a picture of this desk sitting in it's new home...I'm just taking my time finding the perfect items for the innards.  I do a lot of crafts....thus the blog, but this one was really personal.  I loved this desk when it sat in my Mom's room.  It had been her desk when she was a little girl.  At that time it was already 50 years old.  Now....it's working on more than 100 years of surviving and thriving in our family.

 Before it was her desk, it was her Mom's, and before that it was her Mom's mother's sister's desk.  Her sister died when she was just 24 years old.  Once upon a time this desk was red.  At some point it was stained white and antiqued.  It's had several hinges, and was down to one hinge....that then broke, and the outside shelf fell off...and split in two.  Age wasn't kind to the coloring.  I found little pieces of tape that petrified to the wood....I have a feeling I was responsible for that.

 I enlisted my brother to fix the desk portion and I then I made my first foray into chalk paint.  I realize, I'm late to the party.  I was told by my friend that I missed the party completely and chalk paint was 'out.'  I don't believe that-I still see chalk painted items-real and fake in every store I visit.  I also found some for sale at JoAnne's.  I used a coupon to make it even cheaper.  I bought some the color of 'sheepskin' and some brown and clear wax.

 The deal is you aren't supposed to have to sand old paint off-it's supposed to cover it up completely.  I'm not so sure if it's this particular paint, but mine did not dry smooth.  It crackled a little.  In the end-that was the look I was going for-so it saved me some sanding etc to make it look more aged.  All that to say-if you want a smooth coat-don't paint over fifty year old paint...if you wanted crackle-use this.

 I then took some of the brown paint and rubbed it along the edges and made some streaks across the white panels.

 I took a wet paper towel and started streaking the paint around so that it looked more 'aged' and uneven.

 Once the brown wax dried I covered the whole thing with a thin coat of clear wax.

 I let is rest for 6 days-per the instructions.

 There were a few things I bought new-one were these little glass handles (from Hobby Lobby-half off-so 4 bucks total).  The original handles were long gone.

 The old hinges were missing pieces...I decided to leave the indention b/c I kind of like the stories they tell.  The priciest part of these projects were these new old hinges I bought on ebay.  I wanted them to be authentic to the time.  I found two antique 'butterfly' hinges.

I decided the arms were just not worth finding antique-since I'm keeping it-I think it's fine.  I had my brother attach these pieces.  I love that it folds out to become a desk you can write on.  My FAVORITE part are the little cubbies at the top.  The little drawer in the middles pull is actually a little nail.  I spent hours messing with these cubbies when I was little....and I have the crayon remnants to prove it on the bottom of the drawer.  

I also repainted the chair.  These have now found a home in my room.

Shabby Chic Bedroom Before and After

 You know those before and after photos you see on TV...where in the first photo the person is frowning, wearing their sweats, and sticking their belly out (which pretty much defines me on the weekend)...then picture two is the sequined dress, full make up, and spanks?  That's what this feels like....except I tried to take before and afters with this bedroom relatively neat.  The above photo is the 'before' shot.  I liked this furniture fine.  I bought it twelve years ago when I moved into the house-rustic, I loved the canopy, and this comforter (hard to see) is still one of my favorites, but there just wasn't a lot in the room that I found comforting.  I wanted to surround myself with pieces of 'me.'  This stuff may eventually get a second life in another room of the house, but first....the blue rustic became the shabby chic...

 I've been posting about a bunch of projects in the room...more on that in a minute-first-the before and afters.  No more canopy. New headboard made from pallets.  Add a trunk, and swap out the night stand.

 The rocker stays, I just switched out the blanket.
Below was the 'before' dresser-lots of storage room...

 Now, this was actually a gift from Kelly's Mom-we saw this at an antique store in Forney.  She surprised me with it- it was imported from England.

 Random spot behind the door.  The switch by the door doesn't lead to the fan, it leads to this plug, so I've had this little light I had picked up at Ikea with plans to replace it....for the last 10 years...

 Now....these lights and this old door.  I did several different techniques to cover those ugly cords both here and here.    I just repainted the chalkboard with some crackle antique paint.

 This is the 'sweat pants and frown' picture....I took this before when I was tossing some of the things I was finding FOR the revamp (old locker baskets etc) on top of the armoir...no more ugly storage spaces.

 Now....one of the main reasons I did this-so I could put my Grandmother's marble top dresser into my room.  I have a thing about 'seeing' TVs.....I don't like to....so I had to do the little frame collage behind this set up so it would be a 'part' of the collage.  Kind of.

 Here are a few of the details close up.  I found the mirror above the dresser at another antique store.  I made this faux mercury glass lamps.  Here are those steps.  And the book wreath I also made to fill that little spot.  My Mom was getting rid of some of HER books from high school, so I decided to use those for a craft to hang a little bit of her history here.

 The books were my great grandfathers and grandmother's.  Under the glass dome are some bible verses that were also at their house, but we grew up reading around the dinner table.  I put some bracelets in the tin.

 I'm a collector of buttons and safety pins.  Not on purpose.  A lady I babysat for gave me this little jewelry holder years ago, the mirror was on my vanity growing up, and the cross is from my mentor, Mr. Middlebrook after his visit to Israel.  He brought it back for me.  He passed a few years ago, but I've kept it close as a memory of our shared faith, and loved of learning.

 The salt shaker is another little random piece I've had for years.  I said I was going to collect hat pins...right up until I saw how much they cost.  I've had a total of two forever.  I'm really into layering right now.

 I'm also really into tarnished silver.  I had a bunch of these little frames through the house and I wanted to put them in a little collection, so I hunted down the most 'tarnished' tray I could find at an antique store.  These are an assortment of family members.  I put the tray on an old lamp stand with some randomness below as well just to give different height on the dresser top.  I'm sure I'll rework this 7 more times before this blog post, but....that's the fun....I doubt I'll ever 'finish' this project.

 I didn't want matching furniture anymore.  I've outgrown order.

 I had this window from a trip to Tennessee and a stop at a store there.  I made this little wish banner a few weeks ago...and added more photos that had to come down in another room of my house b/c it's also getting a make over.

 This is one of my favorite things.  This mirror was my great grandparents.  It's etched and hung in the entryway of my house growing up.  It used to bother me that it is missing a little of the molding.  Second to this molding, that is now some of my favorite parts of this piece.

 I'm a book-a-holic, so I've collected old locker baskets and drawers and fill these with books all over my house...and room.

 Random fun-my cousin gave me this photo of us when we were younger.  One of the most thoughtful gifts I've received.  I loved that he did this....and inserted this picture I don't think I've ever seen.

 Again...I'm currently into layer.  I've been collecting little frames for awhile, not sure what I was going to do with them....now I know...

 More pictures from other rooms I wanted to relocate b/c those locations are 'under construction.'

 New mirror.  Old frame.

 The church gave me this little plaque when I was born.

 Dresser top..

 Love this little pencil holder I found....it houses my chapstick.  I'm an addict.

 More baskets by the rocker....I store all my appliance chargers in this little toolkit.

 This trunk was my grandmother's hope chest.  It's a little extra 'seating.'

 I'm a fan of the senseless pillow.  I'll probably make 6 more of those before this post too.  Here is one pillow tutorial.  I kept the mirror, I had found that out of town a few years back....but I scraped the blue off that drew me to it b/c I could see white underneath.  I kept just enough of the blue so I could 'remember.'  I also uncovered some peach....and a few layers of my own skin during the process.

I snagged the bedside table with antiqued mirror top on sale at a furniture store-modeled after a piece at a flea market in France.  Old and new.  This is me.  I love that even the pieces I've bought had a story to tell.  The only story this room told before was about the factory in which it was built and shipped.  I needed more memories and pieces of 'me' in this room.  I still have a ways to go, but...I'm enjoyed the process.  

Hiding Cords

 I recently bought these three lamps for one corner of my room.  There was a LOT of chain and wire to deal with.  I already had used a cord cover I put together on another little chandelier and I wanted to try out something different.  I google searched and never could find anything that really liked.  What I did find was a bunch of old lace at an antique store and I decided to put this to use.  I also bought some burlap ribbon.  It's not like anyone is going to NOT know there are cords there, it's just a matter of making them a little less unattractive.
I took the different laces and burlap and wove it through all the chains.

 I also had an old door that I used to cover the cords going down the wall.  I added a mirror I found at Hobby Lobby to give it a little more flair.