Saturday, June 30, 2012

Dollar Store Shadow Box Frame Re-do


I'm not a snob but, I don't usually shop at the dollar store. The last couple of weeks I've been doing my mom's shopping and she wanted some dollar store items. I have to say I found some good buys like these shadow box pictures $3 each for the small ones and $6 for the large one.

 I don't like the artwork but knew I could transform them into something completely different.



So I went to work taking them apart. Starting by carefully removing the staples from the back using a staple remover and a pair of needle nose pliers.

Then using a craft knife I carefully separated the backing from the frame and removed the picture hangers with a mini Philips head screw driver.


This was easy but a little time consuming.


Now to remove the decal from the inside of the glass. It easily scrapes of with a blade.


Seriously - This step took 30 seconds.


Once I cleaned it with some glass cleaner it was ready for it's new look.

The smaller frames where even easier to remove the backs - less staples.



 

I decided I was not real crazy about the stripes on the small frames. So I taped off the glass front and back.


And spray painted them with flat black spray paint.


I'm liking the solid black frames.


I decided to create a triptych out of the three smaller ones.

These pictures will end up on my gallery wall in the family room.
This is one of the pictures I have there already.


It's my favorite, a watercolor by a local artist by the name of Joseph Alleman. I purchased it a few years ago at the Salt lake City Arts Festival. And this is where I got my inspiration.

I know, I know - Great picture right?

OK, back to my project.

I'm using some birch branches and a little birdy (purchased at Micheal's).


I layed out the branches how I wanted them.


Then layed the frames over them to get an idea how they will look when finished.


Starting from one end I placed the frame face down and cut the branches to fit within the frame.




Once I had what I wanted I hot glued them in place. Be careful not to get glue on the glass, it's not impossible to remove but a little tricky. I used a piece of paper towel with Windex on it and a pair of tweezers to reach between the branches.


Looks good so far.


Continuing onto the next frame I aligned the branches with the first frame.
See where I am going with this?


Gluing the branches with hot glue allowed me to adjust the depth of the branches so they are not laying against the glass.


First placing a blob of glue where I want the branches and letting it cool and dry then laying the branches on top of the cooled glue before gluing in place.




I continued to fill all three frames.

Once they where all filled I picked of all the spider webs (strings) from the hot glue.


Then I decided where I wanted my little birdy.


I cut the wire attached to him (I've named him Gary) and hot glued him in place.



Almost done.


Added the picture hangers.


You could add the cardboard backing covered with fabric or paper -
 I chose to leave the backs open.

And here they are part of my gallery wall I am working on.




Now what to do with the larger frame?

Thanks for stopping by! Please leave a comment, I would love to hear from you.

Holly




























Thursday, June 28, 2012

Peas, peas and more peas

Todays harvest - I haven't been able to get out in the garden to pick peas until now having had foot surgery on May 30th. I finally was freed from my fashionable boot on Monday. This morning I spend 45 minutes picking peas and there is still more but it was getting hot and I'd filled this gallon ziploc bag so the rest will have to wait. I usually pick them and we eat them fresh. What we can't eat I shell and freeze for soups and stews the rest of the year.


My DH will be bringing most of these to work to share as we cannot eat them all and this is way to many to shell.

Thanks for stopping by!

Holly


Things we find Pinteresting Thursday



Monday, June 25, 2012

Creative Corner Blog Hop



Bye Bye 1980's Brass Knobs

I love spray paint!


There, I said it!

I love the way it quickly transforms just about anything. And the new Krylon metal finishes are so awesome you don't even have to prime your projects, and can spray right over rust.

So when I saw on Pinterest that people were using it to spray paint their old door knobs I got really excited because this is what my door knobs looked like.


Pretty  hideous huh?

My DH and I had talked many times about replacing them, one or two at a time but had never done anything about it.

Originally I was going to paint all the exterior knobs as well starting with my front door makeover Here but decided if that went wrong It wouldn't be good. So we ended up purchasing new knobs and deadbolts for all the exterior doors for $250. which makes the $15 spent on spray paint (3 cans) to paint the interior knobs and hardware even sweeter.

This is so easy, just take a Phillips head screwdriver and remove the knobs. I used a shipping box for painting. It works especially good to hold the screws up wright for painting.


I used Dark Bronze paint and let them sit overnight to dry before re-installing.

And Ta-Da! Now they look like this.



I taped the hinges off and sprayed some paint in the lid (make sure to use a rubber glove for this because it will spray back onto your hand) take a small paint brush (mine was about a half inch wide) and paint the hinges. I painted two coasts letting dry thoroughly between coats.




I am so happy with how they all turned out and it only took a couple of days and 3 cans of paint. I just have to warn you - the knobs are harder to put on than to take off
but you do get the hang of it after the first few.

My DH who was sceptical at first said they look great and the texture of the paint makes them easier to grip.

Win! Win!


Thanks for stopping by! Please leave a comment, I would love to know your thoughts.
Holly




Saturday, June 23, 2012

Creative Corner Blog Hop







Thursday, June 21, 2012

Things we find Pinteresting Thursday

Sunday, June 17, 2012

Creative Corner Blog Hop



Front Door Makeover












My front door was pretty sad looking and needed to be painted. I had put it off since we moved into our house nine years ago. I really hated the brass knobs and kick plate - ugh.

As you can see here it really needed an update.


We changed the window out from the standard wagon wheel style when we moved in but never got around to painting the door.

This is a temporary door - pretty bad huh?


 This ugly door my DH found at Re-Store Habitat for Humanity for $25 so that we could take the door down to sand, prime and paint it easier. After we are done we will return it to Re-Store. Great idea Huh? He comes up with some good ones. You can see here the inside is just as ugly as the outside.


Here is where my DH set up in the garage to sand and paint.


Here it is with one coat of paint.



 This is where it went wrong. My DH decided it would be easier with the door vertical so he brought it outside. This would have been OK except the wind was blowing and the cotton was flying - not to mention he used oil based paint.


Back to that later. Here is the door reinstalled (inside) I have sanded wiped it down and taped it.

I hate to paint with oil based paint so I went to Kwal Howells and asked the guy there. He recommended this water based acrylic enamel in a semigloss finish.


I rolled it on with a foam roller to get a ultra smooth finish.
It took 3 coats but looks fabulous - Love it!




Inside done, now back to the outside. It was bad,  I didn't get pictures but the finish was all bumpy and when the sun hit it, it looked even worse. So my DH sanded it down, then I sanded it some more and finally it was ready to paint again.

I waited for a nice day when the front door could stay open while drying. My DH took the knob and deadbolt off (I purchased new ones for all the exterior doors so they will all match - eventually) and then I got to work.
It took three coats as well.

I wanted to keep this hook on the front of the door for my wreaths but it was that ugly brass, so I sprayed it with dark bronze rustolium. Using a shipping box to do my spraying, I stuck the screws into it for easier painting.




Once dry I reinstalled it and added a new kick plate in dark bronze the same color
as the new hardware I purchased - Now it's looking good.


Now for the finishing touches - I added vinyl house numbers
I purchased Here for $10 + S&H.

I love the style of these numbers and they were so easy to install.


And then added a basket with a "Summer Welcome". Just in time for Summer.


And here is the before and after...


Another project done!

Thanks for stopping by, Would love to hear from you!

Holly








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