Saturday, December 25, 2010
Merry Christmas!!!
Happy holidays to everybody!! I hope y'all have a wonderful Christmas with your family!
Friday, December 24, 2010
It's Like a Puzzle
1. Old green gear
2. old barn fan
3. old shutter or barn wood or maybe a clear acrylic top....(undecided as of yet)
The result will be a pieced-together coffee table. The wood will have a hole drilled through the center so that the fan shaft can go through. The green gear will go on top of the wood, welded to the shaft, so that you can turn the gear and thus cause the fan blades to spin underneath. Ahhhh. A breeze for your feet. Just what we need in the Texas summer!
I will post a picture of the finished product in January when I get around to completing it!!
2. old barn fan
3. old shutter or barn wood or maybe a clear acrylic top....(undecided as of yet)no picture at this time
The result will be a pieced-together coffee table. The wood will have a hole drilled through the center so that the fan shaft can go through. The green gear will go on top of the wood, welded to the shaft, so that you can turn the gear and thus cause the fan blades to spin underneath. Ahhhh. A breeze for your feet. Just what we need in the Texas summer!
I will post a picture of the finished product in January when I get around to completing it!!
Thursday, December 23, 2010
Enlightenment
My hubby and I looooooove industrial furniture and we found these amazing lamps at auction a few months ago. I have purchased alot of parts at Canton and estate sales, and I will soon be making some just like them!!!!
Prize Worthy
These are easy to make--the hard part is finding the horse ribbons!
I bought the oval frames at a garage, and simply removed the glass and sanded off the original brown stain. Then I sprayed on a Kilz primer. After an hour, I sprayed on a coat of antique white paint. I went back later and applied a swipe or two of walnut stain as a glaze. It goes on dark, but after some rubbing, it fades to a nice glaze finish.
Once the frames were painted, I used the back of the frames to cover with cotton batting and a natural-colored cotton duck. I just hot glued the batting and the fabric on. Then, refasten the backing to the picture frame.
As a decorative embellishment, I hot glued on some vintage millinery velvet flowers to the top of each frame.
Pin the horse ribbons in place and hang!!Instant wall decor for that horse lover in your family!
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Mean Green
I purchased a green cabinet at Canton First Monday last spring. I loved the beautiful green paint and the wooden latches and the gate hardware. My husband, Aaron, couldn't see why in the world I just had to have it!! He kept asking me where I thought I was going to put it!
It was originally a mechanic's cabinet from an old shop in Texas.
It sat in my garage for months and months. Finally, I found a welder in town who made a base for it.
Now it is an amazing side table. And one of Aaron's favorite pieces of furniture!
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Monday, December 20, 2010
Saturday, December 18, 2010
Friday, December 17, 2010
Sunday, December 12, 2010
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
Sunday, December 5, 2010
Saturday, December 4, 2010
Repurposed Mail Sorters
Aaron and I bought two wooden mail sorters this summer and hung on to them for 6 months, waiting to turn them into tables in our new home.
On the first one, we made legs from black pipe and flanges.
The second mail sorter has a base that I asked our trusty welder Kirk to make. (It's resting on paper towels until I add the caps that will prevent the legs from scratching our wood floors!)
I love the sheen of the old wood, the wear on the edges, and the wire dividers. There are even some original metal tags for labeling the individual slots.
On the first one, we made legs from black pipe and flanges.
The second mail sorter has a base that I asked our trusty welder Kirk to make. (It's resting on paper towels until I add the caps that will prevent the legs from scratching our wood floors!)
I love the sheen of the old wood, the wear on the edges, and the wire dividers. There are even some original metal tags for labeling the individual slots.
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Time to Experiment
This summer, I found some old Pyrex laboratory equipment at my local junk shop. In the pile were two tube-like glass pieces with drip valves at the ends, some beakers, and some glass hypodermics (which I didn't get). The pieces were sitting outside in the elements, neglected. So, I decided to give them a sheltered, indoor life!
At the time, we were living in an apartment while our home was being built. Alas, my husband would not let me keep it laying on the end table--to him it looked like something that could be interpreted as meth lab equipment!! I have to admit, it did look a bit questionable just sitting out like that....but I had grand plans for them!!
I had purchased some vintage cabinet fronts at First Monday Trade Days a while back, and I thought they'd make great display boards. Having no old hardware to attach the funky drip tubes to the cabinet fronts, I had to make some.
There are a couple of ways to do this. One is to use muriatic acid. Just dip new hardware in for a minute, pull it out, and rinse the acid off with water. This has to be done with goggles, gloves, and outdoors. I used to do this until I was let in on a little secret from my uncle & aunt: apple cider vinegar. This second way of aging hardware is much easier & safer. Simply pour some vinegar into a tupperware container, and let your hardware soak overnight. Rinse it and viola! Instant old hardware!
I used the vinegar-aging process to make four shiny, new broom clips look like oil-rubbed bronze. Then I simply screwed two clips onto each cabinet front. I wired the Pyrex lab equipment on for extra measure.
At the time, we were living in an apartment while our home was being built. Alas, my husband would not let me keep it laying on the end table--to him it looked like something that could be interpreted as meth lab equipment!! I have to admit, it did look a bit questionable just sitting out like that....but I had grand plans for them!!
I had purchased some vintage cabinet fronts at First Monday Trade Days a while back, and I thought they'd make great display boards. Having no old hardware to attach the funky drip tubes to the cabinet fronts, I had to make some.
There are a couple of ways to do this. One is to use muriatic acid. Just dip new hardware in for a minute, pull it out, and rinse the acid off with water. This has to be done with goggles, gloves, and outdoors. I used to do this until I was let in on a little secret from my uncle & aunt: apple cider vinegar. This second way of aging hardware is much easier & safer. Simply pour some vinegar into a tupperware container, and let your hardware soak overnight. Rinse it and viola! Instant old hardware!
I used the vinegar-aging process to make four shiny, new broom clips look like oil-rubbed bronze. Then I simply screwed two clips onto each cabinet front. I wired the Pyrex lab equipment on for extra measure.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)