Faux Barn Door Shutters

I've had this post ready for a while now, blogging just hasn't been a priority.  I feel the need to share today. :)  This "build along" is by no means the "proper" way to do anything-this is not intended for people who actually have building skills!! :)


I hope this little project is inspiring for all you self proclaimed "non-crafters", because I am not a great "builder."  I have been wanting these for a looong time, and I will be using this as a practice project for our cedar shutters on the exterior of our home.

You don't need fancy supplies for this, but you will need some lumber of choice, a ruler or tape measure, pen or pencil(or crayon in my case), a hand saw,   something a bit sturdy to brace your lumber while you saw(a large table and set of clamps is ideal for this, but you'll soon see what I used,) hammer and nails, wood glue, paint/stain and brushes...

Generally you would want to use aged, beat up wood for this, but I didn't feel like yanking rotty planks off our fence and I think Soup might not have been very appreciative to that idea, so the kiddos and I trucked out to my second favorite store (first being hob lob) and paid somewhere around 4 bucks for the supplies.

After you have gathered your bug infested, splintering, lovely aged wood, you want to measure what size you want your shutters.  I didn't write down what size mine are.

Mark off your measurements on your boards with crayon, and place the first board on your table and secure it with the clamps.  Or if you don't have them, place your wood on a bucket and get to sawing.  :)

I like to take the saw and "gnaw" at the top and bottom of my mark to give the saw a nice guide to keep it from wandering. 

The trick is to let the saw do the work.  Don't use too much force-be gentle and very slow at first.  Start by just repeatedly pulling the saw toward you.  After a bit of a work-out, you'll have your boards cut and a nice pile of dust to clean up.

I cut three boards, laid them out, and marked where I wanted my stabilizing boards to go.  I think I put them about 2 in from the top and bottom.  I did not measure these, I set one board across the tops of the previous 3 and marked the width. 

Do the same with the diagonal board.  Then dry fit them to make sure they piece together like you want.

At this point I did move my project to the dining room table. :) You can put your bucket, saw, measuring tape and broom away now.

Slap some glue on the back of your top three stabilizing boards and secure in place with nails.  Make sure your nails are long enough that they pass through both layers of wood, but not completely through your bottom boards, or you will get a barn door shutter embellished table, and that's probably not very chic. 

If you are using new wood, you will want to stain before painting. I didn't and I don't like the looks of mine for now...

I bought enough supplies to make a set of three, but only one is completed.  I do love it, though!

The Beast

Well, the new piece I've been dying to share is FINALLY complete! I am so relieved to have this bad boy D.O.N.E! 

I love a good French Provincial, and this piece had some great lines!  I busted out my brand new pot of chalk paint and applied one single, definitely not perfect, coat of old white.  After that, I sanded all the hard edges.  I didn't play by the rules because I was experimenting, and immediately applied dark wax once the paint was dry (directions say to apply clear first).

This is how he turned out!

I am in LOVE! After all the challenges this BEAST provided, I am very happy with the end result! 

Busy, busy, busy!

My sister was visiting this weekend, so I got to have some much needed sisterly bonding(+three sick babies).  We did some shopping and some pooling and a bit of cleaning!  It was a great weekend and I was bummed to drop her off at the airport. 

A fabulous result of our shopping weekend is this beautiful sideboard.  I spotted it at an estate sale, and nearly passed it up, but my shopping partner wouldn't let us leave without it! Thanks Sis!

It looks so amazing in my dining room!  Soup is dying to try it in the living room under our TV.

Each of doors open with this precious little key-the girls, of course, LOVE that part!

One cabinet contains two storage drawers, one for silverware-how handy!

After our action packed weekend, I took a break from furniture for the day and made something for myself.  I'm a bit obsessed with monograms, so I've been wanting to make a faux grain sack monogram pillow.  It turned out so cute, and I'm sad I didn't make it sooner!

More to come!

Back in Black!

Today Soup asked me, "Why do you paint everything?"  Hmmm.  "I don't know," I said.  I didn't really have an answer.  When it comes to the "to paint or not to paint," it depends on the piece.  It depends on what the piece says to me.  I know that's corny-way corny- but it's true.   Every piece I buy, the very second I see it, I can see a different appearance.  I can see a sad little chair with tattered cloth and beaten up frame all dressed up in different upholstery and fresh color on her skin.  Mostly, I like to drastically change a piece.  So when it comes to paint or to stain, I choose paint, because of the drama!   Now, I do have to say, when I see certain pieces that need to be restained because of the integrity of the piece as a whole, then I won't hesitate to restain it!  If that makes any rambling sense at all...

Here is one of the pieces that started the whole conversation: the precious little side table.

I do believe the chair has a scripty future! :)

  

Love Letter

I had a great estate sailing day today! Here is what I picked up.

Super cool mid-century side chairs.  I see a chic black future for this pair!

And a lovely Queen Anne style bench.  I have been on the lookout for a bench for as long as I can remember!  I couldn't wait to make this girl into something completely smashing! (I'm currently reading a British novel, and I gotta say, I'm lovin the dialect!)

I LOVE this fabric.  I hope you do too, because I'll be using it-ALOT! Hope you like how she cleaned up!

Pair of chairs

I scored these beautiful chairs a couple of weeks ago.  I love the cane back, and the cute little legs! 



I did not, however, like the lovely tan fabric and blue flowers...

Out came the sand paper, primer and chic white paint.  I reupholstered in a fun medallion print, and came out with a very nice little pair of chairs!

Stuck in the 70's?

Well, our company is gone for the summer, and we have finally taken a few days to rest and have some family time!  I got to catch a couple estate sales this weekend and came out with some great finds.

After a light sand and prime, I applied two coats of Valspar Shark Loop(picked out for Little Mister's old room by Soup.)  I gave them a light distressing, and the applied two coats of poly.  I put the original hardware back on because they add a feminine, polished, look to these masculine tables. 

Soup loathed these boys the minute I brought them in.  He said they remind him of a badly decorated 70's apartment...  

So what do you think?  Did I bring them out of the 70's? Whether they won Soupy's heart or not, I love them and I think they turned out exactly the way I wanted them to!