Ceiling Fan Update

My husband recently put a ceiling fan in the guest room. It's a used fan, but it's a Hunter and really good quality. The only problem with it is that it looked rather dated. It has the 90's brass color and the shades were not really attractive. Here's what it looked like:

I apologize for the quality of these pictures. It was extremely difficult to get anything with the way the lighting works in this room.

I didn't mind the brass so much, as the room as some industrial notes. So, I opted to try changing out the shades and see what happens.

Such a difference with almost no work. I added a $2 bulb cage from the hardware store and an Edison bulb and look at the change!

I love the look!  It just goes to show you not every change has to be drastic in order to make a difference. I finally finished this guest room, so I will be doing a reveal of the whole space as soon as I figure out how to work my new camera flash. Hopefully, it will help these pictures turn out better.

Don't settle for dull, live a refinished life!

Pinspiration #3: Mail Organizing Station

I was inspired by this lovely project from Beyond the Picket Fence:  

I needed a solution for my mail piling up all over the house. Here's my version:

I decided to put it right by the front door as otherwise the mail would just get left on the T.V. stand near there anyway.

FYI- my dad painted that painting for me and made the frame from old barn wood. Love it!

I already had all the supplies on hand for this project. I was digging around in the garage for a board when I found the piece of bead board already cut to the perfect width. Score! Did I mention it was already painted white? Double score! All I had to do to the backing was sand it a bit and antique it with a little stain.

I also had the books on hand from a previous auction buy. I just removed the covers, glued in fabric sides and screwed the cover right into the bead board.

Don't worry about the book insides, they will be put to good use! I thought the covers needed some extra hardware, so I glued some scrap-booking label parts I had lying around to the fronts.

Because I can't resist, here's an "action shot"

I love this thing! Hopefully, I can convince my husband to put the mail in here instead of laying it elsewhere.

Don't settle for dull, live a refinished life!

*Planning to share at: Metamorphosis Monday;  Made by You Monday; Time To Sparkle Tuesday Linky Party;  Whatever Goes Wednesday; Wildly Original Linky Party; Clever Chicks Blog Hop; Serenity Now Weekend Blog Hop; 

Burlap Planter Liner

I had a problem. I have a planter on my deck rail that has one of those coconut liners. But after a couple of years it looked like this:

Try as I might, I could not find another liner that would fit in the basket. I started thinking about the materials I had around the house that might do the job. That's when I thought of this:

A pile of burlap left over from various furniture projects. Aha! I took lined the basket with several layers of the burlap and filled it up with dirt:

Time for the flowers!

I put in some alyssum, pansies, and blue ageratum. I wasn't too sure about using the burlap, but shortly after I planted this, I saw this post over at Penny's Vintage Home where she lined an entire shopping cart to use it as a planter. I wish I had that shopping cart to use as a planter!

I planted this a few weeks ago, and it has filled out some. I will post an update pic after awhile to show how the flowers are doing.

Don't settle for dull, live a refinished life!

Last Minute Wedding Gift

I needed a last minute wedding gift last weekend (we were invited last minute because they weren't sure there would be enough room at their venue). I has seen this tutorial on Brassy Apple where she took letter stickers, put them on fabric, painted over them and then peeled them off to reveal the fabric underneath. I was in the thrift store and saw an ugly print in a frame, when it hit me. Why not use the same technique on a print you would never in a million years hang in your house?

I bought a print in a frame for $1. I cut letters out of clear contact paper using my Cricut and SCAL software (no sense in wasting vinyl on this).  I put the letters on the print like so:

Okay, I know it's hard to see clear contact paper, but if you look really closely, you can see a few of them toward the top.

Then I spray painted several thin layers over everything:

After it dried completely, I peeled off the letters to reveal this:

I love the result. The vintage tone of the print underneath is really neat. I did spray over the whole thing with a clear coat for a little extra protection. I probably would have put an extra something in vinyl on either side of the date (a heart perhaps?) but the couple I was giving this to is a little more minimalist than I. This project might be my go-to wedding gift from now on.

Don't settle for dull, live a refinished life!

*Shared at:

     

What Did I Do With It? #3

Last time on What Should I Do With It Wednesday I posted this. I was thinking about making into a lamp or pendant light some how, but after the suggestions in the comments, I decided to go much simpler.

A little burlap with some stenciling and this is what I got:

I got the image from Karen at The Graphics Fairy here. I printed it out as is, laid the burlap over top of the printout and traced it with a black fabric marker. Here's a close up of the bird:

I just tied the piece of burlap with a string I pulled from the burlap itself. I think it turned out great. What do you think?

Don't settle for dull, live a refinished life!

*Shared at:

What Should I Do With It Wednesday? #3

I'll be posting the results of the last What Should I Do With It Wednesday (#2) later. This week I'd like input on what to do with this:

It's a great wooden spool. It measures about 7 inches tall. I was thinking of making a lamp stand out of it. Or maybe a pendant light. What do you think?

Don't settle for dull, live a refinished life!

*Shared at:

Rake Wine Glass Holder

I've been seeing this everywhere on Pinterest and in the blogosphere. Taking this:

and making it into this:

Here's a few tips for making your own. First, figure out how you're going to hang it. My rake head was pretty bent, so if I wanted to put the nail in the middle of the handle on top, I had to bend it. Remember that this will get pretty heavy with glasses on it, so either make sure you hit a stud, or put an anchor in the wall. I actually ended up putting three nails in, two in studs on either end and one in the middle. Before you put glasses on it, it's best to seal it in some way. You could either spray paint it a fun color, or leave it rusty (like I did) and just spray it with a matte clear spray paint.

Now you have a fun, fairly inexpensive way to display your wine glasses. You can make a bar anywhere in your house, just by hanging one of these on the wall above a buffet, countertop or table.

I had the perfect spot for it in my kitchen. I had this music cabinet in this weird corner already and it seemed like the perfect spot for a wine bar.

Don't settle for dull, live a refinished life!

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Fabulously Creative Friday: Jennifer Rizzo