DIY Jewelry/Handbag/Scarf Hanger

Opa was a collector of anything that you could think of that would fit in a giant work shop. And so it has been fun to see what little treasures he held on to. When I found a collection of old knobs that I assume he had rescued from old pieces of furniture, I couldn't wait to use them. I had an idea, so I went back to the work shop (behind the house) to look for some scrap wood. I found this, which I think is part of an old cabinet door.

 I measured out equal distances and then drilled holes where I had marked. I made sure to use a drill-bit that matched the screws that were on the back of the knobs so that they would fit easily through the wood.

 Here is how my holes looked after drilling.

 This is the view from the back...testing out my screws.

 This is the collection of knobs that I decided to use. I thought a bunch of different ones together would be fun. If you didn't have any on-hand, Hobby Lobby and Anthropologie both have a good (but not free) selection.

 Then I used more of "old faithful", the same paint used on the rocker and the dresser. I did a really dry and rough coat to give it a more rustic feel.

 Then I just screwed my knobs back through and that was that! A hanger for whatever you may need to hang.

 I also attached some hanging teeth to the back (I am awful at this, they are crooked, but no one sees that part). You can also see how the screws look from the back.

 I love the unique knobs...I wish Opa was around to tell me their stories. I can guarantee he would remember.

Rocking chair re-do

The rocker in the den has been around for, well, no one is really sure. But it definitely needed some TLC...here it is to the right of my brother and my grandmother, apparently dressed as some version of a soldier from the War of Independence? Who knows...just a guess. She was always a good sport. Regardless, this was very early 90's.

 And here it was last week. Notice the changes? Right, because there aren't any. It looks exactly the same!

First I took off the cushions. I decided to ditch the droopy back cushion but kept the bottom one and re-covered it. Then I painted it with some left over paint from this dresser project.

 I then measured the ruffle and made a new one by using the old one as a pattern. I safety pinned it to the cushion in a few places to keep it in place.

Hopefully this picture makes more sense. This was fabric that I already had on-hand. Then I sanded the paint down around the edges when dry.

 I also used one of my grandmother's old pillow forms and sewed an accent pillow in place of the back cushion with some fabric that I had on-hand. It definitely got a nice update!

Hopefully Oma would approve.

Living Room: Updating the Secretary

This secretary previously sat in the den, and has been in the family for quite some time. It is really dark inside the shelves, but we didn't want to alter it permanently.

So I went through my fabric stash and found a print that would work in this room. Then I used an old cardboard box and cut it to size. I used painters tape to attach the fabric to the cardboard...kind of like reupholstering with no staples.

I then removed the shelves and stuck the cardboard against the back. Then I put the shelves back in place. It became the perfect place for all of Oma's crystal!

It's hard to get a good picture without a reflection...I'll try again when it's not sunny (if that ever happens). The glass needs repairing, but other than that it looks great!

Guest Bedroom: Dresser Re-do.

You may not have noticed this dresser because it blended in with the walls!

Needless to say, it was in need of some major help.

You can see because of where the pulls were just how faded this piece was.

I am a firm believer that distressed furniture should be sparsely used in a home (it can easily become too much), and not in every home! But because of the cottage look that we have going, distressing was the perfect treatment for this piece.

I used Sherwin Williams "Pearly white" in laytex semi-gloss (about 2 coats). This piece used about half a quart. I kept the top unpainted and simply spruced it up with some scratch oil.

Once the paint was dry, I simply sanded the edges of the drawers to let the wood show through. I used the original pulls...just wiped clean.

What a difference some paint can make!!