When one door closes...

Happy Thursday everyone! I hope you're having a great week and finishing up all of those holiday tasks!

When we first moved into our house, some friends were nice enough to pass along a few new white six-panel doors they had bought while renovating their house that they didn't end up needing. We were more than happy to take them off of their hands since we were rocking some sweet flat panel wood grain doors circa '78, but unfortunately they were the wrong size.

We were just about to send them to the dump, when I envisioned a new life for one of them...as a headboard! I have seen this done before and just love the idea, so I put my lova to work. He's always looking for an excuse to use his power tools anyway :)

First, we decided to even out the look of the door by cutting off the top two panels. The lucky bed receiving this brand new headboard is just a Full size, so it didn't need to be very big.

Once we cut into it, we realized the door was hollow. We obviously already knew this, but hadn't really taken it into account when we decided to saw off the ends. So we cut off a really thin piece at the very top (of the piece we had just sawed off) to glue to the new edge, covering up the hollow cave.

We ended up doing this on both sides since the bottom needed some shortening as well.

Another little obstacle we encountered was the hole for the door knob. Since we planned on making this the bottom portion of the headboard, I wasn't too worried about it. But Mr. W is a bit of a perfectionist, so he cut out a circular piece of door from the top scrap to fill it in.

Next, I sanded and painted it. I mostly just sanded the edges where we glued on the new ends to hide the seam that the glue left. These doors weren't previously painted, so two coats covered up the white just fine. However, the garage was reeeally cold when I painted, so it took a lot longer to dry. So I needed a glass of red wine to stay warm. Just a tip for all of you Northwest winter DIY'rs. 

We decided the easiest way to hang this sucker would be to treat it like a picture frame. So Nate used some tools I know not of, and put some nails in the studs behind the wall...

...and then attached some brackets to the back of the headboard...

and stuck some of these fuzzy stickers on the corners to avoid scraping up the wall.

The finished product!

I love it! It makes the room so much cozier. We still have a lot of work to do in there, the white walls are driving me loco, but this definitely warms things up.

If you don't happen to have a couple of lonely doors hanging out in your garage like we did, check out your local thrift/antique stores. I always see old doors with lots of personality at those places around here.

Framed!

One of the great things about living in a small town is being surrounded by even smaller towns... smaller towns with cute little antique stores. A couple weeks ago, I went on a mission for old, empty frames and I found these little beauties at one of my favorite spots in Uniontown, WA.

The one on the left cost me $10 and the other two were $5, score! 

I love the nail head details on this guy...

...the floral imprints on these corners...

...and the ornate carvings on this oval lovely.

Since we've been decking the halls for Christmas lately, I decided to spray paint two of the frames with Krylon's Cherry Red. Remember, if you're going to paint or re-stain wood frames, be sure to clean and/or sand them first. These were pretty nasty after sitting in someone's attic for who knows how long.

For the rectangular frame, I decided to turn to an Ashley Ann project I bookmarked a while ago and stapled chicken wire to the back of the frame. I love when materials you wouldn't otherwise deem attractive end up turning out just that. Chicken wire...who knew?! I'm planning on using it to display Christmas cards from friends and family once they start rolling in...hint, hint. For now it holds some pics from past Christmas'.

SIDE NOTE/BRIDE TIP: This would also make a great display for your place cards, pictures from your parents/grandparents weddings, or well wishes from your guests!

We haven't had a chance to build a mantel around our fireplace yet, so the frame added a lot more interest to this normally very blank wall. 

I had planned on sticking chicken wire in the oval frame as well...but we ran out of staples and I got a little impatient. I made this sign at a pottery painting store a couple months ago and decided this would be a good spot for it.

I love our little banquet nook, and this frame adds a nice little pop of color!

This was a really easy/inexpensive project! Stay tuned to find out where I put the last frame :)

Holiday Magazine Round-Up!

Happy Friday! Sorry I have been so absent this week! We have been working on lots of fun holiday projects around the house that I will be posting about very soon, including a DIY headboard for our guest room, repurposed antique store frames, and yet another use for doilies :)

After posting about Creature Comfort's holiday mag Gifted, I came across a whole gaggle of on-line magazines dedicated to all things holiday, design & decor. I can't keep you in the dark any longer! Here's a list of the reading material that has inhabited my computer screen for the last couple of weeks, prepare to be inspired!

1. Gifted - As previously stated, this is the go-to place for pretty much all of your holiday inspiration needs, DIY projects and free print outs galore!

2. Rue - The whole publication is fun, but be sure to check out the photo special with The Girls With Glasses shot at Elvis' Honeymoon Hideaway... serious vintage Christmas eye-candy

3. Lonny - For all whom are still mourning the loss of Domino, this is the interior design spot for you.

4. Sweet Paul - If you only have a second to browse, you need to check out the homemade pendant light - made of an industrial size wisk - and a cheddar chive cupcake recipe to drool over.

5. Dujour - Super femme/indy styling makes this puppy easy on the eyes. And I love how many great Etsy finds are featured.

6. adore Home - For all of you sunshine kids who are already sick of the snow and mistle toe, adore just published their Summer issue. My favorite feature is on blogger Sonja Bouw's nursery for her brand new baby girl!

Happy browsing! And because I don't like to leave a post picture-less, here's a pretty print from papermoth on Etsy I'm kind of geeking over. Somehow it looks sparkly, right?

 

Have a lovely weekend! And Happy Apple Cup... Go Cougs!