Salvaged Cross Wall Art

 as fun as the bunny ear napkins were in my last post, 

i couldn't let Easter go by without sharing much more meaningful content...

the cross in the photo above is a wood planting box, 

handmade by an artisan* who gifted it to me in a parking lot. yes, a parking lot. 

his truck was parked next to me at a local nursery, and he walked out as i was getting out of the car.

i complimented him on the two planters that he had in his hands - the cross and this heart - 

and he told me his good news, that he had just landed an account for them to sell his planters.
he smiled a mile wide - then he handed the planters to me. 

i was shocked and tried to refuse them, saying he didn't need to 'pay' me for the compliment.

and that young man said something profound to me that will be forever linked to this cross planter:

'hey, good news needs to be shared, and celebrated!'

 yes, yes it does. 

and on Easter weekend, i can think of no Good News better than that of the Cross.

that particular cross is now something i see every day in my home.
when i was creating a gallery wall arrangement, i grabbed the cross planter from the potting bench,

intending to include it in my decor. but it needed something more... and it became a project!

continue reading to see what i did with it!

i cut the black planting cloth open on the back side of the cross

and grabbed one of my old damaged books, tore out some of the pages,

crumpled them up, and stuffed them into the planter:

the tone of the paper is perfect for our decor and i love the texture it adds.

the book was an old childrens' Bible story book, so the words that show up as you look at the cross

reflect faith and hope and Jesus and redemption and resurrection.

it tells a story. i love it when art does that. and yes, it's art.

here's how it looks combined with other elements in our living room gallery wall arrangement:

scrap paper wall art:
the 'arise' piece is something i hand painted,
on a base of vintage paper pieces glued in layers to a poster board backing.
that poster board is pinned to the canvas hanging on the wall,
making it easy to change out the look each season!

the wreath in the front entry got a one minute makeover with a cross i made... 

it looks like it's made out of scrap wood, doesn't it? it's not.

it's made of scraps of PAPER, glued to cardboard, tucked into the grapevine wreath.

yup. PAPER. one minute.

years ago, my late husband created some really amazing crosses using salvaged wood

and a very unique metal element that he bought dozens of at a recycling yard:

it took us a while to figure out just WHAT that metal element WAS, 

and once we did, well, the crosses took on even more meaning...

because that's a side handle from a casket.

 (i had to crop large, old images to get these detail shots, so they aren't very crisp, 

but you can see the stunning design of those crosses here.)

the cross is the symbol of Easter, and has become even more special to me than it used to be...

three years ago, my sweet Dad took his last breath here on earth the moment before sunrise

on Easter Sunday.

his next breath was in Heaven.

i can't imagine a world without Easter.
i can't imagine my life without my faith, my hope, my Jesus. 

and, as the song says, i can only imagine what it will be like to walk in Heaven one day
with my Dad and people i love ... and Jesus.

i wish you a blessed Resurrection Sunday, my friends. 
He is Risen!

shared online:

funky junk interiors | diy salvaged junk projects #421

*sadly, the young man had no extra business cards on him and i do not know his business name.

but i'd bet if you go to Rogers' Gardens in Newport Beach, California,

you'll still find his handcrafted wooden planter boxes for sale!