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4.02.2013

Garden House Makeover!

Yes, i REALLY did do this makeover in two days!
i think if that you see it and realize how absolutely possible it IS,
then you can take on a Spring Cleanup Project like this one, too!

here's what happened last winter (2012):
it was january. in seattle. COLD. rainy. gray. depressing.
i was ACHING for spring.
 and when i looked out into the backyard of the sweet little cottage i was renting,
there was a little garden house (potting shed, she shed, garden shed)
that the talented owner had made from salvage.
and it was full of junk. 
some of the junk was the house owners, and had been there for years.

some of the junk was mine, and had been dumped there the month before when i moved in.
the space was totally unusable.
but i knew that with a good cleaning job,
it could be a FABULOUSly usable space - and a stylist's DREAM!

so i asked myself these questions:
* what junk that is thrown in there can be used in a new way for storage or decor?
* what junk/stuff that i have in storage or in the garage can be used in there?
[and let me tell you, i had a LOT]

on Friday, i gathered up all the stuff i was going to use, and sat it outside the garden house.
i was ready to begin the project on Saturday morning
and DETERMINED to have it done by Sunday afternoon.

a lofty goal, especially considering that it looked like THIS inside on Friday:
Saturday morning, i began by emptying out the garden house...
which made it look a LITTLE bit less awful:

the old screen door that i had was hung on the INSIDE of the back doorway
[with the glass door swinging open to the right, outside of the garden house,
this was the only way to make a screen door work there.
and i had one, so i wanted to use it.]

after that, i grabbed two partial gallon cans of white paint left from painting furniture,
and watered them down to a 50/50 mix.
i used that to paint all of the window edges and door trim and doors, and floor.
there was about a half can of the whitewash left, so i added more water
and used that really thin mix to wash all of the walls and beams.
the wood was SO dry that it literally sucked up all of the paint/whitewash!
i sat one small heater inside the garden house, just to be sure it would dry.
and left the heater on overnight with the doors closed.
[NOTE: this was a very safe contractor's heater on a sturdy base, not a household heater.]

on Sunday morning, i started moving in the furniture...
on the left side of the entry door:
one tall old crate [that had been in the garden house] and
two of my own large wood crates, stacked on their sides
formed the supports for my enamel kitchen sink
[been hauling that around for about ten years...]
there was no running water, but the sink and it's attached counters worked great for potting plants.
had i stayed there, i would have run the garden hose through the wall and into the sink.

a pegrack made from old fence boards and ceramic pegs for electric fences
was hung over the sink for storage.
and an old aluminum light pendant was hung above it all
[attached to a heavy-duty construction extension cord, that ran to an exterior plug on the house]
in the back corner, an old wooden chair that i 'rescued' from a dumpster
[and have subsequently used for years in retail store & seminar stage displays]
holds my medium and large terra cotta plant pots in unusual ways:
there's a metal industrial bread pan on the floor holding pots,
and there's a metal industrial muffin-top pan sitting across the arms of the chair holding pots.
a few others sit on the chair seat under the muffin-top pan.

all of the tiniest pots sit up on a beam between the studs.
[i saw that idea at Christiansen's, one of my fave nurseries]

on the right side of the entry door:
there had been a long wood park bench inside the garden house (the owner's),
and i placed it under the large window. over the window, i hung another one of the pegracks.
it's not shown in the photo below, but i later hung a large white lace bedspread from those hooks
to block out the VERY ugly view of the neighbor's yard. it still let the light in, which was perfect.

i sat an old enamel-top table (roadside find!) in front of the bench,
and added one of my metal chairs to the other side.
(the other four matching metal chairs were at a patio table in the backyard)

 above the table, a metal floral chandelier that i have used for YEARS was hung from the rafters.
[you've seen it painted bright green in a past office post!]
the chandy's electrical cord was connected to another heavy-duty contractor's extension cord 
that ran to an exterior plug on the back of the house.
[the cord ran down the fence line to the house]

with all of the major pieces in place, it was time for the details...

here's a photo of the finished interior on Sunday afternoon:
everything that had already been inside the garden house was used.
i added a LOT of my own stuff - furniture, lighting, decor & garden elements.
but i did not spend one single cent on this project!

 here's what i did a day later:

the garden house's exterior didn't really need much work - 
nothing more than a removal of some old hops vines that had grown up the side
and the addition of a 'porch light' under the existing glass window 'awning' over the door.
[the light was a plain metal worklight from Home Depot that i had on hand,
and the cord ran under a board into the extension cord already inside]

i also hung two small metal 'shelves' from IKEA, one under each window,
and loaded them up with some terra cotta pots.
around the side of the garden house, another one of my original peg racks was hung outside
to hold large galvanized buckets and old garden tools.

and later that same day
i got busy shooting photos for upcoming magazine and blog projects:
 ...and more that i'll share in an upcoming post!

Then the NEXT day, THIS happened:

yup... it SNOWED!(pretty, isn't it?)
i don't live in that little cottage in Seattle anymore, 
but i sure have fond memories of this project and the photo session.
thank you, Todd, for the freedom to do this to your place!

so what are YOU doing this coming weekend?
maybe it's time to look at that garden shed or back porch in a new way...
there's a LOT you can accomplish in just two days!

shared online:

cupcakes & crinoline

green willow pond 

jennifer rizzo's fabulously creative fridays

3.30.2013

Happy Easter


i am so thankful for the meaning of this holiday!

whether you celebrate in church or in a field of grass,
with lilies and crosses or bunnies and eggs,
may this Easter bring peace to your soul and light to your heart...

3.29.2013

Switch It Up!

 one year, on the day before Easter, i awoke with a wild idea.
[which, truly, isn't that unusual]
the family was coming the next day for Easter dinner, and i wanted to do something different.

and no, i'm not talking about making a new dish for the meal.
i'm talking about the place where we'd HAVE the meal. i was ready for a big change!
 this photo shows my lovely seven-foot-long pine dining table in the dining room. 
which is fine, but the sunlight never really reached this part of the house.
 and i wanted a sunny Easter gathering
[since the weather in Seattle was cooperating that year!]

so... i pulled the dining room table out into the living room,
and moved the round farm table from the living room to the dining room...
sadly, while i don't have a photo to show the whole dining table in its new location,
i do have this one with GLORIOUS sunshine pouring in the windows onto the pine. 
it literally glowed with warmth, which was exactly what i wanted!

with two windows facing the front yard (south) and a glass door from the porch (west),
the table was a bright and happy place for our holiday meal.
 the round farm table made a charming addition to the dining room space.
 i pulled a park bench and two garden chairs from the front porch, 
which completed the seating area.
the room offered a more sunny and open look - much like a 'breakfast room',
which is exactly how it was used for months afterward!

[and when the kids showed up on Easter, 
everyone gathered here for pre-dinner drinks and conversation!]

here's a floorplan sketch to show you how it played out:

i left the tables this way all through spring and summer that year, 
and loved the way that we used the space differently.
i used the large dining table as a desk on many days,
since i was able to look out onto the sunny yard and porch awhile working.

remember: it didn't cost me a thing - just some muscle and a little time - 
but the Cottage was renewed and refreshed!

what about YOUR rooms?
is there a switch you can make that will revitalize your space
 and give your rooms a new look and functionality for the season?
give it a try!

[i know, it may be hard to convince your hubby that this is worth doing...
just remind him that it's a free way to redecorate!]

3.27.2013

Nesting


i'm going to share a little secret with you:
accidentally discovered a 'Fast, Cheap, & Easy' TM way to make realistic bird nests!

one day while weeding some flowerbeds,
i grabbed a handful of [dead] daylily foliage right outta' the ground. just yanked it up.
it was in my hand and i looked at it, and then...
 i held onto one end, and wrapped the length of it around my hand a few times.
when i got to the other end, i tucked it into the wound-up stuff.
[don't you love the technical terms i use?!]
and even though it sort of looked like a donut,
i thought 'yep, it looks like a nest!'
... and i carried it inside and sat it in the bowl you see in the photo above.

i added some vintage fabric flowers and a ceramic bird, and three white stones as 'eggs'.
nothin' fancy. i liked the way it looked.
 so i went outside and i made more!
[my flowerbeds were SO clean when i was done...]

and when i later decided to make these nests to SELL, i added stuff to the nests:
 * papier mache' eggs sit on a bit of moss glued to the nest as a bottom,
accented by a strip of vintage sheet music and a tiny dried stock blossom.

* a bed of moss holds a nest and a faux bird inside an armillary sphere lamp base
*a small nest sits atop a pedestal bowl, topped with another faux bird and a clear glass lamp globe

* miniscule nests sit inside glass salt cellars, adorned with vintage fabric millinery flowers and book clippings
[these would be fabulous place markers at an Easter table!]

* i've also used the bitsy ones as adornments on packages
[as seen in holiday issues of 
Creating Vintage Charm & FOLK Magazines]


* a HUGE nest in a display at a vintage show holds pretty lemons from the nearby trees,
covered with a rusted wire garden planter as a 'dome'
[this nest started out much neater.. it was handled a LOT that day!]

you can do this! 
try it using raffia. or field grass. or beach grass.
or daylily foliage. i've even used daffodil foliage.
 and my flowerbeds? they have never looked better! ;)

3.25.2013

Be a Good Egg!

so many fabulous egg-related decor ideas are floating around the internets right now:
literally hundreds of ideas for coloring Easter eggs and making patterned Easter eggs 
and ideas for making wreaths and topiaries from plastic Easter eggs. 
LOVE the creativity i see out there!

but.... what if you don't celebrate Easter
or what if you just want a more subdued palette?

you're in luck! 
(and good company, to be honest... pastel eggs are NOT my thing. 
the closest i got to them was when i brought home 
two dozen brightly-colored 'Cascarones' from a visit to Texas one spring.)

so today, i offer up some inspiration 
for creating spring decor with un-decorated eggs!
some are real, and some aren't.... use papier mache', clay, wood, or ceramic eggs.
first up, an ostrich egg (HUGE) embellished with a strip of vintage sheet music.
[the title 'Song of the Bird' was a perfect fit!]
i nestled the finished egg into a handmade birdsnest, 
then sat the nest on a 'pedestal' of an upside-down milk glass lamp shade (with the narrow end up).

here's a photo of the same egg standing UP in the nest, without the glass base:

another idea is to create a small vignette inside a glass jar...
and this works perfectly when you are using real (blown) eggs, because they are protected.
[note: do not - under any circumstances - 
forget to blow the eggs, and then seal them in a jar. 
BAAAAAAAD side effects :( ]

a little nest of grass is placed in the jar and an egg nestled into it.
a scrap of vintage sheet music or a poem with a Spring theme might be inserted as a 'backdrop',
and a strip with an appropriately 'Spring-y' title is glued onto the jar as a label.
i also covered the jar tops with a scrap of burlap, tied with twine.

[i use pickle or olive jars from thrift stores. 
they come in medium and large sizes, are wider than mason jars, and have no embossing on the sides to blur the contents]

this LARGE handmade nest sits atop an aged garden urn.
[i used ivy and hops vines from the yard to make it]
moss from a corner of the yard fills the center of the nest,  providing a soft resting place for a few eggs.
a glass garden cloche finishes off the look perfectly.
[you could also tuck in some gardener's gloves, hand tools, and some bulbs 
for a perfect Spring gift!]

then again, you don't really have to have a nest...
a simple egg presentation:
a glass salt cellar or napkin ring can hold an egg,
and a clear stemless wineglass as a 'dome' will finish it off with style.
if you write each guests' name on the egg, these are perfect place cards!
_________________________________

those last two shots are a bit of a sneak-peek - 
they are part of a garden-theme project and photoshoot last winter in Seattle
that i'll be sharing here on the HOMEWARDfound blog later this week.

i am delighted that photos from that shoot are featured
in the Spring issue of Creating Vintage Charm magazine!

3.22.2013

sometimes, i really take the cake....

today is my birthday!
what better day to share a birthday cake idea?!

the photos here show an original product that i developed back in 2007, called
foo-foo Faux Food TM

i sold this line in my booth at vintage shows and vintage stores,
and now i'm sharing the idea with you here at HOMEWARDfound
because it's a fun craft to make, 
an easy way to decorate 
and can be customized for a birthday or holiday...
my secret
these are made using recycled metal cans and tins 
and recycled chenille bedspreads.
yup... clean fruit cans, tuna cans, cookie tins, and cracker tins in various sizes. 

here's the how-to:

* wrap the tins in the fuzzy, textured chenille fabric in any color, and glue on
 cookie & cracker tins are used with lids covered separately (so they are still usable for storage)
tuna cans and small fruit cans are used upside down

* glue on fuzzy yarn trims (like this white 'caterpillar' yarn) to the edges and tops 
 (swirl it on cupcakes, for example)
* you can use the fringed edges of the bedspread on the sides of the cake
so that it looks like piped frosting

* add a few details on the tops and sides,
using pom poms, beads, rickrack, and other trims

* stack the assorted sizes of tins to create fanciful faux cakes!

* using red pom poms or round beads gives the look of cherry toppers

i bet you'll find a bunch of ways to use them!
please note that if you make these for sale, you can not use my product name
'foofoo Faux Food'. it is copyrighted & trademarked.

___________________________________________________

since it's the first day of a new year for me,
i'd just like to offer a little 'shout out' to some very lovely friends
who have made the past year something wonderful.

in the face of huge changes in my life, they have been a
remarkable support and encouragement to me professionally,
always challenging me to
 keep moving forward...
and i could not have done that without them.

Michael at Inspired by Charm
Janet at ReStitched USA
Sharon at Launch Your Creativity

__________________________________________

3.15.2013

decorating by the book!

have you ever considered BOOKS to be a decorative element?

for an inexpensive way to bring color into your decor each season, 
try looking at what's on your bookshelves.

the shelves shown above show a few books chosen by color for the display:
  green and yellow covers coordinate with a few simple accessories
to express the seasonal freshness of Spring,
while everything else on the shelves is white and neutral.

[no, i didn't get rid of all of my other books! i just left them in my office!]

another easy way to use books in your decor is to choose them by subject for a display:

the stack shown in these photos includes books about the garden and flowers
[with a few decor books thrown in for good measure - and because they were green!]

adding them to a tabletop vignette of items from the garden
tells a story and brings Springtime inside...

having a book displayed open to a beautiful photo or poem 
never fails to make you stop and look, too!


here are a few more ideas for decorating with books this Spring:

* grab books cheap and do a good deed by shopping at your local library bookstore!
[your purchases of books for 50 cents to $5 helps provide library services]

* do you already have a bunch of books, but the covers aren't pretty enough to feature?
cover them up! grab scrapbook paper, gift wrap paper, or even fabric, 
and create 'envelope'-style book covers.
[we all did this back in junior high with grocery bags, remember?!]

* if you want to get really crazy, PAINT 'EM!
a wash of thin paint on a canvas book cover can change the look completely.
OBVIOUSLY I am not suggesting you do this to VALUABLE or RARE books!
we all have books we bought long ago and just don't use anymore...
this is a way to turn unused items into decorative elements.
[and if you paint carefully, the book itself is still readable]

you can also use a wash of paint to create a faux 'aged' effect

using my tutorial here

* create 'pedestals' using books by stacking them up and tying together with twine or ribbon.
then display a special item on top of each stack... 

* and finally, use your bookshelves as display opportunities!
check out this post for tips on how to arrange accessories and books
for balance and visual impact