Summer House Tour + FREE Printable

I love summer decor! Between general beachiness and the 4th of July, there are a lot of different directions you can go.

A few years ago I found this perfect piece of driftwood around Bridal Veil Falls. I drilled a hole in it for a stick and cut pieces of an old sheet for the sail. I just used white thread to hold the sail in place. It's probably one of my most favorite things!



Another free project I love, is this faux starfish and old fence picket American flag. It's held together with wood glue. I made a flour and salt dough to make the starfish. Then I painted them white and hot glued them in place.

Hint: salt looks a lot like white sand in an apothecary jar.

I had a hard time picking a patriotic song to display. I finally decided on "My Country 'Tis of Thee."

You can download an 8x10 print here.

I created the Abraham Lincoln art with my silhouette machine. 

I'll be happy to leave all this up until fall.

Linking to: Merry Monday 55, Inspire Me Monday #61, You're Gonna Love It,The Scoop 172, Inspire Me Tuesday 270, Wow us Wednesday, FDTR 169, Wake up Wednesday 70, YTTS 33, Artsy Fartsy Mama, Catch as Can 215,    

Mod Podge Map Chair

I found this chair at the Restore for my son to use at his desk. We both love maps and I thought it would be fun for him to have a map chair in his room. It's not wood and has a laminate like finish, but decided to give mod podge a try.

First, I laid wrapping paper on top of the seat to trace the shape. I cut it out and then used it as a pattern to cut out on the map.

I lightly sanded the top of the chair to rough it up a bit and wiped it clean. Then I used a foam brush to paint a layer of mod podge (affiliate link) on the chair and press the map in place. I painted and pressed in thirds from top to bottom so it wouldn't dry out. I gently used a credit card to smooth out wrinkles as best as I could, but since the map was paper, I was afraid it would tear if I pressed it too hard. After it dried completely, I painted a layer of mod podge on top of the map, taking extra care to seal the edges.

It doesn't have a completely smooth finish. It has that little wrinkly look that mod podge often gives you, but I don't really notice it anymore. It makes it look more vintage-y. My son has sat on this almost every day for the past two years and it hasn't peeled or cracked at all!

I used the other half of the map on the back of a bookcase I fixed up over here.

Linking to: YTTS #31, Artsy Fartsy Link Party, Catch as Can 213, Link Party Palooza, PJ 279, That DIY Party, Merry Monday #54, Inspire Me Monday #60, The Scoop 171, Inspire Me Tuesday, You're Gonna Love It, FDTR 168, Wow Us Wednesday #222, Wake up Wednesday 69, Furniture Feature Friday         

Two Chair Bench

I ran across these two chairs at a thrift store for $5 each. I thought they would make a great bench.

I cut off the chairs just in front of the back legs and then sanded what would be the sides of my bench.

I found a few benches similarly made on Pinterest and everyone seemed to be in agreement that it worked better to create the frame for the seat directly on the chairs instead of creating a frame first and then drilling it to the sides. So, I marked and cut as I went. 

#1 - I cut and drilled 1x3s to both of the sides
#2 - I cut and drilled 1x3s to the front and back (I made it as wide as it would be if the two chairs were together.)
#3 - I put a support beam in the middle drilling it in the front and back of the frame
#4 -I cut out a rectangle the size of the bench out of 1/2" plywood and set aside for after I was done painting
#5 - I attached these corner braces that were on the original chairs

After all that, the bench felt extremely sturdy, so I didn't feel a need to put supports on the lower legs too.  I painted the frame with two coats of primer and two coats of paint. I had used flat paint, so I sealed it with polyacrylic (it's water based and doesn't yellow the way polyurethane does).
 
I put some egg carton mattress foam on the seat. Then I covered it in batting and fabric and nailed it in place. The seat fit snugly in between the sides and needed a mallet to gently tap it in place.

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Linking to:
YTTS #30, Artsy Fartsy Link Party, Catch as Can 212, Furniture Feature Friday, Link Party Palooza, Funky Junk Upcycled Link Party, That DIY Party, Inspire Me Monday #59, The Scoop 170, Inspire Me Tuesday 268, You're Gonna Love It Tuesday, Wow Us Wednesday 221, Wake Up Wednesday 68, FDTR 167,   

FREE Anne of Green Gables Printable

With the recent passing of Jonathan Crombie, I've been reexploring Anne of Green Gables and ran upon this lovely quote.

You can download an 8x10 pdf here.

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Linking to:  

Inspire Me Monday #58, The Scoop #169, You're Gonna Love It, 267th Inspire Me Tuesday, FDTR 166, Wake up Wednesday, Wow us Wednesday 220, YTTS #30, Artsy Fartsy Link Party, Link Party Palooza,     

Using Paintable Wallpaper to Cover Damaged Veneer

I love this 1930s vanity I got from a yard sale a few years back. However, the veneer was cracked and peeling all over. In some places I decided to scrape and sand it off. Then on the sides and tops of the drawers, I decided to try out some paintable wallpaper for a smooth finish. 

I found this Damask Print (affiliate link) on Amazon that was prepasted. I was a little uncertain of the directions, but found a youtube video to clarify how to soak it and fold it on itself for the glue to be activated. It also shrinks a certain amount once it dries. After about a day, I was able to paint it exactly how I painted the rest of the vanity. The drawer liner is from Target.

I folded it under a few inches at the bottom and it actually helped seal the wood that was splitting at the bottom. 

I wanted to use it as a desk, so I added some makeshift legs by cutting off the knobs on a thrifted headboard/footboard.

I love the added texture and touch of femininity the wallpaper gives it! I have a lot left over to have on hand for other projects. I already used some to cover the frame for a mirror for my mirror gallery on the stairs.

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Linking to:
Artsy Farsty Link Party, YTTS #29, Catch if Can #211, Friday Furniture Feature, Link Party Palooza, An Upcycled Link Party, Merry Monday 52, Inspire Me Monday #58, The Scoop #169, You're Gonna Love It, 267th Inspire Me Tuesday, FDTR 166, Wake up Wednesday, Wow us Wednesday 220, Vintage Inspiration Party,    

Coffee Table Into Tufted Piano Bench

I'd like to share with you the coffee table that I turned into a sturdy piano bench. I really wanted a bench that would be long enough for more than one person to sit on it at a time. 

I started with this coffee table that I got at the Restore.

It was a little too wide for a bench. I had a piece of foam left over from an ottoman I built, so I decided to cut the table top down to the size of my foam.

Yep, that should still be long enough for more than one person.

After tracing the foam on top of the table, I unscrewed all the pieces of the legs and sides. I took a picture so I'd remember how to put it back together.

Once I cut it down, I placed the four legs on and figured out how much to cut down the side pieces. Here they are sitting on the newly cut down table top before I drilled everything back into place.

I don't have many pictures of the tufting process (this was done pre-blogging), but there are many tufting tutorials out there. I drilled six holes in the tabletop and foam (really just ripping the foam by hand) where I wanted my fabric covered buttons to go. I added a layer of batting and my fabric. Using an upholstery needle and roman shade string I pulled the buttons through and then zig zag stapled them with knots to hold in place. The next time I tuft, I'm also tying a washer on the string close to the hole to keep it from slipping back through.

There wasn't a lot of overhang to tuck the fabric under to staple. Perhaps I should have added an 1/8" all the way around the tabletop before I cut it. 

It's worked well for 4 years. I love how sturdy it is.

I could possibly add a hinge and make a box inside the frame to hold music someday. Hmm...

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