#dwh2: Artwork

Remember this giant frame that I spray painted about 2 months ago...or was it 3? 

Well I did have a purpose for spraying it and having it ready to go.  

 Just a quick post to share it's whereabouts. 

I used my fav spray paint - It took a trillion or more cans to spray this giant frame. 

Job well worth it though - the end result was super exciting. 

 

Frame in progress - Already looking good! 

 

After I finished the frame it sat for about 6 weeks (while we were in NYC and other trips). When I got home from NYC I took it to the framer - so excited to have this done (did I say that yet?)!

I got it back yesterday - so excited - and it is now hanging in the dining room.  Where it may stay, but I will likely try it in several different other settings in the next few days to see how it looks.  I like how the stark white frame looks against the almost black wall.  It helps fill the wall too with color.

Like many other things in my house - it usually doesn't get to come in/stay if I can't find at least 3 places to put it.  So now I'm on the hunt for the other two possible places for this gem.

Oh and I'm sure you're wondering about the artwork - the piece is acrylic and pencil on paper and is about 25+ years old I do believe.  The artist is Kathleen McElroy - a I teacher taught with at St. Mary's Episcopal School.  She's so lovely - her pieces are amazing and I'm always proud to say that I know her!

#DWH2 - Gallery Wall

#DWH2  The Den - Gallery Wall

I posted several times this spring about working on the den at #dwh2.
Check out this post, post and post about her progress.

When we went to Chicago in January, we hauled it out to Shaumburg to Ikea...in the middle of a snow storm. It was great.  GHW got to use his Canadian snow driving skills and I got to go to Ikea.
Happy.

When I bought the shelves in January, I intended to put them in the lady room. As the den started coming together, it came to be that they really were best used in there.  So there it is.

The inspiration for this "installation" comes from Barney's.  (The department store, not the purple dinosaur. Just wanted to clear that up. ) Their home section is really quite lovely - a museum, if you will, for home decor. Their book section is one of my favorite areas of the floor.

 Barney's Department Store - Home Floor

And then there's my new Kate Spade 2015 planner.  Hmmm. 

Considerable nod to the wall at Barney's, don't you think? 

 Kate Spade 2015 Planner 

So here's what all the hah-bub is about. 

Enter: My favorite spray paint (pictured below) for the brackets that were originally stainless steel. At the last minute I took them out back and sprayed a coat on them.  The stainless steel seemed like a good idea and would probably have been okay but that wasn't the look I was after. I wanted the shelves to be a non factor - merely utilitarian and to completely blend in with the (VERY) white wall.

Ikea Ekby - The planks were already finished in a nice lacquer white. I used 4 planks for this project. 2 small, and 2 large.  The larger planks are on the bottom and the smaller are on the top.

 

The final product is quite good.  All in all it took about 20 minutes to have all 4 shelves up on the wall. I can't believe we waited 6 months to actually do it.  What a great additive to the room.  It really feels nice walking in/out/through the space having this in place.  I'm sure that I will continue to fiddle with the positioning of the pieces, etc. over the next few days.  Within about 10 minutes of having the shelves up, this is what landed in place.  Gotta start with something, right-o. 

I don't really intend to put books on these shelves, using them for pictures is really the intention. There are shelves available for books to the immediate right around the closet door if need be. I have so many framed pieces and other items that really needed a place for them to be displayed without looking ridiculous.  A work in progress none the less.  In under an hour - work well done.

#dwh2 projects as of late.

It is true that my "to do" list for #dwh2 is quite long. That is no lie. It will always be long and part of that is my own willingness to continue to better the place regardless of the state. Okay so that's said. Now back to the list.  I have 2 things cooking this week off that list.

1. curtains for the sliding glass door wall by the hot tub.
There is a particular fabric I would like to get for this project but it will be a while before it gets to the top of the list...so in the meantime I did this.  I had 13 yards of this fabric pictured below in a bolt in one of the closets. I have had it for 2 years. Obviously, I needed to do something with it. Obviously, these windows needed some attention. So 2 + 2 = I pulled it out of said closet laid it down on the floor and started cutting.  My long term plan for these 5 panels is that I will use them as the backing for the fabric I would like to ultimately get.  And in the meantime...I think it looks good!

(and yes I have 1 more fan to spray paint the blades and change the globe on that fan. 
It is around the corner from the other 2 that I did last fall...need to get that done.)

 

Project 2. Paint the giant gold frame. 

When we moved to #dwh2 I propped this frame up in the entryway. Left it there...didn't know where else to put it.  Then I offered the commentary on whether or not I should paint this giant thing.  Some said yes and some said no. A few weeks later I put it away in yet another closet and it has been there for approximately 7 months. So...that means it is time to paint it.  If it is in the closet not being used, that means something needs to be done so that it will be used, you know quality item and all...

 

 

Enter a lovely Saturday afternoon, my plywood boards, and several cans of spray paint. 

 

I've used several different brands and kinds of white spray paint and recently, this is my product of choice.  I really like the coverage, the price and the finished product.  Do you really  need another reason? Nope. Me neither. Done.  I've now purchased about 20 cans of this for various projects.

And a few minutes later...The first coat of paint it on.  Now approximately 2 weeks later, the frame has had about 4 coats of paint and it looks amazing.  Looks like a factory lacquer job.  I'm totally impressed. 

I'm planning to take this frame to a frame shop and put an original piece in it that I've had for about 2 years and needs a frame face lift. I'm really excited.

Project 3 - finally getting around to painting the bamboo/rattan table and chairs that are in the pool.
I've had these for 2 plus years and it was (again) time to do what I originally intended to do.
This change was quite dramatic and left me saying "why did I wait so long to do this, it was so easy"

 

 This shows a before and after of the chairs. 

I didn't get one of the table but it was the same color as the unpainted chair.

It certainly makes the space a lot lighter.

In my last post I said I was excited because school was out...well that hardly changed anything. (whomp, whomp) Summer school started this week and it is, per usual, soaking up any free time.
I keep reminding myself, short term pain - long term gain. And in the meantime, these projects keep me smiling.

#dwh2: The Den ... What's Happening Now

When I last posted about the den in #dwh2 it looked like this...

DARK. DARK. DARK.

...and a really odd color combination.

Green flooring, navy blue patterned rug. Brown furniture. Brown curtains, tan walls that were highly textured from the wallpaper that surely was up there at some point because why else would the walls be prickly and rough? The room has 1 over head fluorescent light and a mid century slit window.

So not a lot of light, hence the need for brightness.

 

Here are the before pictures....

So about 2 weeks ago Magical Dave came to save the day. He spent (what I thought was a looonnng time sanding the walls, and what a mess it was). I am very glad to have smooth walls once again, that 3-d wall  biz is for the birds. These are legit action shots of the work in progress. The room is now finished, but I have one more step to share. So let's relish on this "before" just a little bit longer.
The after is worth the wait.

#dwh2 : Wetbar

Over the holiday break, 2 more portions of our house received attention.  One of which, the wet bar.

When we were looking for a new house, a bar was actually on my "wishlist"...kind of strange yes I know. But alas, I thought it would be a fun thing to have in a house.

We have a lot of wood paneling in our house and because it is so dark we decided to paint some of it. 

The wet bar and entry were the first to get paint.

 

^

 bar before 

v

And drum roll to the before/after combined photo............tica tica tica tica - CHING!

^

After

v

 

It took a few day to let the paint cure. It took several coats of paint to cover the dark wood paneling. And with white, we wanted it to be smooth.  There were lots of holes to fill before, sanding, priming, painting, fill holes, more paint. It was quite the process.

So after the paint cured - the bar received some decoration. The first chapter of decor is now displayed.  This will be a fun place to decorate as the seasons change.  I think the space needs some artwork perhaps on the other walls...Time shall tell.

#dwh2 : The entry way

I posted a couple days ago about the entry way in #dwh2. Instead of verbalizing a lengthy post. I'll let the photos tell the story.  I went a little crazy using my "Beautiful Mess" app.  It is a good one.  The editing options directly on the photo are excellent.

So...here it is...the entry way mid way through the project.

At this point the paneling has been filled/sanded/primed/filled, etc.  The before/during photo gives me butterflies. I am so excited for the entry way to be finished. The bar is also going through this transformation at the same time.  But for now, let's focus on how much brighter the entry way is!

Can't wait to share more photos when it's finished! Stay tuned.

#dwh2 : Wood Paneling

It is safe to say that we have a hearty dose of dark solid wood paneling in our house. There were actually two positive components to that last sentence (if you can believe it).  1. that the paneling is solid wood and not faux and 2. that it is dark wood. Believe it or not the paneling is pretty, there is just A  LOT of it. 

We have been in the house now for 7 months and it is now time to paint some of the paneling. First up, the entry way and the bar. The entry way is a defined area as is the bar.  Both rooms are near to the living room, which is another space that is covered in paneling.  The bar and the entry do not have as much light, thus they are for sure getting painted as the areas are dark.  So here are some before so we can remember the dark wood paneling in all the 1960s glory.