Nautical Window Frame

For those people that know me, they know that I have a bit
of a collection of old window frames and shutters.
And much to my husbands relief I finally broke down and used one in a project.

Unfortunately though, I didn't take a photo of the window frame before I painted it. 

It was a creamy white color and it was actually in pristine condition. 

 I wanted something a little more worn and aged looking.

So first I painted it with Miss Mustard Seeds Milk Paint in Flow Blue. 

But there was no cracking, peeling or flaking like I hoped there would be. 

So I helped it along here and there (see my earlier post "Tips On Using Milk Paint"). 

 Then I sanded it in a few spots
sometimes just down to the white
paint and other times I took it
further, down to bare wood.

Then I waxed it with Miss Mustard
Seeds antiquing wax in some strategic
areas and used regular wax on all
other areas.

Now for the panels. I cut two panels to size from 1/4" plywood. I used an MDF board for the blackboard panel. I found this worked much better than regular plywood for two reasons: 

1- there is no grain that will show through under the chalkboard paint and therefore only requires one coat 

2- because there is no grain I don't have to prep the surface or even sand it after painting!

Here it is with just one coat.
Looks great doesn't it?

I also added a little ledge for chalk that I made out of 

some old trim, just under the panel on the frame. 

Had to paint and distress this too of course.

Next I took one of the plywood panels
and glued some batting on.
Trimming it  a little on all edges to
prevent too much bulk, which would
make it harder to mount in the frame.

Then I covered the batting with some burlap fabric. Glued it in place with hot glue. I then put some stretchy net fabric over the burlap, purposely placing the netting randomly with folds here and there to give a more natural look.  Tacked it in place here and there with glue.

I painted and waxed the back of
 all the panels. This panel I even
 glued on trim to finish off the edges
 of the burlap. 

The panels are held in the frame
with metal offset clips.  

Now photos and cards can be tucked into the netting. 

Finally I glued on some starfish.

Next panel I used contact cement to glue on a sheet of cork I had cut to fit the panel.

I fitted the panel into the frame with the offset clips and 

then glued some old fishing rope around the inner edges.

(I had to bind the cut ends of the rope with heavy duty thread 

and a bit of glue to prevent unraveling).

Then I glued on some more starfish for overall balance and to jazz it up a bit.

Then all I had left to do was to put hanging hardware on the back.

And Voila!

I am happy with the outcome. And I actually sold this piece to a shop downtown :0)

(See Honey I am not becoming a hoarder!)

I linked to the party at:

Rudder

A while back, our friends had bought an older neglected house that they were fixing up. We came over to help on demo day and I had found this old boat rudder laying in the garden.

 

Our friend gave it to me even though I am sure he thought I was crazy. I wasn't sure what to do with it yet, but at least it wasn't going in the dumpster. 

I decided that since I really didn't want to alter the rudder with all of that character it had, 

so I would just mount it on a board or something. (Maybe I am crazy!?).

Anyhow, here's how I did it. 

First I had to clean it up. (It was laying in the garden after all).

I used a strong bleach & water mixture. This would kill any bugs or other contaminates left on it after I brushed it off. I couldn't see any bugs, but I had heard a horror story of someone who had found an old gate    in a field and dusted it off and put it in their home as decoration and but it was infested with  some kind of parasite which then infected their dog. How sad!

I wasn't taking any chances. 

This strong bleach wash did fade the paint a little but not that much (made it look a little older actually) and I knew it was clean, so it was worth it.

Then I gave it a coat of Hemp Oil, let that soak in, then sanded it with fine steel wool

.And gave it a second coat of oil, let it dry, and wiped off the excess.

Wrote my name with the oil so you could see the
difference it makes  (don't worry  I covered it up later)

Even the rusted hardware looks better with the oil.

Next I mixed up some "Paint Minerals" from paintminerals.com with some grey/blue latex paint to make "Chalk Paint". I used a sample pot of paint because I didn't need a lot and this way it is so much more affordable. 

I am using an old table top I bought at my local salvage store to mount the rudder on. 

It had just enough detailing with the shape and routered edges and was the perfect size.

 I love how easily this "Chalk Paint" went on and the great coverage that it gives. It only took one coat and dried in minutes! And the best part is no prep work other than dusting it off. Yah!

Next I sanded it down along
the edges, but it still wasn't enough.

So I sanded some vertical lines to 

give the appearance of it being 

constructed of long, narrow boards

Then I sealed the paint with a couple of coats of furniture wax.

I added the hanging hardware to the back using some heavy duty hangers, as this would be a little heavy once the rudder was added to it.

Now to add the rope. I ended up using
electrical cable brackets to hold it in place.

I used a bit of tape wrapped on the
drill bit to prevent me from drilling
through to the other side of the board.

I also used a small nail here
and there to hold the rope to
the outline of the board.

I measured the rope, taped it off
just past the cut-off point and
then wrapped it with heavy duty
thread so it wouldn't unravel.

Then I cut it and put some white all purpose
glue on the end and affixed it under the starting bracket.

Next I added some eye hooks
to hold the rudder.

The brackets and eye hooks were much too shiny
and new for this project. So I added
some "Iron Paint" from "Modern Masters" to antique them. 

Then I added the "Rust Activator' Solution.
This started the rusting process.

As well as the brackets, I also aged the eye hooks. 

And sealed the rust finish with a coat of clear acrylic sealer.

Finally all there was left to do was to attach the rudder and hang it!

My Rusty Project

This is a quick little project that I want to share so you can see how awesome this product is.

Here's what I am talking about :

Modern Masters -Metal Effects

 You can use this stuff on almost anything, paper, plastic, fabric, metal etc.

The reason it works on anything is that the paint has actual iron particles that when activated will actually oxidize and rust! 

You can add as little or as much as you want, where you want. 

How cool is that!

It is also fast, simple to do, and inexpensive. Plus it cleans up with soap and water.

I used it first on some small hinges on one of my earlier projects (see: Clock Case Re-Do)

For this project I picked up a simple metal lantern at my local HomeSense store,
in the clearance section for $7.00. 

Nothing special, but it was only for an experiment and I liked the rivet details.

So here is my lantern before.

And after.

I didn't want an all over even rust, so I applied the "Iron Paint" heavily in some areas (2 coats), 

and lighter in some (1 coat) and even left a few spots bare.

I used a paint brush and sea sponge for different effects.

 Then allowed the "Iron Paint" to dry thoroughly, and applied the "Activator" with a sea sponge and old spray bottle. Let that dry for five minutes and re-applied. 

Now I watched the magic happen.

After the first application of the Activator,
before it completely dried

And the second apllication

The finished product after it had completely dried.

It will continue to rust unless you protect it with a coat of varnish.
The choice is really up to you.

I will be using this product on more items now that I know how easy and fun it is!
 Kind of addictive really!

http://www.creatingreallyawesomefreethings.com/

Floral Burlap Pillow

 So I decided to do a sewing project this time. 

I had a lot of burlap that I managed to snag at my local fabric store. I don't know why it is so difficult to find it where I live, but I still managed to find a really nice burlap. 

This stuff was upholstery grade, so nice and strong and not smelly or very scratchy. 

Here is what I came up with.

 

I cut four squares 16" - (1" larger than I wanted the pillow to be to allow for a seam allowance).

Next I wanted some contrast with the burlap but still wanted a vintage feel. 

I couldn't find exactly what I was looking for at the fabric store so I took an old sundress that I found at a thrift store and used that. 

 I deconstructed it. 

One of the skirt panels would be enough for this project. 

Made paper pattern pieces. 

A letter "D" for my husband, Doug 

and an "R" for me. Then I cut the 

floral fabric using these pattern pieces.

Next I cut the same pattern pieces out of the "Heat and Bond".(Make sure you reverse the pattern pieces first!)

I then trimmed about 1/8" around all the edges. 

(Otherwise when I sew this on, the needle might get gummed up with the iron-on adhesive). 

Ironed the "Heat and Bond " on according to package directions.

Then I peeled off the paper. 

Ironed the letter in place on one of the burlap squares.

Then using a short, wide Zig-Zag stitch, I sewed the edges of the letter.

Then I sewed a zipper on to the back piece of the pillow. 

Cut back in half. Mark placement of zipper.
Sewed the two halves together.
Using a basting stitch  where the zipper actually fits.

Pinned the zipper in place.
.

Sewed the zipper in, using a zipper foot on the machine

Removed basting stitches.
Voila! Zipper is in.

I added some cording around all four edges and sewed the front and back together. 

I am not great at using cording so if you want to know how to do it properly, check out Pintrest 

and Search "Sewing Cording Tutorial". Sorry.

Then I trimmed and finished the raw edges. Turned it right side out and stuffed it.

One of the finished pillows.
The cording adds a nice touch I think.

And the back.
Normally I would have put the zipper
at the side seam but with the cording there
I wasn't sure how well that would work.

It's not perfect, but it will look better when I get a proper pillow insert, 

instead of the polyester filling that is in it now. 

That is why it is a little lumpy in places. Kind of like me :0)