DIY Personalized Tray

We all have a use for a tray in our lives.  Treating our other half to a breakfast in bed, carrying BBQ items out to the picnic table, serving snacks during the big game.  There is ALWAYS a use for a tray.  So why not make it unique?  You can create one for you or a wonderful gift for someone special in your life.

You simply use pine boards.  You need to decide how wide and long you want your tray and cut them to size.  I chose to use different width boards for my planked tray.

I wanted this tray to be rustic, as it was a gift to someone living on a lake in the mountains of Vermont. Distressing your wood is a quick way to make it rustic.  These are some of my favorite tools to distress: hammer, nails, screwdriver, and chisel.

I like to chisel some of the wood out of the middle or even down the edge.  I also create "worm holes" by tapping a nail over and over again in a small area, or just jabbing the wood with the screwdriver will also do the job.

I knew I wanted the boards to have different depths of stain, so I decided to stain them before attaching them.  One coat to some, more coats to others.  The stain will also bring out where you beat up your wood. ;)  I left one board raw because I knew I would add one last coat of stain after I attached them together.

Next, I flipped the boards over and  used my Kreg Jig to attach them together.  If you don't have one, you can pick one up at hardware store for about $20.  VERY useful for just about any building.

I wanted a nice clean bottom, so I used 1/4" plywood cut to the size of the tray, glued and nailed it to the bottom.  (This photo is after I attached the frame -- forgot the before photo.)

Next I added a frame around the edge.  This creates a nice ledge so items don't roll off the tray and makes for a nice, clean look.  I mitered the corners and attached with nails.  Make sure your frame is flush with the bottom so the tray sits flat.

After my final coat of stain, I was ready to get creative.  To personalize, find or create your image.  Just enlarge it in a word processing or photo editing program and piece the printed pages together to get a larger size.  Use a carbon paper on the back to transfer or cover the back with pencil and when you trace the front, the marks will transfer.

Then I used a variety of paints to fill in my image.

After the piece had dried, I added many coats of sealer to protect the finish.  The final step was adding the handles.  I countersunk the screws so the tray would lay flat.

And then she was finished.

You could be serving Valentine's Day breakfast on one of these bad boys if you get a'cracking!

Have a fantastic day,

Debbie

Sharing with:
Redoux
The Shabby Nest
The Charm of Home
Finding Silver Pennies
Three Mango Seeds
Boogieboard Cottage
A Stroll Thru Life
Home Stories A to Z
DIY By Design
Adorned From Above
Saavy Southern Style
The Happy Housie
Beyond The Picket Fence
Nancherrow
Upcycled Treasures
Coastal Charm

The Secret to Painting Furniture Pulls

I love furniture handles, pulls, and knobs.  It's that bit of accessory that can dress up the furniture, kind of like your favorite pair of earrings that completes the outfit.

Replacing or refinishing the hardware is always a question I need to answer before starting a piece. The last dresser I worked on had 12 handles that needed an update.  It would have been a pretty penny to replace all of them.  And often I will come across very dated hardware and brand new pulls won't fit the original holes.  In these cases, I choose to paint them.

In the past, I would lay out the clean hardware on a flat piece of cardboard and spray paint them.  But that always left a little pile of dried paint where the handle of the pull would lay.  And I would have to flip the pull over and get the other side, leaving another little pile of paint.  I knew there must be an easier way.  So I created one.

I've had this rough piece of 4X4 sitting around for quite sometime.  (NOTE: Since taking this photo, I have screwed into the bottom a square piece of plywood so it would sit easier on any surface.) I wanted my "painting station" to be freestanding and this fit the bill.  I had 12 handles, so I used 3 nails on each side.

It can also double as a medieval torture tool.

I just hung each handle on the nail, using the screw hole in the back.  Before I painted, I made sure the pull part of the handle was sitting in the middle, so as not to touch either side.

I then spray as directed.

Just a few light passes and these babies were done.

Here they are accessorizing their new home.

This method created a beautiful finish.  And I love that my painting station is re-usable.  I hope this little tip helps you the next time you are pondering painting or replacing your furniture pulls.

Have a fabulous day,

Debbie

Sharing with:
Cedar Hill Farmhouse
My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia
Adorned From Above
DIY By Design
Saavy Southern Style
Elizabeth & Co.
Beyond the Picket Fence
Redoux
The Charm of Home
Common Ground
French Country Cottage
Nancherrow
Finding Silver Pennies
Three Mango Seeds
Boogieboard Cottage
Home Stories A to Z
The Happy Housie
Upcycled Treasures

Meet Nick, the dresser

Meet Nick.

It was time that Nick showed his true colors.  Christmas colors, actually.

Nick is from a time when working with your hands was common.  And his specialty was toys.  Handmade, wooden toys.

Winter is his favorite season, he loves smoking his favorite pipe, and he can never turn down a cookie.

He is a jolly old fellow, and some would say that when he laughed, his belly shook like a bowl full of jelly.

Sorry, but I couldn't stay away from the Santa references with this red piece.  I had been looking forward to trying a new kind of paint, Plaster Paint, that I first learned about from one of my favorite blogs to follow:  Three Mango Seeds.  This paint went on super easy and came out incredibly smooth.  It's my first time using it and won't be my last.

Instead of buying 12 new drawer pulls, I spray painted the original ones black to match the stain on top.  I have a new, SUPER EASY way of painting them too, that I will share in the near future.

I covered the paint in a stain/wax mixture that created a little more depth to the piece.  I'm moving good ole' Nick to Robin's Egg tomorrow where he will be looking for a new home.  Perhaps to the North Pole?

Have a Merry day,

Debbie

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French Country Cottage
Common Ground

The Charm of Home
Redoux
The Shabby Nest

String Your Lights Like the Rockefeller Tree

It's the Christmas season and time to trim the tree.

If you are anything like me, every year you would wrap the lights around the tree like the stripes on a candy cane. . . . you keep going around and around the tree, slowly working your way up or down.

Well, this year I did some research.  Turns out there is a method to Rockefeller's tree madness.  And since there isn't a person on the planet that doesn't "ooooh" and "aahhhhh" over their fabulous tree, I thought I would adopt their method onto my 7 footer.

It really is quite simple.  First you need to mentally divide your tree into three triangles.  If you don't want to do the mental part, just measure the diameter of the fullest part and then divide that by 3.  The bottom of your triangle should be that length.  You can even mark the corners of the triangle with string, if that's easier.

For a 7 foot tree, 900 lights is preferable.  I decided to use 300 lights in each of my 3 sections.  First you need to unwrap your lights and start with the female end of your plug.

You want to stuff this end in the TOP of the tree.  From there, you want to work down your tree, covering the whole triangle, going left and right.  Since I was doing 300 lights per section, I decided about 150 lights down and 150 lights back up.  But I made sure to stuff the first 150 INTO the tree.  That way it would glow from the inside as well.

Here is the first section finished.

After the first section is complete, move on to the second and then the third.  After you are finished, you want to squint your eyes and look for any bare spots.  Adjust the lights to fill those in.

And that's it!  If you use the proper amount of lights for your tree AND follow this method, you should be very happy with your outcome.

Also, check out last year's post about a super easy way to display those Christmas photo cards.

Have a fabulous day,

Debbie

Sharing with:
Finding Silver Pennies
Three Mango Seeds
DIY Showoff
Home Stories A to Z
A Stroll Thru Life
Adorned From Above

Meet Daniel, the desk

Meet Tyler.

Daniel never applied himself in school, like many a young boy.  It was only as he matured, he realized just how important those formative school years were.  He vowed he would make sure his kids took full advantage of their education.

He created an after-school cribbage club where he taught many children how to play a game they could play with their grandparents.

He was also the guy that would volunteer for the dunk tank at the Spring Fling Festival.

And he read aloud to his kids, which they loved, because he used different voices for each character.  That is something they will always remember about their Dad.

I wanted to add some "fun"ctionality to this piece.  So I used some chalkboard paint for the top, drawer fronts, and the inside back of the desk.  The alphabet was hand painted on the top as well.  Can't you just see a youngster practicing their letters on the top?  Daniel would be so proud.

I went with a sweet vintage yellow which should appeal to both genders.  I hope like this little renovation.  Now get cracking with those math facts!!

Have a great day,

Debbie

Sharing with:
Coastal Charm
A Stroll Thru Life
My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia
Cedar Hill Farmhouse
Finding Silver Pennies
Three Mango Seeds

Meet William, the desk

Meet William.

William has been a hard working member of his family for many years.  And the wear has shown.  It was time for a face-lift.

William was that kid that everyone liked.  It probably didn't hurt that he was the best linebacker his high school has seen in decades.  Or that he lead the Debate team.  He crossed all those lines; from geeks to jocks.

After attending Clemson and receiving an engineering degree, he worked for the government and retired comfortably at an age where he could enjoy his grandkids.  He loves to take them out on his 37 foot sailboat.

It wasn't easy getting William in peak condition.  I knew I wanted a wood top, but after carefully checking it out, I could see it was a wood veneer and not in great shape.

There was just too much damage.  So I crossed my fingers and scraped it off.  Hours and hours of scraping.  No need for the gym that day.

I'm super happy what I discovered underneath. 

 I also saw it fitting to carve in a little inspiration.

Built in the 1940's, he was made to last.  But over time, he was covered in paint and polyurethane.  Since polyurethane is oil-based, it will yellow the finish over time.  And that's what happened to poor William.  And since he was about 70 years old, I did a lead paint test, and it proved positive.  No fear though.  I ordered a special primer that covers lead paint.  And off to the races we went. 

He came to me missing some hardware and I could not find a suitable replacement.  And since these handles were not a standard width for "easy to find" new ones, I decided on rope handles.  I love the way they look.

I don't know why I didn't give up on him as he was SO MUCH WORK, but I knew he was worth it.  Hope you think so too.

He'll be making his way to Robin's Egg tomorrow.  He would love to meet you.

Have a great day,

Debbie

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Boogieboard Cottage

DIY Showoff

Three Mango Seeds

Coastal Charm

Our Home Away From Home

Cozy Little House

My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia

A Stroll Thru Life

Not Just a Housewife

Saavy Southern Style

DIY By Design

No Minimalist Here

From a Butcher Block to a Sign

I have a friend that is renovating her living and dining room into a beachy retreat.  I am living through her transformation.  Loving the color choices, the planked walls, the white mantel.  If I'm not renovating myself, I'm a barnacle on my poor friends who are.  :)

Well, I offered to make her a sign to go with her new look.  And of course I like to use found objects, or re-use ones from another purpose.  I had a small butcher block table top that fit the bill.  Add a few shells, and you've got yourself a little something.

I like the idea of using the thick, heavy top.  Perhaps my demented view of driftwood.  My friend gave me the quote and off to the races I went.

The quote was found on Pinterest and it fit exactly with how she feels about the beach.

I wanted a border and felt some waves were in order.

A beachy sign is not beachy unless it is distressed and weathered.

Tabletops are a great place to add some signage.  Get out there and reclaim today.

Debbie

Sharing with:

Boogieboard Cottage
Finding Silver Pennies
Three Mango Seeds
DIY Showoff
Cedar Hill Farmhouse
A Stroll Thru Life
Not Just Another Housewife
Elizabeth & Co.