Our Gilded Abode

{TUTORIAL} DIY Wood Shutters

Today's project evolved when I tagged along with hubby to Lowe's. As he searched through the bins of nuts and bolts, I gathered the supplies needed to make wood shutters for our fireplace mantel. This project has been on my lengthy "to do" list for a long time and today I decided to just do it.

This is another frugal project and, if you already have the boards in your stash, it's a "free" project!

Unfortunately, we didn't have any boards in the right lengths in cedar, so I had to buy all the materials. But, fortunately cedar pickets are super inexpensive and the total cost was under $12 to make 3 shutters.

The materials I used:

6 cedar pickets (5/8" x 3-1/2" x 6 ft.)
1 cedar furring strip (1" x 2" x 8 ft.)

These materials will make 3 shutters that are 15" wide x 33" tall. I only needed 2 shutters for my mantel and now have an extra to use elsewhere.

To get started, I had my skilled assistant cut the pickets for me and was able to get two 33" pieces from each picket. The only unused portion of each picket was the dog eared ends (don't be alarmed ... they won't go to waste - new project alert!):

The cedar furring was cut to six 15" lengths.

Next, I laid 4 of the picket boards side by side with a slight space between each picket. Yes, I did the assembly indoors on our tile floor. It was way too hot out to do this in the garage. Wimpy, I know!

Using a cordless brad nailer (best invention ever!) I secured the furring strip horizontally across the pickets and 5-1/2" from the edge of each end of the pickets. This is the brad nailer I used:

Ryobi AirStrike 18GA Cordless Brad Nailer

If you don't have a brad nailer, a hammer and nails work just as well.

This is the furring strip with brads securing it to the pickets:

And, that's it! This was a very easy project and after the pickets were cut, didn't take much time at all to assemble.

Am undecided on whether or not to stain them. Think I'll live with them a while before I decide. For now, we're really enjoying this new focal point in our living room!

(Burlap wreath how to will be featured in a future post.)

Thank you to Cozy Little House for graciously featuring this post!

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The Blissful Bee
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Addison Meadows Lane

Patriotic Mantel Decor

I had no plans to do mantel décor for the Fourth of July. But ...

Having a few spare minutes this morning, thought I'd put up JUST a red felt wreath, a boa and a few patriotic candles. Easy peasy, will only take a sec and be done, right?

Well .... not quite! Of course, the wreath, boa and candles looked a little bare, so I added a few red glittery star baskets, a red star (that's actually a Christmas tree topper) and the red felt ball that matches the wreath.

Not bad. But ... not good either. There was nothing that screamed "patriotic" at all. Way too much red. And, there was hardly any blue. Easily fixed with a few paper punched white stars with blue centers. I cut the centers out of lightweight blue paper with my Silhouette. Used double stick tape to place them in the center of each star. Added the stars to each item on the mantel (except the red felt ball).

Then a few ribbons on the red boa - blue/white dotted, red/white/blue striped, and solid blue.

Using double-stick tape, I also covered the front ledge of the fireplace mantel with a blue ribbon. Now, it seems a little more balanced and definitely red/white and blue.

Will post a tutorial later to show you how to make the red felt wreath and ball.

The book page wreath is also decked out for the Fourth! If you missed my post on how I made it, you can find it HERE.

I like that basic red can be used as a basis for Valentine's Day, Christmas and any of the patriotic holidays as well. Nice to reuse and have less to store and organize.

Do you have décor items that are dual purpose for several holidays?

Wishing you and yours a fun-filled Fourth of July!!! We're looking forward to our little community's picnic with barbecue, auction, cake walk, dance and fireworks. Have a super safe holiday!

Fondly,

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The Dedicated House

Frugal Front Porch Refresh - the Reveal!

Well, our tiny front porch is finally presentable! It was basically a blank slate with only two chairs, red pillows and a black rubber door mat. Not exactly a cozy first impression.

But now ... it's a comfy little space to enjoy a tall glass of sweet iced tea on a hot summer day.

At this point I should probably warn you ... this is going to be a looooong post with tons of photos! You may want to grab that glass of sweet iced tea and find a comfy chair!

The backdrop for our porch is wall paint in Sherwin Williams Softer Tan and our front door is Rustoleum Regal Red. The existing black chairs received a good (although a bit late) Spring cleaning and a fresh coat of black spray paint.

My inspiration piece was this multicolored door mat - love the color combination.

Was happy to discover the door mat incorporated our existing deep red, along with dark aqua and bright green. This allowed me to exercise my frugality and keep the deep red pillows that were already on the porch chairs. A win-win!

Another frugal find was this ceramic garden stool! It was the last one at our nearest Costco ... and, would you believe it was only $19.99? Have been wanting one for quite a while, but just couldn't bring myself to pay the $50-80 for the ones I drooled over at Home Goods and Target. You better believe this one was in our shopping cart the moment I saw it - and, I guarded it all the way to our vehicle!

Next was to add a pop of color with the addition of patterned pillows for the chairs, to coordinate with the existing deep red pillows. After not finding any ready made pillows that I liked, I decided to try making them, even though I don't sew (well, I don't sew well).

I stumbled across these fabric placemats at Walmart (our only shopping source locally - all the fun stores are at least an hour away). Couldn't believe that they contained all the colors I was looking for and I recalled that pillows could be made out of placemats by ripping a small opening in one of the seams and filling with pillow stuffing. At less than $4 each, they were in keeping with my frugal porch mindset.

I didn't even have to buy the stuffing. So glad I kept two old pillows that had faded - had planned to recover them but instead, I used the stuffing in the new placemat pillows.

To seal the seam opening without sewing, I used Aleene's Fabric Fusion Quick Dry Adhesive:

This stuff is amazing - works quickly and was super easy to use. I applied the adhesive to the seam opening and pressed firmly to close. Just to be sure that the opening stayed shut while drying, I placed big binder clips on the seam to clamp it shut. Worked like a charm! I sprayed the pillows with Scotchguard Fabric Protector and they were good to go.

Next, I searched my stash of items for something to hang on the wall behind the chairs. So many things would work well, but I wanted to add a bit of texture, so chose a metal wall pocket and filled with natural elements, surrounded by a large empty frame.

The wall pocket was a dark brown but of course I couldn't leave it that way. I wanted it to be a distressed aqua. Mixed two craft paints that I had on hand - Fern Green and Turquoise - and applied the paint to the pocket with ... you guessed it! .... my fingers! Best paint applicators ever.

The picture frame would probably look best in black, but I love its gold distressed finish and don't want to paint it so will leave it as is.

We're almost finished - I promise! All that's left to do are plants and a rug!

The rug is from Lowe's and is an Allen + Roth patio area rug in natural. At 5 ft 3 x 7 ft 4 in, it was perfect for this small space.

Last but not least ... plants! I added a Boston fern on a stand, a small pot of white Vincas, an arrangement containing a Dracaena, red Vincas and Sweet Potato Vine, and potted white Pentas. I dressed the Pentas up a bit by wrapping with burlap and tying with jute string. Added a strip of red/natural jute upholstery webbing, and to give it a little bling, inserted brass brads through the webbing.

A small red metal lantern completed the décor. The absolute very last thing I did was paint the front door "wreath" frame. Used the same mixture of craft paints used on the metal wall pocket.

That wraps up our little front porch refresh! Hope you enjoyed this lengthy tour of our home's smallest space.

Will leave you with a few more pics ... And, if I ever learn how to use my really nice camera, photos should improve considerably. :)

Thanks for hanging in there!

Thank you to Must Love Home and A Delightsome Life for graciously featuring this post!

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{TUTORIAL} DIY Fourth of July Vase Filler

If you find you're short on time but need a little something to complete your Fourth of July table scape or mantel, this is a quick, easy and frugal option.

The tall clear vases can be found at Dollar Tree and the vase filler is made with items you probably already have in your pantry.

Supplies I used:

Clear vase
White rice (uncooked)
Food coloring
Ziplock sandwich bags
Flameless votive
Bow

To begin, pour 1 cup white rice into a Ziploc bag. Add food coloring. Start with a small amount - you can add more incrementally if you need a more intense color.

Seal bag and knead the bag to work the color into the rice.

Once you've reached the desired color, pour rice onto paper towel to dry for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, rice is ready to place in vase.

Using a small (1 tablespoon) scoop, I placed a scoop of red rice into the vase. Then, using the handle end of a wooden spoon, I pressed the rice firmly into the vase. Do the same with the white rice (uncolored) and then blue. Repeat layers until vase is filled 2" from top, allowing space for candle.

Add a festive bow and a flameless votive and you're all set!

This is a great "go to" vase filler option for any occasion - just choose food coloring to coordinate with your décor. And, filler can be reused. Store in sealed bags between use.

Enjoy!

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Front Porch Refresh ... In Progress

You know that feeling of having lots of projects going, but none are quite completed? That's exactly where I am right now.

Wanted to give you a sneak peek at my front porch refresh plan in progress. Our front porch is teeny tiny which is good and kind of bad. Good because it doesn't take a lot of expense to decorate and not-so-good because, with limited space, the pieces I choose have to have a bigger impact without looking cluttered. My plan is to mainly use items I already have - with a little repainting and tweaking. Nothing elaborate - just a small space that makes me smile. :)

Two items that will remain are our black chairs and red pillows. The chairs will get a fresh coat of black paint.