Getting Back My Mojo - Part Two...and a Giveaway!

Earlier this week I told you that Don and I both had finally gotten our creative mojo back after our move to Kansas.  We have SO many great projects in the works (that I think we will actually finish!) so throughout the next few months I'll share them as we go.  Today - one big project that we hope to finish this weekend, and one that Crafty Sharron and I finished in less than an hour!

Since we moved in to a much smaller place, our giant leather headboard and footboard just wouldn't fit in our master bedroom comfortably. We also have a guest room that I am in love with, but I've always thought it needed a headboard to finish it off.  How do we kill two birds with one stone AND not spend a fortune on something just to "make it fit" in our smaller place?  Make our own headboards!

Of course our first stop was Pinterest, where I had been storing headboard ideas on my Home Sweet Home board. We picked out a design we both liked which fortunately was from Ana White.  If you are AT ALL interested in your own home projects you MUST check out her page.  She designs the most amazing furniture (many times inspired by very expensive pieces from stores such as Restoration Hardware, Crate and Barrel, etc) and then gives you the plans, supply list and instructions FOR FREE! So - with an idea in hand we headed out to the local architectural salvage store. We expected to come home with some reclaimed wood, but were SO lucky to find two fabulous old doors instead that were the perfect size!

Don is going to be a guest blogger later on in the month and will provide directions and measurements for these, but essentially he used Ana's directions as a guideline and created a "frame" around each door (all photos below are of the queen).

It took less than an afternoon to frame both doors, then he took the queen headboard outside and spray painted the front (he used Rustoleum in Gloss Black), and once it dries completely we are going to use some steel wool in the center panels to bring out a little of the dark brown color underneath.  We are hoping to finish this weekend (if we can keep away the rain), so I'll post photos of the completed project next week!

The second project was purely for organizational rather than asthetic purposes - but it turned out pretty darn cute!

I have been helping some friends launch a jewelry company - Jane & Me, but had been keeping everything in a big ol' tupperware bin and just pulling it out when I needed it.  Honestly - it was out of sight, out of mind.  When we moved to Kansas I knew I wanted to have everything out, but because we were in such a small space I was totally stumped for ideas. Enter Bizzy's GIANORMOUS dog crate!

We keep it in our bedroom (and it is NOT pretty - clearly) and it takes up a lot of space, but that also means it has a LOT of flat surface.  We went to Home Depot and had a sheet of plywood cut to fit the dimensions of the top of the crate, then Crafty Sharron and I covered it with a cute fabric using a non-Xyron (if you can believe it!) adhesive product that I love - Crafter's Companion Stick & Spray!

This is definitely a two-person job - unless you are doing smaller pieces. Lay the board on the table and cover with fabric (wash and iron fabric beforehand).

Lift up one side of the board, spray adhesive along the top back edge of the board, fold down fabric and press to adhere.

Flip board so fabric covered side is on the bottom, fold in the corner (use spray adhesive to hold in place) and repeat on all remaining edges of the board.

Be sure to pull your fabric tight each time so you don't end up with any wrinkles.  The best part of the adhesive is it is repositionable so you can peel the fabric up if you need to make any adjustments.

The board was immediately dry - and look at the cute result! Now the jewelry is easily displayed, it takes away from the huge-ness of the crate a little bit, and I am a lot more organized!

So while I can't send you a giant piece of fabric covered plywood, how about if I send someone a necklace from Jane & Me's new fall collection?  Just leave a comment here (deadline to enter is midnight PDT on Sunday) and I'll post a winner on my Facebook page first thing Monday morning. Have a great weekend everybody!  Get out there and create something - and the Kingstons will do the same!