Hi everyone! I’m back from the Haven conference in Atlanta, all pumped up and ready to take on the world! But first, let’s talk about a little DIY fun.
I’ve been working away at my master bedroom fix up for the last month or so. Go ahead and click over to see the last update on my master bedroom progress first if you’d like. I’ll wait for you right here.
OK, we’re good? So one of the things that’s been bugging me a little bit is the big blank wall next to the one side of the bed. I had no idea what I was going to put there, but I knew it was too big to leave blank. I’ve also been a little concerned that it was going to look too new in here and not “farmhousy” enough with all of the new stuff I’ve been buying and planning to buy.
Of course… of COURSE, the solution was right under my nose, using things I already had on hand, and completely free! Isn’t that always the way?
I gathered a bunch of stars from around the house that I had, but wasn’t too excited about any more. Kennedy’s joke is always that if something is a dark color, I will always paint it white and stick it on the wall. If it’s a light color, I will always paint it black…..and stick it on the wall. She’s right, you know! I couldn’t help it! I knew I would love these stars again if they were nice and fresh and white.
We built these shutters using some basic 1×6 lumber, cut to look like little pickets, with some thin strips across the front for stability. The whole thing is held together by wood glue. We just used clamps to hold it all together while it dried. We actually made these quite a while ago, so no pictures of the process! You can see that the construction is pretty simple from the back though. I painted the front to make them look weathered using a bunch of different random paints that I had on hand at the time.
I combined the two elements to make one big farmhousy piece of art for the wall!
Rustic and fun! Just like me! ….I don’t know what that’s supposed to mean so don’t ask. 🙂
Kennedy helped me decide on the placement of the stars by holding them up while I stood back. Then, when I thought I knew which option I had decided on, she told me that I was wrong and insisted that I put them up her way. I listened!
(That exercise bike really needs to be moved out of here soon.)
So there you have it! Exactly when I was looking for and I didn’t have to spend a dime. It’s amazing what you can find in your own house when you just look at things a little differently.
Courtenay Hartford is the author of creeklinehouse.com, a blog based on her adventures renovating a 120-year-old farmhouse in rural Ontario, Canada. On her blog, Courtenay shares interior design tips based on her own farmhouse and her work as founder and stylist of the interior photography firm Art & Spaces. She also writes about her farmhouse garden, plant-based recipes, family travel, and homekeeping best practices. Courtenay is the author of the book The Cleaning Ninja and has been featured in numerous magazines including Country Sampler Farmhouse Style, Better Homes and Gardens, Parents Magazine, Real Simple, and Our Homes.