R.I.P

Guess what happens when you leave a bookcase outside and a huge gust of wind comes through?




This heap of poo used to be a decent all-wood book shelf in my hubby's office. It had been residing in the gay-rage whilst the hubs and I shuffled things around in his man cave and redecorated.



Little did we know when we left the ole girl oustide it would be the last time we'd see her intact. I didn't even get the chance to say goodbye.



Oh well! Because there is a happy ending to this story.



When I went out to the garge to organize her remains I noticed that the pieces were still in pretty good shape. I thought it a shame to just discard them...for that's not the way of the frugal decorater.

As I sorted through the pieces I could see the potential in all the salvaged parts.

When I saw these guys my mind started going crazy. I saw a pair of standing photo frames, or if I added some knobs a future "knobby wall".







But, instead I decided to do this.

It's hard to see the numbers due to the flash on my camera, but they're there. I promise.

I've always had this philosophy that if something is in a room it should have some sort of purpose or functionality. So, ummm, the purpose of these number boards is to teach the little ones number recognition. Ya,that's it. I guess that if a person likes the way something looks, that's enough of a purpose, right?

{Look son, there's a two.}

I didn't take step by step pictures, so this isn't really a tutorial. And if you don't happen to have and old book shelf that has been brutally violated by the wind you could use any old {board} you have lying around. I started the process by sanding the wood with a medium sanding block. Then I primed them with Kilz spray primer. After they were dry, I painted them with Krylon brand Ocean Breeze. Then I distressed them and stensiled the numbers on {I just used a font off of my computer and made my own stensils}. Then I distressed the numbers by wiping off some of the paint so they looked faded and worn. Finally I glazed over the entire project with Ralph Lauren faux finish glaze. {Here's a tip, don't by your glaze pre-tinted. You can tint it with acrylic paint on your own. Sometimes I like black, sometimes brown. This way you can control the color. This time I used a combination of black and a little gray.} And voila...distressed number boards. You likey?

Stay tuned to see what becomes of the rest of the remains. It'll be flippin' awesome (written in my best Napolean Dynamite type).

OH, don't forget to enter my Halloween Giveaway. You can go here for all of the details.

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Blue Cricket Design

Numbers, numbers everywhere.

So, today I needed an easy little project...something I could do with a three year old and one year old glued to my legs.
Then I came across this photo and I was inspired.

He comes from the land of Sweden. He's fine the way he is, but I think he could use a little spice.

I found a font I liked on the computer, blew the numbers and letters up and cut them out.

I positioned them on the drawer (in the lower, left hand corner) and stensiled the numbers and letters on in black craft paint.

Here's the final result.

(Sorry this picture kinda looks like poo. It was the best I could get with kids climbing all over me. Hopefully you get the idea.)
Nothing crazy or drastic, but definately a little cooler.
This little project took me around forty-five minutes...the bulk of which was spent cutting out my stensils. The actual stensiling probably took only fifteen minutes. And the best part, it was completely free.
Should you choose to try this project at home, I would suggest sealing your paint with a polyacrylic/polyurethane top coat. The paint will wear off quickly with high usage if you don't.
Numbers seem to be a big thing right now. I've seen them everywhere from furniture, to throw pillows to wall art to storage baskets/bins. And they just happen to be my favorite accessory currently.
I am curious to know if any of you have some cool number themed projects you would like to share. I'm always looking for some good inspiration.

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