Under $100 Link Party

Uh-oh.  Linky Tools had a crash last week and they are still working to restore the thumbnail pictures--the links are there, sorry! They have assured me that all new link parties are good to go.  Thanks for you patience and for linking up.  Here are some great links from last week:

Knick of Time's lovely headboard coat rack

HOME Hooks and My Thoughts on Color

What is your favorite color?  I get asked that question often by the sweet little kids that I occassionally sunstitute teach for.  And I don't usually have an answer for that, but I tell them something because they can't fathom not having a favorite.   

Sunday Verses

Potting Bench Fever

I've got the fever, do you?  While the wind is still a howlin' and the snow is still a blowin', I have spring fever.  And with this particular fever comes the side effects of wanting to plant flowers. Alas, that is a good 2-3 months away in Montana.  In the meantime, I am planning out the next potting bench I might want to create, using past ones for inspiration.

Under$100 Link Party

Welcome to the party, come on in!  If you have a great idea that can be completed for under $100 then this is the party for you.  Just a reminder, I am looking for home decor ideas that we can recreate for less than $100.  Wall decor, furniture, decorating tips, REPURPOSED goodness, DIY ideas, pillows and other decor--all of it as long as it costs less than $100 to create like these great ideas from last week's party:

Kammy's Korner made over some chairs, you need to see how these started out.

Bicycle Art

It was bison art last week, and bicycle art this week.  

And I am working on another B project--must be a B kind of a month--maybe that has to do with all the basketball I have been watching (12 games in 4 days).  

Sunday Verses

Bison Art

Oh give me a home, where the buffalo roam and the deer and the antelope play.

Oh yeah, I already have that home--Montana and the buffalo or more accuartely the bison are plentiful. A little fun fact--buffalo live in Africa or Asia, bison in North America.  I photographed this big guy In Yellowstone last spring.

After watching the news the other evening where there was a segment on the Yellowstone bison, I decided I needed to make some bison art.

Heart & LOVE Roundup

Happy Valentine's Day!  Have a romantic dinner planned?  Hanging out with the kids?  Still hunting for the love of your life?

Me, I will for the second year in a row spend the evening in a gym watching my boy play ball. Good thing I like basketball and watching the kids play.

I thought I'd share a hearts and love roundup to celebrate the day.

Under $100 Link Party

Hello all, whatcha up to?  i am busy prepping dinner for 20 hungry high school basketball players, so not a lot of time for chit chat today.  Here are some wonderful links from last week! Please keep sharing and linking, I am pinning links and sharing on Facebook

Repurposed For Life shared a piano kitchen island--simply lovely!

Paris Suitcase Side Table

Off to Paris with the perfect suitcase?  

Sunday Verses

Rainbow Party--How to Throw a Tween Party on a Budget

Somehow this little 2 year old 

became a 12 year old.

Simple Seat

Sometimes simple really is best.  Sometimes, I forget that and then a piece sits for awhile before it sells.  Happily, I remembered that rule with this chair makeover.

Under $100 Link Party

Are you warm yet?  I sure haven't heard many news stories on global warming lately (not looking for a political discussion here).  It has been one chilly winter!  In December when it was sub zero temps I was happily oblivious to it, on a beach in the Caribbean.  This time I am not so lucky.  It was 20 below this morning with wind chills at 30 below.  The thing is, here in Montana, life just goes on--no snow days, no cancelled school or work.

And while I am somewhat proud of the fact that we Montanans are tough, sometimes I want to shout, "Come on!  Is it going to kill us to take one day off to stay inside and warm?!"

Oh well, the bitter cold will pass.  And the sun is shining and there was a very cool sun dog (rainbow effect) by the sun today.  And I have lovely links to share, so life is good, cold, but good!

Incredible headboard  from Wanderland Vintage

Fun and easy number tags from My Repurposed Life

Bright side table from At Home in the Northwest

I love creative clothes refashions like this one from Over The Apple Tree

Creating a Life shared  vintage inspired Valentine's decor

Under $100 Link Guidelines:

1. Please link to the specific post, not your blog!

2. Please only post ideas that cost $100 or less--it would be great if you share the cost of your project, but not necessary.  Only share current projects, i.e. from the last 3 months.

3. Please include a brief description in link up.

4. Grab my blog button on the sidebar and include it in your post or a link to Beyond The Picket Fence so people can find you and more great ideas.

5. Please check and make sure your link works. If it doesn't you can delete it and try again.

6. Please no direct links to sales sites, i.e. ETSY or just a plain ol' commercial site, we are looking for inexpensive ideas we can recreate.

7.  Please do NOT link up the same thing week after week--keep it fresh
8.  PLEASE visit the link and repin from the blog. not here--thanks!

Have fun--I am looking forward to your links!

Chair Parade

Chairs, shmairs!  I seem to currently have a plethora of chairs to work on.  I have not been able to find much else lately that is affordable at the thrift stores, but I have found a few chairs.  What to do with them is the question.

A friend and I were previously known as the chair ladies.  When we first started selling at Farmer's Market we painted among other things, chairs--ladybug and dragonfly chairs, cherry chairs, farm chairs, rooster chairs, fruit chairs, flower chairs.  

After a few years we realized chairs were a lot of work.  They were wobbly, spindley, full of nooks and crannies to sand and paint.  But, occasionally I still enjoy a good seat (I now know what to look for in a chair and avoid ones that need repair) and pick them up when they are inexpensive.  

I thought I would parade some of my past chairs--in hopes of inspiring you and myself!

A chippy, happy chair

Sunflower chairs

A quick chair makeover--I still have one of these I am redoing soon.

Chair planter

Wildflowers

French chair

Children's Adirondack chair makeover

Chairs repainted and recovered

Here are some more chairs that I don't think I ever blogged about:

So, as you can see the possibilities are pretty much endless.  Stay tuned to see what I come up with for my latest batch of chairs.

Heart Halves & A Verdigris Paint Technique

What to do with 2 halves a heart?  Why put them together of course and make the heart whole. 

If you cut carefully when cutting out the heart frame for the heart art I shared HERE, you will end up with 2 heart halves.  I wanted to do a verdigris paint treatment on these.  I knew it wasn't going to look like metal, the wood it too rustic.  I didn't want someone to think it was made from metal, I just wanted the finish to have that verdigris look. If you do want to you this technique to look like metal, use it on a more smooth board or wood--something like plywood. 

Start by painting the item copper. After all, verdigris is a natural finish or patina that occurs on copper items.

I used these three paint colors next.  This is just what I had, anything similar will work.

Dab and stipple the paint on, don't completely cover the copper paint.

Blot some of the paint off with a paper towel (watch for paper towel design impressions) or t-shirt cloth.

When the paint was still wet and with the same paint brush, I stippled a bit more copper paint on.

When this is dry, I sanded a bit.  If you want it to look like metal and not wood, skip this step.  I used some dark Annie Sloan wax over the paint. Then use watered down white paint over the top of the wax.  It will bead up,

but blot it with a t-shirt cloth to leave some parts more white than others.  This is very subtle.

I then joined my heart halves together with a little copper wire.

I was going to add a rusty key or a tag with a verse on it, but decided I liked this one simple and plain.

Linking up at Funky Junk Interiors!

Sunday Verses

Reclaimed Wood Heart Art

I told you I had an itching to paint and create with colored wood, didn't I?  While I didn't get a completely satisfying scratch on the itch (I want to paint LOADS of wood and build BIG furniture), I did get to scratch it a bit with this reclaimed wood heart art.
I started by painting some boards--paint technique is HERE!

I cut a heart out of newspaper

and traced it with a Sharpie on to the wood (2 equal sized reclaimed wood boards).

No photos of this part, but I cut them out with a handheld jigsaw.  Cut carefully and you have a heart for a future project that I will share on Monday.  Oops, one half broke into 3 pieces--no worries!

I cut the painted reclaimed boards the width of the heart outline (the finished piece of this is 25" tall by 20" wide) and used the brad nailer to attach the boards.  I nailed through the front so I

could see where I was nailing.

Oops again, more wood breakage=more nails, no sweat!

I painted it white, waiting to paint to cover nail holes, sanded it and used a mixture of Annie Sloan dark wax and coconut oil to finish it.

Love having some color,

and the reclaimed, salvaged wood beauty and texture!

The other decor?  I really liked the ladder I brought in for Christmas and left it for pictures and added some hot dish carrier bulletin boards from the past next to the heart.  

Linking up at Funky Junk Interiors!