the84thdoor

Dreaming of Rusty Bread Pans….

the84thdoor — Fri, 08 Mar 2013 15:55:54 +0000

I have said it before and I’ll say it again, if you live anywhere near Waterloo Ontario you have to check out The Timeless Material Company! That store is incredible! It is almost like a really cool museum, where you can look at amazing architectural salvage and re-claimed pieces from years gone by. But you can touch them and buy them and bring them home! That’s my kind of museum.

A few months ago I bought a bread pan (I posted about it here) and turned it into a storage compartment for my coffee table.

I happened to be browsing through The Timeless Material Company’s website yesterday and I came across a small feature on my blog and how I styled my bread pan! Yay! I am so thrilled!

It’s making me want to go back and buy some more…..maybe use it outside on the patio for snacks? Put it on an old table in the garden and fill it with different kinds of birds seeds for my squirrel, chipmunk and bird friends?

Oh Spring, stop being so shy and get here already!

A Fresh Coat of Paint

the84thdoor — Thu, 07 Mar 2013 15:20:36 +0000

Painted Media Stand

March is a frustrating month. It toys with my emotions. It’s so close to Spring but you know at any minute a snowstorm is going to make an appearance. Ugh. I have cabin fever like nobody’s business and all I want to do is change things up and paint everything. So I started with the small hallway that connects our family room, bathroom and office. There are no windows in the hallway, it can get pretty dark and feel very small. I knew that I wanted to paint our media cabinet something bright and cheery. I’ve been having a bit of a love affair with yellow lately, so I picked a bright yellow paint to freshen it up.

New Glass Knobs

I changed out the old door knobs with glass knobs from The Home Depot. I think they were $5 a piece.

I am so happy with the results! I also painted the walls a granite gray and I’ll be using this colour in the family room later on. Unfortunately I didn’t take pictures of what the hallway looked like before. I got too excited about painting it and dove right in. But just imagine one side of the hallway painted blue and the other a pukey green. They were leftover paints that we had on hand.

Painting by Bob Green

The painting above the cabinet is a print that was painted by my Great Uncle Bob Green. He is an amazing artist and I absolutely love this print! It is a painting of my hometown Galt, ON. Back when we didn’t tear down beautiful buildings just to build concrete blocks on top of them.

Painting

Later on, I’ll be posting about the adjoining bathroom I painted! I can’t stop running in there just to stare at everything!

Can’t Stop the Banner Fever

the84thdoor — Thu, 27 Sep 2012 14:51:07 +0000

I can’t get enough of these banners! This time I used the same leaf template but I decided to use watercolours to make them look a little more real. It’s kinda neat how the paint made the paper bend at the edges.

I think it adds a nice pop of colour to the room!

This banner making is getting a little out of hand. I’m going to have to stop making these for a while….at least until Christmas.

Fall Is In The Air!

the84thdoor — Wed, 26 Sep 2012 19:13:46 +0000

My favourite time of year is finally here! FALL!!!! I love the colours, the cooler days, sweaters and boots and pumpkin lattes! And because I’m a total nerd and with apparently way too much time on my hands, I decorated the house with all my Fall ‘stuff’.

I decorated the fireplace mantel and made a banner to celebrate this time of year.

The leaves on the banner are made out of vintage book pages, cut by hand and attached by twine.

I like that the banner is simple and so light weight that I just used a tiny piece of scotch tape to attach it to the brick.

I’m slightly obssessed with these banners…..it might get out of hand!

Coffee Anyone?

the84thdoor — Wed, 25 Jul 2012 23:20:31 +0000

Well hello there! It feels like it’s been ages since I posted something! It’s been busy here at The 84th Door. Road trips, visits to the beach, soaking up the sun. Life’s been tough.

So now that I’ve had some R&R, let’s get back to business. I chose to post about something that has become very near and dear to my heart. Coffee. Yes, coffee. I have just started to acquire a taste for it. Be it regular coffee, latte’s, cappuccino’s… or Kahlua (it has coffee in it, right?) And since my parents gave us their Tassimo machine last year, it’s been like a hip and happenin’ Starbucks in my kitchen! Minus the lineups and pumpkin scones. Man, I love those pumpkin scones. The Tassimo machine does take up a bit of room though, and since I don’t have much to spare in my tiny kitchen, I had to put on my thinking cap.

I grabbed a wooden Ikea cart (thanks again Mom and Dad), and turned it into a coffee station.

Gotta love burlap. I like to call it ’Burlap Magic’. It not only protects shrubs and small trees in the winter, but it also looks pretty darn cute as a table cloth too!

The coffee station needed some sparkle! Mission accomplished without spending a dime!

The necessary essentials. Not only are these creamers amazing, they don’t need to be refrigerated! Yay!

This is from Ikea. It was for plants. Now it’s for coffee.

My husband’s pride and joy. Good thing it’s pretty!

My $15 Garage Sale Find!

the84thdoor — Thu, 24 May 2012 13:06:36 +0000

Last Saturday as I was on my way to work, I passed a garage sale and spotted two wicker chairs out of the corner of my eye. I was pressed for time, but I had to check it out! I jumped out of the car and ran to those chairs before anyone else spotted them! The sign said $20 for both, I only had $15 but I asked if they would take it. They did!

Since we bought our house two years ago I’ve always imagined having two wicker chairs on our porch. The ones I liked were never in our budget, so I had to get creative and use mismatched chairs instead. They looked cute, but they were temporary.

Eventhough these chairs have had their fair share of use, they’re still sturdy and I love the braided accents! All they need is a little cleaning and a fresh coat of paint!

Okay, maybe they need a lot of cleaning!

Over The Weekend: Gardening

the84thdoor — Wed, 23 May 2012 14:12:15 +0000

The Victoria Day Long Weekend was just what I needed to re-charge my batteries! Eventhough I’m tired from weeding, planting flowers and laying down mulch (thanks for your help Mom and Dad!), I’m so happy that it’s done! And let’s not even talk about how sore my thighs are from planting those flowers!

Along the side of the garage runs a neglected flower bed, which made me cringe everytime I walked by. So this year I tackled the weeds, planted some marigolds and laid down mulch. But it still looked a little empty. So I put a shepards hook in the corner to fill up the empty space and planned on getting a hanging basket later on. But my husband suggested that we use our old galvanized bucket and use that to plant flowers in. Brilliant! And this boy doesn’t even have a Pinterest account! (Please ignore the rocks on the ground, the empty flower urn and the garden hose, those are next on my to-do list)

My only hesitation was that there wouldn’t be any drainage, so he took our garden claw, flipped over the bucket and punched some holes. Voila! A hanging basket was born!

Now we have to tackle the garden in the backyard…my thighs are already crying thinking about it!

*Look closely, can you spot the Great Dane in the background?

Union Jack Dresser

the84thdoor — Thu, 17 May 2012 14:54:45 +0000

Who would have thought that an old and unloved dresser from a second hand store could turn into British royalty?

This is how I found her, plain and dying for a makeover!

Luckily I didn’t have to do any pre-sanding so I was able to just start painting. I painted the entire dresser in Benjamin Moore’s North Sea. I then mapped out the Union Jack and painted it by hand so that the lines didn’t look too perfect. I used Para Paint’s Barn Door and Cotton for the detailing.

I then applied a distressing glaze and lightly sanded the edges by hand. When I was happy with how it looked, I applied several coats of paste wax to protect it.

I replaced the old hardware (which was brass from the 80′s) with new handles.

I am so happy with how my first attempt at the Union Jack turned out! And any opportunity that I get to use my Beatles poster from highschool makes me a happy girl!

This dresser is for sale! If you’re interested, send me an email: the84thdoor@yahoo.com

How could I end this post without mentionning my love for Ringo Starr? Look at that pinky ring? You can’t get much cooler than that!

Growth Chart

the84thdoor — Wed, 16 May 2012 15:05:00 +0000

I’m having a love affair with growth charts lately. I love that they are not only functional and record life’s milestones, but that they can be an unexpected and awesome piece of art!

My sweet little niece turned two at the beginning of the month and I wanted to make her something special. I’ve been noticing growth charts all over blogs, Etsy and Pinterest and was excited to make one for her. I knew her birthday would be the perfect opportunity to tackle this project!

I started with a piece of pine that I had in my garage waiting to be used for a project.

I stained it with a dark walnut stain, taped of sections and whitewashed them.

I sanded and distressed the entire board before I painted the numbers with Barn Door by Para Paints. I loved the idea of her parents writing her height and age on tags and hanging them on hooks.

Since her birthday, I’ve made a couple more to sell! I made a growth chart the same as my niece’s and another with black numbers.

Since I don’t have kids of my own, I’ll have to make one for my wall and measure the height of my dog. Good thing she’s a Great Dane!

*Linking up to http://frenchcountrycottage.blogspot.ca/2012/05/feathered-nest-friday_17.html

Spring Fireplace Mantel

the84thdoor — Wed, 02 May 2012 15:17:50 +0000

The Spring of 2012 has been a bit of a let down. Cold, rainy, snow, what’s a girl gotta do to get some sunshine around here? Since the weather has been gloomy and grey, I figure why not make the inside of my house as cheery as possible.

I started with a DIY blackboard. I found the frame at a second hand store for $1 and painted it a mustard yellow. I then cut out a piece of cardboard from a pizza box and painted it with black chalkboard paint.

I grabbed some old books, some terracotta pots and fake greenery (because my house is the place that real plants come to die).

My ceramic owl (which I bought at Home Hardware for around $15!).

The mercury glass votives are from Cindy Crawford’s Home Collection. I think there were 3 votives in the package and they were marked down to $2. SCORE! Who would have thought that Cindy Crawford would have a hand in my home decor? Isn’t she busy with infomercials?

And finally, I found my Scrabble game hidden in the back of my spare bedroom closet under a mountain of purses.

I forgot about the wine! The most important part! I put some of our wine stash in an old pop crate. I like how it filled the empty space.

Please don’t get the wrong idea that we’ll be drinking all this wine to make it through this dreary Spring. We’re hoping Cindy Crawford won’t let us down.