day 7: how to hang a tray on the wall

 

 

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I recently found an old painted tray at the thrift store and I thought these warm colors would look pretty against some white beadboard.

 

The problem was its size. The biggest plate hanger typically fits plates between 10 and 14 inches. But even after a lot of stretching and bending it was obvious that this tray wasn’t going to fit. It actually measures 12 inches wide and 24 inches long.

I didn’t want to put a nail through it.

And although I thought about using Velcro strips, since it was going over the stove I decided against it.

 

Instead, I went to the hardware store where I found the largest springs they carried, and I switched them out.

Here’s the old spring next to the bigger replacement springs already in.

And it worked.

You might remember what this part of the kitchen looked like only a few weeks ago.

Before

AFTER

Boy, I’m so glad we removed those top cabinet doors.

 I painted the beadboard with BM’s Simply White but I still have a few more things to do in here before I share updated photos.

Although I’m so happy I got that tray up.

So tell me. How do you hang your large trays?

xoxo

Leslie

I’m sharing this post with these friends:

http://elizabethandco.blogspot.com/2014/10/be-inspired-feaures-and-link-party-137.html

http://myuncommonsliceofsuburbia.com/inspire-monday-28/#more-16751

 

 

 

 

Technorati Tags: wall arrangements,how to hang a tray on the wall,DIY tips,plate hangers

Project Design: Gallery Wall

 

 

 

 

Project Design Gallery Wall Participants:

Design Chic

Design Indulgence

Driven by Decor

5th and State

Gwen Moss

Lovely Things

Rough Luxe 

Talk of the House

Classic • Casual • Home

 

OK. Here’s my Monday morning question for you.

Who doesn’t love staring at a cool, well-designed gallery wall?

You too?

Because today I get to tell you all about this fun little gallery wall project organized by my uber talented friends Mary Ann and Cindy.

The idea is pretty straightforward (otherwise moi would be in trouble).  On next Monday October 13th, all these fabulous participants are going to share a “before” photo of the wall they’ll be transforming. And the big Reveal--with all those juicy behind-the-scene tips—is just one week later on October 20th.

• October 13- Before photos of the wall project
• October-20th-the big Reveal

Now I have to admit. There aren’t many rooms inside our new fixer upper that are what you’d call, blogworthy.

(Ok, like zero)

But if you’ve been a visitor here, you already know the story. How we relocated from our family home in Northern California and landed down here in sunny Huntington Beach, and recently moved into our home.

Only being so close to these gorgeous waves meant trading our comfortable 3,400 square foot home for something very …hmmm, let’s just say the phase, ‘Welcome to my humble abode,’ has new meaning for me...

  So no. I won’t be going crazy with the camera shots around here unless you want to see a lot of “Before” rooms that have nothing to do with this gallery wall.

But...

Yippee….. I do have ONE room that’s ready for this fun project and I can’t wait to show you next week.

In the meantime let’s talk some gallery wall inspiration.

When it comes to creating an arrangement for your own wall there’s plenty of resources out there, like HERE and HERE and HERE.

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But it really depends on your own style.

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Do you prefer more cohesive artwork in a classic grid lay-out?

 

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Or do like the salon style?

hanging some pieces closer and others farther apart and mixing frame styles…

Do you prefer to measure and create a “map” before putting the first nail in your wall?

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Or do you like playing around with your collection

until you achieve the look you want?

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I’ve got some ideas for this wall of mine.

But honestly, I can’t wait to see what some of my favorite bloggers are planning. These gals are the real thing and thank you Cindy and Mary Ann for including me with this talented bunch.

 

……BTW--I’m so glad you stopped by on my Day 6,

…yep. I’m still at it.

xoxo

Leslie

 

 

 

 

Technorati Tags: project design gallery wall,31 days of october inspiration day 6

thought for day 5

 

 

 

xoxo

Leslie

 

 

day 4: living with things that matter

 

 

In the end, Grandma no longer wanted things. I found this realization unsettling when I took her to a antique mall in the months before she died.

 

Grandma, the tireless deal seeker and consummate shopper refused my attempts to buy her even the smallest token to remember our visit.

Instead, every time I saw her in those last years she seemed intent on giving her  belongings away. Sentimental old letters and pictures. Pieces of costume jewelry.

“Go ahead Les, pick something out,”

she’d say as she lugged an old, deformed cardboard box down her hallway.

And I would glance at my Mom, feeling very uncomfortable. Taking something meant acknowledging that she was going somewhere and I didn’t want to.

Grandma was in her eighties and still going strong. I couldn’t imagine her suddenly being gone.

 

But at the same time, I could tell she was perfectly serious.

This was Grandma’s way of passing on a connection and I understood this.

 

After she passed away my Mom brought over her cake pedestal and told me that Grandma had wanted me to have this. Grandma was famous for baking her chocolate cakes and her specialty cheesecake and giving these away.

Apparently the saleswomen at Macy’s Department Store used to know Grandma from her baked goods, as we discovered after her death.

And so this cake pedestal was a wonderful reminder of how she lived, of her spunky spirit and her generosity.

And I was so delighted to have it.

 

 

As valuable as it is to me, I’ve decided to bring it out and use it around my kitchen, with or without the cake…

 

Life’s too short to keep waiting for that special occasion. Don’t you think?

Today is October 4th.

Can you find a way to use something that matters to you?

 

Thanks for joining me on Day 4!

xoxo

Leslie

 

I’m sharing this post here:

http://www.stonegableblog.com/the-scoop-139/ 

 

Technorati Tags: 31 days of october inspiration,how to decorate a cake pedestal,DIY Fall vignette,living with things that matter

day 3: autumn gatherings…

 

twine wrapped mason jars with sage colored candles..

fresh apple place cards next to cinnamon sticks and pinecones…

place mats made with book pages and white pumpkins and interesting gourds…

a table using shades of orange and lime green…

fresh figs and yellow glassware…

big clay pots filled with candles and green moss…

a mass of warm colored candles and napkins tied with leaves… 

a black and white toile runner…

A centerpiece using apples and leaves…

miniature pumpkins used as vases…

a collection of old, candlesticks with mix and match dishes…

 

Hello friends.

I hope you enjoy looking over some of these pretty Fall tables today.

Just gazing over these tables makes me happy.

I love to collect pictures of beautiful tables so that I can go back and appreciate all those little details that someone lovingly created.

Honestly, I think creating fabulous tablescapes is a form of artistry, but look closely, because you can easily find ideas here for your own table.

thanks for joining me on Day 3,

happy Friday…

xo

Leslie

 

 

 

Technorati Tags: autumn gatherings,Fall tablescapes,DIY miniature pumpkin vase 31 days of october inspiration day 3

Day 2: dining room chandelier re-do

 

Have you ever started a DIY project without any idea where you’re headed?

Welcome to my chandelier paint job.

When I first painted my dining room BM’s Kendall Charcoal, I envisioned a vintage crystal chandelier dangling inside the smoky gray walls. But the one I crated from Sacramento has a broken arm from the move, plus it’s really too small for the space.

(on my wish list)

So until I find the right replacement I’m stuck with the dark chandelier that came with the house.

And  I wasn’t in love with my options. At first I planned on painting it a creamy light taupe color with a white undercoat that would show through in the sanded spots.

But honestly, painting this chandelier took way more time than I planned and I stopped after a few coats of white chalky paint. And since this isn’t a keeper I’m ok with it.

 

As a side note, you can probably see from these pictures, I’m having a hard time adjusting my camera to the poor lighting in this room. There are so many new things to get used to in this new house, and one of them is the lack of natural light.

I only have one window in here. 

 

 

I ended up being pleased with this brand of paint I picked up at Home Depot.

It did leave a chalky finish that I liked, but you had to watch for clumps. And I did use a spray can of satin paint for the chain and ceiling plate.

  This is the moment when I toyed with sanding some of the finish off to highlight the dark undertones but I quickly decided against it. I’m still hoping to replace this soon.

 

I used white plastic garbage bags to tape it off.

The lazy girl’s guide to painting.

Almost finished…

 

(Honestly, I probably could’ve used a spray can and you wouldn’t know the difference).

Although I’m not sure I’d buy a white chandelier, I’m liking this color so much more with this paint color than the darker version.

now it’s on to my walls….

thanks for joining me on Day 2 of my little adventure!

xoxo

Leslie

 

 

I’m linking this post up here:

http://www.frenchcountrycottage.net/2014/10/feathered-nest-friday.html?

 

 

Technorati Tags: 31 days of october inspiration,chandelier how to,Benjamin Moore's Kendall Charcoal,dining room decorating

Day 1: Owning your Life…..

 

 

This is an experiment.

Do you want to join me?

It’s called, Operation: Relishing-Every-Single-Day-of-October… and  it all started when I woke up this morning and didn’t even realize it was the first day of October.

That’s right, here’s my absolute favorite month of the year and somehow my life has gotten so sped up that I didn’t even realize it was here already.

And even though my immediate thought was, “Wow, how did the days slip by?”

The truth is, I’ve had this uncomfortable awareness that my pace has been too hurried, with too items on my wish list, too many home projects jotted in my calendar book, and yes, too much discontent.

And I’ve noticed something.

I’ve noticed that no mater how many items I’m scratching off my list there’s always so much more to get done. I won’t bore you with a photo of the unopened boxes in our garage right now, but it seems like it never ends. Do you know what I mean?…

Even my blogging which is usually a source of joy has gotten me down lately. It bothers me when I can’t catch up on my visits to other blogs. Or when I’m not responding to my comments, which mean so much to me.

But mostly I’ve noticed a sense of loss after I visit all the lovely Fall Home Tours going on in Blogland right now.  Honestly. It’s like standing outside a big, festive party and looking in through a smudgy window. I guess it makes me realize how much I really love styling and photographing my home for you all.

And there it is. My problem in a nutshell.

Dreaming and planning is a slippery slope. It can easily get you dissatisfied with what you’ve got at the moment.

Ever since we got into this new home I’ve been in a constant state of planning for our home renovations. Focusing on the yuck carpet that I want to be rid of... Getting quotes. Collecting ideas. Yada yada yada.

But the problem with being engrossed in home renovations is that it’s easy to live too much in the future where all the prettiness will be. Instead of right where my little old body is, in the midst of my sometimes messy-chaotic-very unfinished life.  I’ve heard people say they have similar reactions after visiting perfectly staged blogger homes.

It can plant a quiet seed of discontent in us.

Sigh. It’s all about balance isn’t it?

But here’s my bottom line: This month I want to live more in the NOW. I want to get off the hurry train and be more mindful of the little blessings I’ve been missing by focusing on this darn house.

So I had this idea and maybe you can join me.

Earlier this year when I did my 30 day yoga challenge I learned a powerful lesson. It’s fascinating really, but when you commit to doing something new everyday your life begins to change in other ways. You begin to count your days. Notice the dates. Suddenly you’re acutely aware of how much time is passing and it’s this kind of open-eyed alertness, that actually helps you slow down. And own your life.

After all, this is it. Today.

This is your body,

this is your age,

this is weight,

this is your house,

this is your small, sacred space in the world right where you are today.

Now repeat after me.

I know. Pretty powerful huh?

Alright, here’s my plan.

It’s 31 days of showing up in October.

Every day during October I’m going to come here to Gwen Moss land and write something down. Period. Hopefully it will inspire you, it will be the same kind of topics, just a shorter version. But it will be my way of staying fully present during the month of October.

Heck, I’ve never done this before so my goal is to work on the ‘art of imperfection.’ That means not having to worry about posting perfect pictures or posts with typos.

Hey, it’s just you and me right? Hanging out together.

This October …lets experiment.

Grab your own notebook or your laptop or your IPhone or your own blog and join me by jotting down something each day in October.

And let’s savor the small stuff.

 

 

xoxo

Leslie

 

 

Technorati Tags: 31 days of october inspiration