Chalk Lettering 101

 

I bought this cute chalkboard on clearance at Kirkland Home and I was determined to learn how to write in chalk (and not have it look like my 3 year old wrote it). So, after researching many different techniques, I decided to try it out! It worked so well that I just had to share! If you are looking to decorate a cute chalk board in your home, this tutorial is definitely for you!

I began by looking for what I wanted the chalkboard to say. Since I knew I would be hanging it in the kitchen, I thought this quote by Julia Child was perfect! I typed up the quote in a couple of fun fonts, and traced it from my computer screen to regular printer paper (you could print it too, but I was lazy). The paper was cut and pasted together to the exact shape of my chalkboard since it was larger than 8.5x11.

You will first need to "season" your chalk board. This simply means to take a piece of chalk on its side and rub it all over the board. Then lightly dust it all off with a rag. This gives the board a more worn/used look and allows the chalk something to adhere to. 

Next you'll want to do the same thing on the back of the paper you just wrote your quote on. Literally turn the paper upside down, and rub the chalk on its side all over the paper. Then very carefully lay the paper right side up on your chalkboard. (chalk side down, pencil side up)

You will then trace over each letter and design with a pencil and the chalk you rubbed on the back will magically appear onto your chalk board. Once you have finished, remove the paper. You will see that it is not perfect and needs some touch up, but it gives you a really good outline!

Make sure you have a sharpener, a bowl of water, and q-tips near by. Dip the tip of your sharpened chalk pencil into the water and begin tracing over the letters on the chalk board. The wet chalk helps to give a smooth finish. It may look funny while it is wet, but it will change to perfection before you eyes as it has time to dry. Use a q-tip dipped in water to clean up any mistakes. 

This was my final product and my very FIRST try! I am pretty proud of the way it turned out! SO of course I am now obsessed with chalk lettering and I want to buy every cute chalk board I see lol!

Try it, it is so easy and such a fun custom craft to do!

Planters to Pendants! DIY Farmhouse Style Lighting!

 

After scouring the internet and big box stores for some cute kitchen pendants, I was left disappointed. I wanted something unique and that had an industrial farmhouse look. That is when I stumbled across these planters at the Frisco Mercantile for only $15 each!! I Immediately knew I needed to figure out how to turn these planters into pendants! After a little research and a few YouTube videos, I was ready to get started!

This is what they looked like right side up as a planter.

I started with a basic pendant light kit from Lowes. (only $15!) I then measured the base of the light kit (where the white part is) and found that it was 1" wide. So now I knew that the hole I was going to drill into the glass needed to be at least 1".

The next step was to find a 1" diamond glass drill bit. I was shocked to find that these bits were SO expensive in hardware stores! The 1" bit (30mm) was almost $40! So of course I started searching the web for a better deal. Amazon had them for $4!!!!! Yes, FOUR DOLLARS! SOLD! 

You will want to work outside when drilling into the glass because it gets a little messy. I took the glass out of the planter and turned it upside down onto a towel. 

To begin, you want to hold your bit onto the glass at an angle to make a small groove. Once you've made that groove for the bit to sit in, you will then start pouring small amounts of water over the top of the glass to keep it from getting too hot. This is a very important step because if the glass gets too hot, it will crack. I just kept a plastic cup of water next to me to pour over the glass every 30 sec or so. As you drill into the glass, you keep the bit at an angle and slowly start to level it with the glass. This is where you need a lot of patience. It takes TIME! You work slow and steady until the bit breaks through the glass. Overall it took about 10 minutes to break through.

This is what the glass looks like once you've broken through!

The next step was to cut the top off of the metal part of the planter. 

I got my hubby to do this for me with his angle grinder. 

From there it was just as easy as sliding the glass and metal over the pendant kit and attaching the washer to hold it all in place!

Add a light bulb and you're done!

I am so obsessed with my one of a kind pendants! They are exactly what I had been searching for and now I can be proud to say that I made them myself! 

More pictures of the new house to come!!!

Masculine Office Makeover

Masculine Office Makeover!





  Before and After

I went with a blue, grey, and brown color scheme for this space to give it an updated, masculine feel.

Added hardware to all of the cabinetry

I love staging a bookcase with real books, decorative items, memorable things from travels, and words such as these blocks that say RELAX!

I chose a grey toned shade of blue to repaint the room with. It makes the room much brighter and gives it that masculine feel that my client was looking for.

I love using window treatments, but I definitely didn't want to take away from the beautiful trim work or block any of the much needed light in this space. I found that the best solution was to make a pleated valance to give texture and pattern.

I created this seating area for a place for my client to play music, relax, or entertain clients.

Girly Nature Inspired Bedroom

                  This little girl's room went from dark and drab to light and airy! I am so happy with the way it turned out! What little girl wouldn't want a room like this?!     

                 

Before and After

I love taking vintage furniture pieces and giving them new life by painting them and adding new hardware! This is the before above and the after below...

I had the hutch removed, the base painted yellow, and the top painted black. The hardware is from Lowes.

Before and After

This chair from World Market was my main inspiration for the entire room!

For the curtains, I used a tan linen store bought curtain and added the green polka dot fabric for length and pattern!

These adorable rosette lamps are from Kirkland Home.

My client already owned these botanical prints! I just added the burlap ribbon and hung them above the bed!

I continued the same theme into the adjoining bathroom.

These cute yellow knobs are from Hobby Lobby.