1930s Portrait Frame Redo

My sister is downsizing to a smaller home so she gave me this framed wedding portrait of my mother.  It looks okay in this photo, but it was actually in pretty bad shape. The photo had slipped in the frame and the entire backing had been patched and glued and partly held on with thumbtacks (!).  It definitely needed reframing. 

I hadn't noticed until I dismantled it that it has curved glass in the style of the time.  That made me a little nervous - I didn't want to break it. 

Basically I repainted the frame, cleaned the glass, remounted the photo, cut a new backing sheet, and added a dust cover to the back.  Here's the final result.  It's a little tough to capture a photo of something behind glass, so I played with this a little in Photoshop to eliminate the glare so you could see the improvement.  

I'm happy with the reframing, but I'm not real crazy about the hand tinting that was done.  My mother was a very pretty lady but, if you look closely, the coloring on her face makes her look a bit clown-ish.

Here's a straightforward wedding portrait of my parents.  She looks much better without the re-touching!

This photo is already framed and hanging on my photo wall and I'll now add the new portrait of my mom. I would take a picture of it hanging on the wall IF I HAD ANY DECENT LIGHT IN THIS HOUSE TO TAKE PHOTOS!!!  Sorry ... it's a sore subject with me.

Safe Kitchen Knife Storage

I don't know whether to call this a "tip" or a "tutorial" so I guess I'll just call it a "tip-torial."  (Sorry  - I must be giddy from the 50+ degree weather we're having today!)

At times I can be a bit of a klutz around sharp objects.  I've lost count of the little scars on my hands from X-acto knives, razor blades or sewing machine needles.  Yes, sewing machine needles. Don't ask me how I managed to do it but I once stitched right through the tip of my index finger and nail.  But I digress ...

Anyway, considering all that, keeping my knives loose in a kitchen drawer would simply not work.  Years ago I saw this tip in a magazine somewhere and have used it ever since.  It started with an empty glass container like this:

And a whole bunch of these:

And I have a nice safe place for my knife storage:

Up until a few days ago, it was just the plain glass container and the bamboo sticks.  But I decided it needed to be prettied up a little.  I simply used spray paint (Krylon Catalina Mist), some scrapbook paper and some ribbon trim and glued it on.  I may also give it a layer of Mod Podge since it will be on the kitchen counter.

 I didn't stop there. I used more paper on my steak knife holder and a can from nut snacks.

Just a little something to brighten up my kitchen a little. And save my fingers.  A tip-torial!

Monday Moanin'

Where does it say that time seems to fly faster and faster the older you get ...

I remember when I was a kid - a school day ... Sunday church services ... or a summer day with nothing to do ... or waiting for my birthday - the time just CRAWLED ...

In the same vein, I wish I could stop ideas from jumping into my brain.  I know, I know ... I shouldn't complain that ideas for projects and TTDs (things to do) slam into my brain with aggravating regularity.  The problem is, I end up with scribbled notes all over the house ... and I get heart palpitations because I will NEVER have enough time to do all the things I want to do or try.  I'm simply not going to live long enough ...

For some reason, all of the above is especially acute on Monday morning ....

Your Time Is Limited

“Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't be trapped by dogma - which is living with the results of other people's thinking. Don't let the noise of others' opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.”  ~ Steve Jobs

My scrabble cards have been making quite a few appearances in Etsy Treasuries lately.  Happy to see them taking their bows for Valentine's Day!

Tangerine Tango + Brass Band = Gorgeous

When I heard that Tangerine Tango (Pantone 17-1463) is 2012's color of the year, my first thought was - orange is my least favorite color, and I haven't created anything in that color. 

But when I started looking through my photos and collages, I had such a feeling of guilt wash over me!  How could I forget the most favorite rose in my garden: Brass Band??  (When I did a little research, I found it's one of Oprah's favorite roses also.) Of course, I didn't create that rose - a much higher power did - but I haven't resisted taking many photos of that beauty.  If it weren't for the fact that my Brass Band rose is currently asleep under a few inches of snow, I would have gone out, got on my knees and apologized for forgetting it for just a moment!

Turns out my rose is almost the exact shade for 2012. 

I also found a few more photos/collages that qualify.

So nice to be au courant for a change!

Floating "Book" Shelf Tutorial

A while back in my post about the Sisterhood of the Traveling Vases there was a glimpse of my floating "book" shelves.  Although I built these several years ago, the method I used was quite simple and the only technique I was aware of at the time. Since then I've seen several other techniques that are much more complicated so I'm still happy with mine. I thought I would back-track and show you how I did it.

I actually put up an entire wall of shelves in the dining area of my condo. My original thought was it would allow me to change out the display when I wanted to without pounding a lot of holes in the wall.

To be honest, I really wasn't sure of what I was doing when I built them, so later on I'll also tell you what I might do differently if I were to do it again. Here's the wall.

Here's the smallest book shelf: 

 

The middle shelf:

And the largest shelf:

The book titles weren't random - they're my little daily inspiration: The Courage to Create, Encounter with Art, The Art of Excellence.

Here's how simple they were to put together.  Take two large L-brackets and, using a very strong glue (not positive but I think I used wood glue), glue one side of the brackets to the inside back cover of the book. Clamp and let dry thoroughly.  Screw the other side of the bracket into the wall.  Paint the part of the bracket that is visible the same color as the wall. Close the book.  That's it!

Since I always have something on the shelves the brackets are either covered or they just fade into the background.  I think the large brackets are required to support the books; smaller ones like I used on the other shelves (see instructions below) wouldn't provide the necessary leverage. 

What would I do differently?  I would use thicker, sturdier books like the center one.  That one's holding up the best. As you can see, the narrow book in the foreground of this photo is starting to warp and bend a little.  I might have to replace it at some point. 

I did have directions to follow for the book shelves, but I had to wing it for the rest of the shelves. 


I started by creating a layout.

And then I scrounged for materials.  I had a lot of remodeling done when I first moved into my condo - it was in really bad shape.  I'm sure the builders thought I was nuts because I wanted to save all the scrap wood they pulled out! That old 1960s-style window molding came in handy, though. Here's the basic construction of the shelves:

The white pieces were glued, then nailed, then painted. The rope trim was painted first, of course, then glued and nailed.  I resorted to smaller L-brackets for these shelves and screwed them into the studs for sturdiness.  For the shelves that were below eye level, I put the brackets underneath, .

For the shelves above eye level, I put the brackets on top.

These shelves look like they're floating as well.  Here's the final result.

As for what I would do differently, I think I would have made some of the shelves a little deeper.  I'm limited as to what I can put up there because the shelves are so narrow.  I also would have made the "lip" a little shorter.  I actually have pieces of 1/2" matboard on the shelves to prop up the items, otherwise they look like they're drowning.

All in all, I'm pleased with it.  And the floating "book" shelves are quite the conversation piece for my guests.  What do you think?  Try it, you'll like it!


Linking up to Whipperberry Friday Flair/Link Party.