DIY - Hanging Leather Planter {from a tote!}

By Chelsea

Whew! Well we just sailed to Friday, didn't we here. I thought I'd have some more goodness to show you this week but wouldn't you know it, in a span of 5 days we lost AC, hot water, and our washing machine was down. All issues were quickly resolved within a few days and I was so reminded of how extremely fortunate we are that those were our challenges this week. Needless to say, these hiccups put a hold on some of the week's to-do's, (a familiar story to all, I'm sure).

But, I was able to finish one sweet thing to share with you before the weekend!

Hanging Leather Planter

This was one of those quick satisfaction projects. The kind that doesn't suck a whole lot of time or energy from you, but the result is exactly what you had hoped and pictured. Those are so necessary sometimes, yes? I found this camel leather tote last week at a thrift store for less than $8.

If you're into accessories this would be an awesome find! I used to be an accessories girl. Then I had a bunch of kids and they became my accessories... Funny how that happens! I still know a good deal on leather when I see it, though.

I actually bought this tote just to use it for it's leather. The hanging planter is just the first project to come from it, but I've got another that I'm looking forward to sharing soon as well! The first thing I did was lay the tote front-side-down, (with that cute pocket facing the floor), and stick my plant right in the middle of the backside. I needed to make sure that what I cut from the tote would be enough to securely hold my plant, which is on the larger side. Then I set the plant aside, took out a strong pair of scissors, and cut along the perimeter of the tote. I removed and relocated the shoulder straps and the braided pieces along the sides to use for hanging the piece. That's it folks!

The last piece was how to hang my planter. I chose a brushed nickel closet rod hook from Home Depot for $6 because I wanted the plant to hang away from the wall a bit, but there are of course other options depending on where and how you want to see your plant hanging, (from the ceiling, closer to the wall, etc).

If you're fired up to try this yourself, just know that the process and end result will look a little different depending on the bag you use. That's the fun of it, though! I would recommend finding a bag with long-ish shoulder straps so you can cut them down to use for hanging the piece. This is just a simple idea with which to expand on and make it your own! If you happen to try it out please hashtag #chelseasgarage on Instagram or feel free to share photos on Facebook! We LOVE seeing your handiwork!

Thank you all for stopping by and have a splendid weekend!

~Chelsea

Nursery Themes Using Engineer Prints

By Cate

Why hello there!  As some of you may already know, last month I shared how to make a faux pull-down chart from an engineer print.  Well since then it has become increasingly more obvious {mainly to my husband because they're multiplying in our home} that I am OBSESSED.  I mean, have you noticed how I've been sneaking them in to all my post pictures lately...?

Like here 

annnnnnd couldn't help myself here either

Can't stop won't stop.  I simply must share some more...

So because they give such a strong nod to those vintage school house pull-down charts, I can't help but feel they would be so cute for kids!  You can so easily do something custom, cute, cheap, and even educational for any baby's nursery theme {not that Caleb and I are looking for ideas - just because we're married and I mentioned the word baby doesn't make me pregnant people.}  ;)

I mean, couldn't you see this vintage car print in a boys room?

{Source: The Graphics Fairy}

How about this sweet alphabet print?

{Source: Just Something I Made}

Are you seeing the potential yet?  Maybe this will help...

This hot air balloon print could take any nursery Up Up and Away...

How about a sailing ship for your Little Sailor...

Or a noble stag to watch over your Woodland Adventurer...

The possibilities are endless!  I think that last one is my fave...  Have another great idea for these cheap black & white engineer prints?  We'd love to see how you do it!  Tag us in your projects #ChelseasGarage!

Happy Wednesday ya'll,

~ Cate

Hello again, AT!

By Chelsea



Hi friends! In case you missed my shameless bragging on Facebook over the weekend, our very own Cate made a splash over at Apartment Therapy a few days ago! Her Geometric Lamp Copycat was all the buzz at AT as one of their Before & After features. Way to go, Cate!

Good choice, Apartment Therapy. Good choice, indeed.

To the thousands (!!) of new readers checking out Chelsea's Garage for the first time, we are so excited you found us! We're a DIY, Home Decor, Furniture refinishing blog, started by me, Chelsea, and featuring weekly editions by my very talented sister-in-law, Cate!

We are both so glad you're here and hope you look around through our many tutorials and projects, enjoy yourselves, and definitely stick around; Cate and I are cookin' up something big that we definitely want you to be a part of. Stay tuned!

And as usual, you'll be hearing from Cate tomorrow with an inspiring Wednesday edition! I'll be back soon to share how I turn one leather tote bag into both a hanging planter and leather drawer pulls, (now that's one amazing tote)!

Thank you so much for stopping by!

~Chelsea

DIY Swiss Cross Rug

By Chelsea

I just love heading into the weekend with a little DIY fun. :) I mentioned in our Basement Therapy post that there were a couple DIYs floating around the space, but my favorite one is actually grounding the whole room altogether.

Take a good look at the rug. Can you tell that it's a DIY?

So fun, right!?! I've been smitten with the Swiss Cross for a couple years now and just couldn't get it out of my mind. I looked online for Swiss Cross rugs but couldn't find the design in the form of a rug, (lots of pillows and throw blankets). I was hoping to see one that I could use for inspiration before making my own, but alas I couldn't find a single one. Is it possible that this is the worlds first Swiss Cross rug?!?

Doubtful. But here is how I made ours in case you've been crushing on the Swiss Cross yourself. OR this technique could easily be translated to any pattern and colors you could possibly want - Multi colored hearts for a girls room, gold stars, triangles - think about it, you guys; the sky is the limit with this one!!!

Supply list:

Plain, solid rug

Can of spray paint or water diluted paint

Cardboard

First, you need a plain, solid color rug. I found our oatmeal-y grey one at Home Depot for $20 during a brief sale - the original price was $30, and it is oh so soft. Then you need a can of flat black spray paint, (or whatever color you want). Spray paint is wonderful for this project because it's already diluted a bit, so it won't dry stiff. If you decide on a using a brush and can of paint, just be sure to mix the paint with a bit of water to thin it out.

Then take a large piece of cardboard, (mine was about 18-20 square inches), and use a box cutter to carve a Swiss cross in the middle, (or whatever shape you'd like). How large you want it is up to you. The most important thing is that it is exactly centered in your piece of cardboard so it's easier to equally space the pattern.

Yup.

Bring the rug outside and lay on a smooth, flat surface. Lay the cardboard flat on the rug and spray from about 5-6"" away, being careful not to get over-spray onto the rug. The way I got my crosses all equal distance apart was by lining the cardboard up on the crosses I'd already done. I'd line the top of the cardboard up with the bottom of the crosses on the row above, (see below), and one side up against the tip of the previous cross sprayed right next door. Spacing and arrangement is all up to you!

All finished!

Now we are off to do some Friday thrifting! If you're on Instagram you can follow all our freshest finds, ideas, and projects at @chelseasgarage. I really think our relationship is ready for this next step!

I so appreciate you stopping by and have a splendid weekend!

~Chelsea

Living Room Tour

By Cate

Guess what guys... our living room is CLEAN.  So you know what that means: it's time for a living room tour!  Let me start by explaining that Caleb and I live in a studio/ loft apartment.  As you can see in the floorplan, basically this means we live in one big room that's a whopping 863 square feet.  

Nevertheless, we are very proud of our newlywed nest.  I'm proud that I managed to make my extensive collection of roadside rescue furniture and DIY decor work for a small space.  And Caleb is proud that he found us an apartment that, although minuscule, still has more than one bathroom {1.5 to be exact} and a flight of stairs.  Now with that said, I don't know if this post will actually qualify as a tour since you can pretty much grasp our tiny living situation in one photo:

Yep you're looking at it.
That's the whole living room people and pretty much our whole apartment.
Tour over.

Just kidding.

Even though the photo taken from our lofted bedroom space pretty much covers it,  I'll still do my best to walk you through the things we have that define our living space.  

Alright, let's take a closer look at some of our decorative items. 

 

First we have our extra storage in this faux-front apothecary chest from Kirklands.  Above it hangs another engineer print that was converted to a faux pull-down chart.  Quick tangent: after I made my first pull-down chart in this tutorial, I was inspired to make another by this exquisite architectural alphabet print.

I did a little digging and learned that each letter was taken from a famous architectural publication by Johann Steingruber circa 1773.  Talk about vintage.  I tried DESPERATELY to get my hands on a reproduction image of the whole set with no luck.  But what I did find was a high resolution blueprint of the letter H.  H for Henderson - score!

Ok still with me?  Let's get back to the rest of the tour.  For those of you attention-to-detail CG readers, you might notice a couple of previous posts sprinkled through out the room...

   

{Geometric Lamp Copycat provides extra task lighting}

{Steve the Stag still stands on the credenza}

{Extra credit if you spotted the roadside rescue from Chelsea's suitcase table post last September}

Confession time: when she first made those tables, I was immediately smitten.  At the time however, they were promised to another project.  So when that went in a difference direction, I was ready with the rebound plan and Chelsea graciously let me inherit the pair!  

There are also a couple new-to-CG ideas in the room.  Continuing my suitcase motif, more suitcases on the wall provide extra hidden storage.

 

On our walls hang some original artwork - two acrylic paintings and one art piece made using a photo-to-canvas transfer method from A Beautiful Mess.

Behind the floating sofa is an old metal file cabinet that I spray painted aqua.  It provides a great place to hold all my tools since we don't have a garage.

Head up the stairs and you'll find the remnants of an old church pew from
my childhood church in DC.

 And on the window sill is an antique grate pulling double duty as a trellis.

You can kind of see in this photo that the white slip-covered sofa sits up against the kitchen counter.  What can I say... small apartment problems.  But it's great if you want to make toast without leaving your comfy spot on the couch.

The lofted ceiling does help the room feel bigger and the pops of red, marigold, and chartreuse mixed in with navy gives it a playful personality. 

I know what you're asking yourself... there are no dog toys littering the floor so where's Thor?

Snoozing through the whole tour of course...

And that concludes the tour of what is definitely the focal point of our little apartment.  Hope you enjoyed it and have a happy Wednesday!

~ Cate

DIY Salvaged Wood Sunburst Mirror

By Chelsea



Hi friends! Stopping by to share a very easy DIY project with you today! Though this project is simple and the supplies cheap, the end result looks far from it; this decorative piece will look like a rare gem when you're done, (especially when you customize it for your home)!

When I shared our basement makeover yesterday, I included a few peeks of our sunburst mirror above the couch.

This was the second DIY project using my smuggled paint sticks, (check out the rustic lampshade here). Let me show you how I made it!

Supplies:

About 60 paint sticks (Home Depot)

10" round mirror (JoAnns)

10" embroidery hoop (JoAnns)

14" x 14" piece of wood (Home Depot)

Hot glue gun (JoAnns)

Medium sized D-Ring for hanging the mirror (Home Depot)

*Optional: wood stain and/or paint (Home Depot)

If you plan on painting and/or staining the paint sticks for your mirror, you'll first want to lay them out all nice and straight. I used three wood stains for a salvaged wood look, so I separated the sticks into three lines.

I used Sunbleached, Weathered Gray, and Ash wood stains by Varathane.

To apply stain, I love using staining sponges - they're these white cloth 'sponges' that come in a 3 or 4 pack in the paint department of the hardware store. I just dip a small section of the sponge in, fold it in half so the stain is spread over the sponge, and wipe it on in a back and forth motion. You can even the stain out by gently rubbing a clean part of the sponge over the surface you are staining. And don't forget to wear rubber gloves! I keep a box of latex gloves in my garage so they're always on hand and within reach!

Once your sticks are dried, lay out your 14 x 14 piece on a flat surface. If you don't have scrap wood at home that can be cut down to fit the bill, you can always ask the lumber department if they have any scraps you could go through. Or just buy a 3 x 4 ft sheet of plywood for $5.

Hot glue the 10" mirror onto the center of the wood.

Hot glue the embroidery hoop around the edge of the mirror, (gluing it to the wood base, not the mirror). Embroidery hoops come with two rings. The inside one will be a half inch shy of reaching all the way around the mirror, and the outside one will be just a tad bigger than the mirror so there will be a slight gap between the mirror and the hoop. For this sunburst mirror, I used the inside hoop for a tight fit all the way around. I figured once the paint sticks were all glued on the small gap would be unnoticeable.

Now you're ready for the fun part! Hot glue each stick onto the wood by applying a line of hot glue onto the wood base, and laying the stick on top. Press down on the paint stick, and move onto the next.

At this point I got really into a groove and stopped taking pictures. Hah! But I finished the first layer of paint sticks, then started filling in the gaps, (where you can see the wood base), with a second layer. For the second and third layers, I actually broke the paint sticks down for a more authentic salvaged wood look. Paint sticks are thin and snap very easily. I just put one end of the stick under my foot, and pulled the other end up. Each one broke differently, which I love!

Then I finished by tapping a D-Ring into the back of the wood base!

Finished product!

I sure had fun making this, and it was ridiculously quick and easy! The stains and wood base I already had on hand, and the paint sticks were free, so the only costs were the embroidery hoop, ($2ish), and the mirror, ($4). Since making this mirror I've already made another one for my daughter's room using the second embroidery hoop! To add that up, that's two sunburst mirrors for a grand total of $10!

Coming up tomorrow, Cate's sharing a sweet tour of her living room with you in her Wednesday edition! 

Thank you so much for stopping by!

~Chelsea