Potting Table/ WashStand or display. DIY

This started out to be a potting table ... but ... 
let's see what happened.

 In April we added a storage room to our workshop and I needed to burn or use a bunch of stuff ... Soooo ... I had a plan ...

I had this old screen I salvaged from an 1920's Art Deco house that was demolished ... just sitting behind the work shop for months, but still in sound condition. Needed to be stripped.

 

and four very weathered porch bannister pieces that were almost rotten ... 

well, in places, they were.  

Ace Vinyl Spackling saved them and we were able to make some tall legs by putting two together and adding a base. I just rubbed spackling in all the cracks and weathered places and it filled like magic.

We used our Kreg pocket hole jig to construct everything. (This was my Christmas present) ...

Papa John's Pizza just opened and we reclaimed the lumber they used to crate their signs and made the shelves and counter top, again, using the Kreg pocket hole jig. (love it!!!). 
Had to remove thousands of staples.

The stretchers between the legs were made from old window screen frame boards I saved when we replaced the window screens on our rental house that was built in 1940. Beautiful hardwood with minor rot and had been stored outside for years. 

We used these chair or rocker spindles/legs for extra support under one shelf. They had to be shortened and filled. 

Most of the assembly work was done on the work table with it flat on it's back. An old aluminium screen door guard, brackets, screen door handle and screen hook were used, along with a number 5 cut from old wood. Used my Cutting Edge Stencil for the first time. So easy !

 I did not use outdoor paint and have a wax finish on it, so it may not be suitable for outside. To make painting it easier; I painted each peice before I assembled it, but in the end, decided to use dark wax on it ... what a job!!

Would make a nice washstand or a display shelf in the bathroom, garden room, covered porch or maybe just anywhere. The bottom shelf is slatted, but the others are solid.

 

Top selves are 12" wide so they needed extra support. It is 32" wide, 22" deep and 82" tall.
Big and heavy. 

Everything used was recycled, reclaimed or re-purposed. The only thing new were the screws.

Would be awesome to display white ironstone, 

but no room in my house for it. 

So ... is it a potting table or not ??? 

What would you use it for?

Thanks for stopping by. 

Hope you are inspired to build something, maybe not as hard as this was, but let it challenge you. 

Linking to:

Finding Fabulous 

The Shabby Creek Cottage

 

 Kathe with an E

Savvy Southern Style WOW

Ivy & Elephants What's It Wednesday

Fluster Buster's

The Dedicated House  

Knick of Time Tuesday

Funky Junk Interiors

Debbiedoo's   and

Ann On Suttonplace

Miss Mustard Seed Featured Friday Furniture 

Dear Lillie

The Lettered Cottage

Jennifer Rizzo

Jeanne Oliver

Thistlewood Farm

Eclectically Vintage

At Home on the Bay

Demijohns and wine bottles for Summer mantel.Question

I have not posted in so long, I just about forgot how to. 

I have a real good excuse for my absence that will be posted later. 

I know you all missed me ... well, maybe two of you did ... 
and maybe not.

Anyway, I am taking time to do a quick post because I need some advise ... and what better place to get it than from bloggers. 
Right !!!

I was inspired by Kelly @ Eclectically Vintage and her part two of One Room, Three Ways, and her beautiful Demijohn bottle collection on her mantel.

 
I only have a few green wine bottles, maybe two or three, but not real big, beautiful, fat Demijohns.


Some have wicker and two are painted. 
 

 I knew I needed more bottles for my collection to display for a fresh Summer mantel ... so I went to the Thrift and bought the one I had been looking at for two weeks.  

 

This is the one ... big, fat, old and green or blue-green. 

 

Now here is where I need help ... It is encased in it's original wicker basket and I want to remove it to display the bottle ... but will I ruin the value of it by doing so?  Do I care about the value or do I want to see and enjoy that beautiful green bottle? 

Wicker is in good condition ... only dry and bottle is dirty.
 
If it was Fall, wicker would be nice ... but for Summer, a pretty green bottle would be fresh. 

 
 
What would you do  ... 

display it as is 

or 

remove the wicker and enjoy a beautiful bottle?

 

Thanks or your visit ...

I appreciate your comment and suggestions.

Blessings,

Audrey Z. 

Linking to:  

Ivy and Elephants What's it Wednesday

At The Picket Fence  Fun in the Sun

Knick of Time Tuesday

Geckos and Cookies at the Dollar Store

Have your ever bought cookies at the Dollar Tree Store? Well, Wednesday was my day to get cookies for Mr. Z ... "the cookie monster". They have a great variety.

Walking into Dollar Tree you are greeted with all this colorful summer fun stuff ... decorations for Memorial day and Spring.  

Looking at all the fun stuff, I almost forgot about the cookies. If I was having a pool or patio party and needed decorations or cookies, the first place I would go would be Dollar Tree. 

Well, I remembered Debbie at Debbiedoo's and Shannon at Fox Hollow Cottage are having a Dollar Tree Summer Decor Link Party and just maybe I can find something to blog about.  

 

I loved what "bj" at Sweet Nothings made for her pool party.  (see post #4 or hop over to Sweet Nothings and see what she made). 

Truth be told ... after I saw that cute Gecko on "bj's" plate ... 
I just had to have one. 

So, when I saw this big green Gecko in the $ Store ... the decor wheels started turning.  They were so nice and I loved that he was green. I bought five ... just knowing I would find uses for them.

These bug/fly swatters in the shape of butterflies, flowers and bugs in the middle were really nice and only 50¢ each. 

 

Then came the colorful plastic watering can ... (can always use one of these) ... then picked three clumps of grass and the Gecko.  All I needed for a cute flower arrangement.  Cost would be $8.00. Not bad for a cute centerpiece and usable items. Can also be used for a door decoration ... but might need a burlap bow.

   

Wet play sand in the watering can kept the swatters in place. I bent the handle on two of them to make them shorter; added the grass and attached Mr. Gecko to the front. Hot glue did not work, so used some rolled-up, double-sided, foam mounting tape. This worked for the moment, but to be permanent, he needs to be wired on.

Swatters could be used as table favors or fold the handle over and secure it to a stand and use for name place tags.  

I was in the check-out line and saw this nice summery yellow cloth bag $1.00, thinking that would make an nice cover for a potted plant ... and so it does.

I tucked the handles inside ... cut a plastic milk jug and a plastic juice jug in half and fitted them in the bag added cardboard inside the front to strengthen and give it shape. Glued the Gecko to the bag with hot glue and put some potting plants inside that I had bought for the yard. This centerpiece cost $2.00 to make, plus the plants, but you have a choice of live plants, live flowers or anything from your yard or garden. 

 

I really liked this look and enjoyed it while I had my lunch.  

 I topped a thick slice of tomato and some lettuce with a small amount of left-over chicken salad. Fruit and crackers rounded out the simple lunch.

 

For dessert, I had two chocolate covered gram crackers that I bought at the Dollar Store ... I think there are 18 cookies in the package for $1.00.  

Now wasn't that fun ??? 

Summer decorations, cookies and Geckos all over the place. 

Just hanging around and waiting for the party to begin.

 at

Debbiedoo's and Fox Hollow Cottage

Junk Drawers and Silhouette Cameo

As some of you know; we added a storage room to our workshop and for the past month, I have been going through a lot of JUNK, sorting, cleaning, purging and moving stuff from the garage to the workshop storage room. (will blog on that later) ...   

Junk Drawers FEATURED....

 

Garage Sale coming soon ... 
do you think people coming to our garage sale will pay me to haul off our junk if it is in pretty drawers ?


Found three boxes at the Wednesday 25¢ Sale at Finds Thrift ... not really a drawer, but they will work. Saved me making them! After I painted my mirror ... had paint left, so painted the drawers.

  (oops, forgot to add the knob) ... oh well.

(Just had to add a knob ... funky and off to the side ... but cute !)

I bought a Silhouette Cameo stencil cutter with some of my Christmas money and today, I set my mind to try to learn how to use it. I had tried to cut stencils before ... did research, but I was not getting it ! Finally called Support and was able to cut a stencil. I wanted something simple ... so chose JUNK drawer.

I wanted to do a sign like Angie at Knick of Time does, but that is a little bit complicated. Check out her signs ... love them and she sells some of them. I will learn how to do that too.

I had some just regular household clear contact paper, so that is what I used. It worked ...

 I used both the positive and the negative parts of the stencil
Using just the individual letters; I dry-brushed white over them, letting the green show. The white letters were done with the stencil. Was able to use them a couple of times.  The paper was pretty thin and flimsy, but the more paint I got on it the better it was.  I was pretty happy with the results.

I think it made pretty cute Junk drawers. I was not too careful with the paint or the lettering, because ... they are what they are ... junk drawers. 

? Would you buy one of my 'junk drawers'   full of goodies ?

 

Thanks for your visit.

Hope you enjoyed my JUNK story.

Blessings,

Audrey  

Linking to Knick of Time
Homemaker on a Dime
Funky Junk Interiors
The Shabby Nest Frugal Friday





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