DIY

I love copper accents for home accessories, but I don’t love the price tag.  That stuff is expensive, man!  We put copper gutters on the front of our house last year and let me tell you – ouch.  

So it came as no surprise to me that real copper planters for my front porch were out of the question.  I was going to have to use my plain black urns again this year.  That is until I found out about copper patina paint, and made some DIY Faux Copper Planters!

I.AM.OBSESSED.  

This was such a fun project, and I am going to “copperize” everything because, well, I can!

Supplies Needed to Make DIY Faux Copper Planters 

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• Terracotta pots
• Paintbrush
• Modern Masters Metal Effects Copper Paint and Green Patina Kit

How to Make DIY Faux Copper Planters with Copper Patina Paint

First I wiped down my terracotta pots to remove dirt and dust.  

Next, I applied two coats of Modern Masters Metal Effects Primer, which came in the copper patina paint kit, per the instructions on the bottle.  

I primed the inner rim of the pots because I knew that some of the inner rim would be visible even after I planted flowers.

After allowing the primer to thoroughly dry, I applied a coat of the Copper Reactive Metallic Paint, which also came in the kit.   

My pots were so shiny!

Then a crazy storm decided to move in, so I had to transfer this operation to the messy garage. (It WILL be cleaned out this summer. Public accountability.)

I added a second coat of Copper Reactive Metallic Paint, and while it was still wet, I sprayed on the Green Patina Aging Solution (again, this came in the copper patina paint kit).  In this photo you can kind of see the spots where it was sprayed.  

The Activator started working immediately, and it was super exciting to see the green patina appearing right before my eyes.

Within about ten minutes, the pot looked like this!  I felt like a science geek because this was making me so happy.

I let my pots sit in the garage overnight, and I filled them with flowers the next afternoon while I pretended my children were not throwing dirt at one another.

The copper patina looks realistic enough to pass inspection – in my opinion at least!

Can you believe what kind of copper patina you can achieve with a paint set?

My little guy likes them, too. Or so he says.

I’m so happy spring is finally here and I have some color near my front door. The fact that I got the copper look for less also makes me ecstatic! I am so thankful for this copper paint! 

– Bre

Once upon a time I purchased the Spontan Magnetic Board from IKEA.  Why?  I don’t know other than that when I step into IKEA, I suddenly feel the urge to purchase lots of things that I have no need for.

I ultimately decided to incorporate it into my son’s “vintage aviation bedroom.”  To add to the theme, I customized the magnetic board, and am happy to share this Painted IKEA Spontan Magnetic Board with you! (2021 UPDATE: IKEA magnetic boards are now sold as Svensas Memo Boards).  

Supplies Needed to Customize an IKEA Magnet Board

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• Electronic cutting machine (I LOVE my Cricut Joy) *See the tutorial below if you don’t have or don’t want a cutting machine! You can still do this!
• Chalk paint in color(s) of your choice
• Varnish
• Paint Brush

How to Paint an IKEA Spontan or IKEA Svensas

To get this look, I cut airplane stencils on my cutting machine.  (At the time I had a Silhouette Portrait – now I use a Cricut Joy).

If you don’t have an electronic cutting machine, you could easily print clip art from your computer and trace the design onto contact paper to make a sticky stencil, or use stickers in the size and shape you desire.

Once my stencils were ready, I placed them onto the IKEA Spontan board.  

Next, I used a small foam roller to apply two coats of chalk paint over the entire board – including over the contact paper stencils.

I used DecoArt’s Americana Decor Chalky Finish paint in white.  Again, you can pick any color you like!  (Don’t you think the washing machine is the PERFECT work surface?)

Once the paint was totally dry, I removed my contact paper stencils to reveal the vintage airplane design! I was SO happy to see that they turned out well!

I then painted a coat of varnish over the entire magnet board just to make sure the finish stayed on well.

Since I will be using magnets on there and rotating my son’s artwork, I wanted to make sure the finish is durable.  

This was a fun project because I had no idea if it would actually turn out well.  I love that I finally used my random IKEA purchase, and my son is pumped to have a place to display his artwork from school!  

Next up in the room is painting the bookshelf to match the gray chalk painted dresser that I finished late last year. I can’t wait to get the room finished!  

– Bre

Wood slices are all the rage amongst crafters these days, so it’s no surprise that I had to make some type of wood slice craft!

I turned mine into a rustic wood slice serving tray with wood burned detailing.  Tres chic!  (Or should I say “tray” chic in this case?)

Wood Slice Serving Tray Supplies

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I loved this project because it allowed me to work with materials I’d never used before, and to create something that I actually have a need for!  The supplies I used were the following:

• Walnut Hollow Basswood Country Plank
• Creative Woodburner Value Pen
• Watco Butcher Block Oil & Finish
• Stencil (and pencil)
• Drawer pulls (and drill)

How to Make a DIY Serving Tray

Step One:

Once I had my supplies together, I started by lightly sanding my wood slice and then taping a stencil to it.

Step Two:

I traced the design onto my wood slice in pencil.

Step Three:

I plugged in my woodburning tool and anxiously waited for it to heat up.

I had never used one of these so I was a little nervous about starting something on fire.  (If you know me at all, you know this is a legitimate concern.  For real.)

DIY Serving Tray Step Four:

Once I got started burning my design into the wood slice, I found that it was really easy to do!  The tool does get hot to hold, however, so I had to take little breaks here and there.

It didn’t take long and the smell wasn’t too bad – thank goodness! I did NOT want to set off the fire alarm during my son’s naptime!

Step Five:

After I finished burning the entire design, I let the wood slice sit for a while. Then I drilled holes into the piece so that I could screw in the drawer pulls for handles.

Step Six:

Next, I coated the entire wood slice with butcher block oil to help seal the piece. Butcher block oil is completely food safe and FDA approved, so I was confident using it on something that I knew I’d be putting food on.

As with the previous step, I forgot to take a picture of the butcher block oil application, but trust me, it’s nothing exciting. It tints the wood ever so slightly, but it doesn’t change the color in any dramatic way.

Wood Slice Serving Tray Step Seven:

Once the butcher block oil dried, I went to screw in my hardware. At that point, I noticed that the pulls I’d purchased were two different finishes. ANNOYING!

Since I didn’t have the receipt, I decided to spray paint them so they’d look the same.

Step Eight:

After the hardware dried, I screwed the handles onto the wood slice and admired my rustic wood slice serving tray!
Then I served my kids a “fancy snack” of cheese and crackers.  (Trust me – this is way nicer than the animal crackers or raisins I usually toss into a bowl for them every afternoon.)  
I think this is a perfect DIY gift, and one that can easily be personalized with a monogram, quote, or other meaningful design.

You could also add some cool hardware for handles to really make your wood slice serving tray unique!

Wooden crates are everywhere: the craft store, home improvement stores, and even big box stores!  They’re super accessible, and because of that, perfect for a wide variety of DIY projects.  Today I’ll show you how to turn a crate into a rolling firewood caddy! 

I am in love with my little firewood caddy.  It has opened up my entire fireplace (I used to have a fireplace screen covering the firebox), and added a personal touch to my living room.

It was also really, really easy to put together.  Score!

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I started with a plain wooden crate.  (Although I linked to one online, if you get a 40% off coupon for Michaels, you can get them much cheaper there.)   

After the paint dried, I lightly sanded in areas to give a further distressed look.

Next, I decided to add some text on the front of my crate.  I wanted it to look like a vintage crate I picked up at a flea market or something.  Since this was going in my fireplace, I decided to make up a fake timber company bearing my last name.

(Sidenote: I bet I would have been an awesome lumberjack if I had taken that career path.  I look really good in flannel.)

I downloaded some free rustic-looking fonts and a pine tree image, typed out my text using the Word Art function in Word, reversed the text, and printed it out on freezer paper so that I could do an image transfer.  I followed a freezer paper image transfer tutorial, and it worked really well.

Hi, friends!

Well, I’ve filled another wall in my kids’ new playroom.  They already had some fun PLAY art and their very own art gallery, so it was time to add some educational value to the mix.  Enter this United States map art that shows them where they, and people in our extended family, live.

Map art is all over the place right now.  I’m no decorator, but I look at enough catalogs to know it’s a hot decor trend.  Some of the pieces can be pretty pricey, so I made my own with wrapping paper and a cork board.  For real.

Once that dried, I put a thin coat over the entire surface of the cork board.  This ensured that the map was sealed to the board and that the entire surface had the same sheen.

Over the weekend I tackled a project that’s been on the to-do list for far too long – repainting our staircase.  In the process, I was reminded of how much of a pain in the you-know-what painting a staircase is, and I thought of five important staircase painting tips to share with you . . . tips that I wish I would have known the first time I painted this staircase.

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But first, a little background . . .

When we purchased our home in 2009, the staircase was YELLOW (along with a majority of the walls, trim, and ceiling in the house).

It was not our choice of color scheme by any means, but we were able to see past it and envision what the home COULD look like with some TLC and elbow grease.

We were fortunate to have our parents help us paint most of the rooms in the house; all within the first few months of us living here.

One of the bigger projects was repainting the foyer and staircase (spindles and all!), and my parents helped us with that one. It was tedious and time consuming, primarily because my husband and I were newbie painters on a budget and we did not have the best paint or supplies to paint stairs.

We painted the risers, spindles, and moulding white, and it made a dramatic difference.

But within a few years, the cheap paint started to wear off and the staircase looked dirty and dingy. See the peeling paint, scuff marks, and shoddy paint job on the dark brown trim?

Because the staircase is one of the first things you see when you enter the house, it was time for a makeover. I used semi-gloss paint on the risers, trim (no longer brown!), and moulding. It now looks so fresh, clean, and happy!

Check out my newest staircase makeover! Learn how to remove old carpet from stairs and refinish a staircase with stained wood treads and painted risers.

So, what are the things I learned about painting wooden stairs this second time around?

Tip 1: Clean, Clean, Clean

Stairs are dirty, dirty places.  Before painting, I Swiffered them and dusted the moulding as part of my prep process, but that wasn’t enough.  

I quickly realized that I needed to actually wash every part of the staircase in order to ensure that dust and dirt wasn’t making its way into my paint.  

You can work with water and a rag, but your best bet is to mix up some TSP (trisodium phosphate) and wash the treads, risers, and any moulding with that. TSP is a non-sudsing cleanser that is formulated for cleaning before paint.

Properly cleaning the stairs before paint will help ensure that the paint adheres or sticks as intended, which gives you the longevity of finish you’re after!

Tip 2: Purchase the Right Tools

When we first painted this staircase, we were using full-size paint brushes.  But stairs are small.  Regular size brushes were too large.  

This time I worked with a small 4″ roller and roller pan (made for doors and cabinets), and a small angled trim brush.  The quality of my work painting stairs was so much better this time!  The right tools really make a difference.

In addition, it’s important to read the label on the paint you’re using to see what type of brush or what nap of roller is recommended. This will help you get a smooth finish!

(And hey, if you have paint brushes already but they’ve gotten hard, check out my post on how to soften hard paint brushes. It’s a lifesaver!)

Tip 3: Use High-Quality Paint

Stairs get a lot of action and suffer a lot of abuse.  I definitely learned that you want to use a really good paint that will withstand daily wear and tear, and the scuff removal sessions with the trusty Magic Eraser.  

Because the stairs you’re repainting will likely have scuff marks on them already, it will save you time covering those marks if you buy a paint with primer built in.

In addition, do NOT pick a flat or matte paint for your stairs. This type of sheen will not withstand wear and tear. You should choose satin or semi-gloss paint for the risers, as these can be wiped clean much easier.

If you’re also painting the stair treads (not just the risers), you will want to use a specialty floor paint. Make sure to let the stairs dry completely, and pay special attention to the paint cure time, before resuming use of the staircase!

Tip 4: Work With a Moist Paper Towel

No matter how careful you are with paint, while painting stairs you will inevitably bump a wet riser and spread paint to the treads.  If you make sure to have a moist paper towel within arm’s length at all times, you will avoid a difficult clean up later!

And worst case scenario, if you DO happen to get paint somewhere you don’t want it, I swear by this latex paint remover!

Tip 5: Tape as Little as Possible

Finally, taping takes a lot of time and costs you money.  If you buy the right tools (see Tip No. 2 above), you should be able to tape less.  

On this project, I only taped where the riser met the treads (and I did not tape along the moulding or at the top of the quarter round).  This was such a huge time saver!

If you aren’t confident enough or don’t have a steady hand, you can also try using a paint shield or paint guide as a quicker way to get a nice line.

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Painting a staircase is a tedious project, but doing it right will definitely pay off!

I hope these tips for painting a staircase are helpful to you. Please let me know if you have any other tips to add!