I picked a soft lavender color for the wall color, to start with. I love 'shabby chic' decor, and thought this room would be a good place for the collection of things I have. Keep in mind that every room in everyone's house is almost always a work in progress. I have a large shelf in the garage that will be mounted on the wall above 'The Gleaners.' My intention is to hang drapes from the shelf, to 'frame' the bed. Ah yes, many things to do!
The print was mounted on canvas. I think I have referred to my method of doing this, but here's a quick 'how-to:' You will need Decor Art Multi-purpose Sealer. I used an art print, but you can also use color copies of other art work. Brush on the sealer in layers--seven of them to be exact. Let them dry for a short time in between the layers, and brush horizontally the first time, then vertically the second time, and repeat this. When all layers are very dry (24 hours, at least), soak the print in your bathtub for 20-30 minutes. Place the print on a large counter, face down, and use your fingers to rub off the paper. Art prints may need to be soaked again, as the paper is thicker than a color copy. When you are down to the sealer and print itself, clean off any little bits of paper and coat the canvas with some of the Multi-purpose Sealer. Place the print, face up on the canvas, and start in the center, working the bubbles out. Be very careful not to stretch the print. I use a clean, dry, old wash cloth to smooth the print onto the surface of the canvas. The print is ready to frame when it is dry -or- to make it look old and crackled, you can brush on a crackle medium. Careful, though, because not all crackle mediums are alike. Do not pick the kind that requires another layer of paint to activate the cracks. The crackle medium you want will dry with cracks. Because it is clear, it is not easy to see them, but all you have to do is apply some brown gel medium with a brush, then wipe off immediately with a paper towel or old rag. The cracks will retain some of the color, and it will give the print a very aged look!
So, I thought maybe you would like a peek at what the room used to look like:
The window is probably the only interesting feature, and I couldn't really take a daylight picture, because all you would see is the lawn and rosebushes outside. Just let me say that the walls had a bit of work before painting, as someone had written "hummingbird" on one of them, with some kind of textured paint. So, of course, we had to re-texture the wall and fill in many holes.....
Back to the guest room! One of the walls has my treasured, but battered antique window. I used framing hardware and wire to hang on the wall, and have hung the wreath on a screw at the top, using 1 1/2"-wide brown satin ribbon. I folded the ribbon in half, tied a knot so it could slip onto the screw, then tied the wreath the height I wanted, and finished with a simple shoelace bow. Make sure to leave the tails long enough. I used at least 2 1/2 yards of ribbon for this project. I also had a wonderful little butterfly net that I hung next to the window.
I have matching metal tables on each side of the bed, loaded with little treasures. The watercolors were painted by my mother. She has a delicate hand with her flower paintings, and these are special to me because they depict the little orange desert flowers that grew in the pasture across the road from our old ranch house, as well as the columbine--Colorado's state flower. The little birds are wrought-iron and from a company I absolutely love called Creative Co-op. Check out their website!
This little metal flower is another treasure from Creative Co-op. I re-painted it, because I didn't like the splotchy finish. I just lightly brushed white metal paint (Deco Art) onto the surfaces of the flowers, leaves and vase. It is free-standing, next to the folding screen I have covering the window for privacy for now.
Here's a picture of my great grandfather who emigrated from Denmark when he was nine years old. Family pictures are a wonderful thing, and I have included a wall that is adorned with my own family:
In keeping with the old-fashioned look of the frames, I kept all the pictures black and white. I suppose that one could cleverly attach frames together to re-create this look, but these were another treasure from Creative Co-op. The clock is one I purchased several years ago because it is inscribed with "Marguerite." That is my mother's name! Speaking of time, it's time for me to go fix dinner! Stay tuned for more good stuff later!
