9.17.2015

shutter shelf

Hi friends! I promise, I didn't fall down a well or anything, we've just been pretty busy lately. 
Two big, quick updates for you:

- Strider started a new job! Which is super exciting and has been great so far. We're both very happy that he is in a 
  more encouraging work environment. Plus, he gets home an hour earlier every day!

- I will have plenty of blogging time coming up here soon as I am having bilateral carpal tunnel surgery this time 
  next week. Eeek! Although I'm no fan of medical procedures, I can certainly say that I am definitely looking
  forward to the end of 2+ years of frustration and pain. Praise God! Doctors orders are 6 weeks off for recovery,
  so reruns-of-The-Office, here I come! (Plus, my beautiful mama will be here.)

And of course, I wouldn't post without sharing a new project. This one took a while to come to fruition. My mom and I snagged a $2 pair of shutters at a thrift store last September and I've been waiting for the right project for them.

To start out, I measured the shutters and sketched up an idea to use them as the sides of a bookshelf. Naturally, I was a bit ambitious and had to start over when my lumber estimation at Lowe's was coming in around $60. No thank you. Back to the drawing board.
I scaled down a bit and managed to get the costs around $25. As you can see, I am not exactly a master carpenter. Strider double checked the math for me. (He's so great!)

After shamelessly convincing Strider's contractor uncle to lend me his keen eye and table saw, I was ready to paint.

Feeling more adventurous, I went for a deep plum color for the shutters. And with all those louvers (new vocab bonus!), painting by hand with a small craft brush was really the only way to go.
Once the shutters were purpley and drying, I used some leftover Minwax Red Oak wood stain to give some color to the fresh cut lumber.
Naturally, I distressed the shutters up a little. I love the imperfections and hand-made authenticity of this look. 
(Note: the top purple panel is a thin piece of plywood for the backer.)

After a bit of convincing, Strider helped me assemble the shelves. I looked at several tutorials that were more complicated and professional, but for my purposes, plain old nails were plenty good enough.
Ta da!! Pretty great, huh?
I have to say, although the color combination of the green and purple is a little crazy up close, I actually like the funky contrast. This is also my first project using a combination of painted and stained pieces, which I also really liked in the end.

It's perfect for our second bedroom/craft area and holds loads of supplies in two nice fabric bins I snagged at Target. Another win for DIY. And thanks again to my mom, who refused to let me leave the store without those shutters, even though I had no use for them at the time.


Back soon!

3 comments:

  1. Hey you, LOVE THEM..what a great idea.. I can just see your mom saying you must buy the shutters.. love how this came together and the colours and just everything about the new project. WAY TO GO... and we will be praying for your and surgery next week..

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    Replies
    1. Thanks, Laura. The surgery went pretty well, recovery is just very slow. Thanks for stopping by!

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  2. Are you kidding? This is so cute! Great job! Hope recovery is going ok!

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