DIY Garden Gate Decor

My friend Jeannetta is going to clobber me. 

About 12 years ago we went to a yard sale together. It was at a ridiculously charming vintage home here in town. The poor woman having the sale was going through a nasty divorce, and basically she wanted everything in the house to just go away. 

In the dining room area, we both spotted a cute handmade hutch-type shelf sitting on top of some sort of built in. Well, somehow I managed to get to it first {only a tiny bit of guilt :) } and it came home with me. 

I do recall, though, that we agreed when I didn't want it anymore that I would pass it on to her. No problem. Great! 

Here it is hanging on my dining room wall two Christmases ago. 


This thing has been with me through 3 homes now, and in every room it could fit in. It's been hung on walls, even used as a closet organizer. Since the bottom shelf is much wider than the upper shelves, it has served as a hutch-type piece on desks, tables and dressers. 

The thing is, it's really shallow and really not all that functional as a shelf. 

The other thing is, about 9 months ago I decided to take it apart and store the boards in my "possibility pile" in the garage. 

Sorry, Jeannetta! I didn't remember until it was too late. 




Remember a few weeks ago when I suddenly got the urge to redo my living room late at night? 

Well, I had been working on a plan to use these white boards to make an awesome (and huge) sign for the living room wall where my electric fireplace and vintage door mantel had been.  

I didn't remember to photograph it, but basically I used two pieces of old fence boards screwed to the back to hold all the boards together. 

I kept looking at it and thinking about it, and the shape was just off and I just wasn't 'feeling it'. I thought I'd try turning it the other way so the boards ran vertically, and removing the two shorter pieces from the ends and using them to create some sort of a barn door effect. 

I laid it on the floor with the main boards lined up tight together, and the shorter boards across the ends so I could see how much I would need to cut off of them. 

I decided to separate the boards to see how that would look, and all of a sudden this was looking like something completely different to me. It was starting to look like a gate, and I liked it! 

I wouldn't even need to cut anything- bonus! With the pieces on the floor face down, I screwed them together being careful to make sure the screws weren't too long : )

Have you ever accidentally screwed something to the floor? I haven't (yet), but I could see myself doing something like that.

I added a couple of antique hinges to the right side. These came off of a piece of an antique door that I literally stopped traffic to grab from the side of the road. 

It's a sickness. 

Some of you know what I'm talking about : ) 

On the left side I added a rusty latch that fell off of my old toolbox. You might be seeing that toolbox again in the finished living room. 

Just have to wait a bit and see. 

Okay, it's not a real gate, of course. But I love the way it hints at being a gate. And gardening. And Springtime!

What ever happened to the wider board that was the bottom shelf? 

I turned it into a sign for the dance floor at a friend's country wedding last summer. You might just be seeing this in the finished room this week, as well! 




From this...



...to this. 

I put another rustic wood piece in front of the gate and hung one of my grandparents' Currier and Ives prints on top. I like the warmer wood tones of the frame with the white painted piece, but not 100% sure if it will stay like this...

still tweaking things around a bit. 

*I'm so excited to be sharing the finished living room over at A Stroll Thru Life for Marty's "Pulling It All Together" series!* 

I would love it if you would stop over and take a look! 


Oh, by the way- my friend Jeannetta lives in Oregon now, so I couldn't really have given her the shelf anyway : )

Blessings to you!

Jeanette

Sharing at these fun places this week
The Inspiration Gallery at Craftberry Bush
Share Your Cup Thursday at Have a Daily Cup of Mrs. Olson
Under $100 Party at Beyond the Picket Fence
Wow Us Wednesdays at Savvy Southern Style
Blissful Whites Wednesday at Timewashed
Nifty Thrifty Tuesday at Coastal Charm
Make it Pretty Monday at The Dedicated House
Party Junk at Funky Junk Interiors
Feathered Nest Friday at The French Country Cottage
Thrifty Life Thursday at Revisionary Life
Home Sweet Home at The Charm of Home
Be Inspired at Common Ground
The Scoop Mega Spring Party at Cedar Hill Farmhouse