Old Photographs on the Galvanized Metal Window

Hi sweet friends!

I hope you had a good week, and that you are ready for the weekend! :)

(I know I sure am!)

Well, I wanted to first tell you sorry...I think I have won the infamous "Worst Blogger Friend of the Month" award...Okay, but if there was such an award, I won it for sure! Between a trip to Phoenix last week, and working on our home like crazy this week, I did not do very much blogging. I hope you know how much I appreciate each one of you, and the time you spend here. I don't take you for granted, I promise! I will be coming by to visit you, and can't wait to see what you have been up to! :)

{Yep, I'm nosey like that.} ;)

Well now...I wanted to show you a little something, nothing huge or elaborate, just something kind of fun. :)

When I added galvanized metal to an old window, I originally intended to make some glass magnets, and use it as a magnetic memo board. However, I found it looked so cute on the mantel, that it stayed there...just like this...

Somehow a memo board didn't quite fit over the fireplace. ;)

But when Danielle at My Blessed Serendipity Life suggested using magnets to display pictures on it, I knew she was onto something! I love this idea!

{Thank you, Danielle!}

The older I get, the more I feel connected to the past, and to those who were a part of it.

Many of them I never had the privilege to know. I know them only through the stories my parents have told, but it has given me just a little glimpse into who they were.

There is something about looking old photos that touches my heart. I wonder what they were thinking. Often the faces look so serious, I think they must be thinking very deep thoughts...but perhaps they are just thinking that their clothing feels rather uncomfortable, and wondering how much longer until the picture is taken?

Now if you would like to make your own window with galvanized metal, you can find my tutorial here.

If you would like to make your own glass magnets with fabric, I have included a tutorial here as well. I know that glass magnets are nothing new, and that there are probably only about 1,000,000 tutorials for them online! I just decided I wanted to figure it out on my own. I'm strange that way: I either want to do it "no compass" or I want an extremely detailed tutorial. It all just depends. Therefore, I have included the detailed tutorial. (In case you wonder why I include every.single.step. in my tutorials, that is partly why.) :)

I can tell you that my glue gun couldn't help me out this time.

I can further tell you that my trusty mod podge didn't work with the fabric...go figure. :)

{How to}

This glue is awesome! Put a nice sized dab on the flat side of the magnet, and spread it evenly with a foam brush. Let it set for about ten minutes.

Trace a glass magnet onto your desired fabric. I used lace hem tape. {I am all about hem tape right now.}

Press your fabric cut outs onto the glass, and let dry.

Because my fabric was transparent, I had to back it up with some white felt, so you would not see the magnet!

More glue...

When it has dried, you can glue your magnet on. I found I had to put a generous amount on both the magnet and the felt. I pressed down until the glue oozed around the edges, and set aside at least over night, if not for about 24 hours. When I tried to use it too soon, the magnet came off! So I just gave it more time, and now it's not going anywhere!

And there you go...just in case you wanted to know! ;)

Well, I hope you have a beautiful weekend! Thank you for stopping by! :)

Much love~

Jenni

Ruffled Felt Heart Wreath

Hi sweet friends! I hope that this finds you having a good week!

I am sorry that I did not end up showing you this craft after all last night. I finished it on Sunday, but it's almost funny how many things have gone wrong trying to finish this post!

Now I don't know if it is this way for you, but I have found ideas are like building blocks, one on top of another. You might try something, which leads to trying something similar, yet completely different. :)

I hope you are not tired of ruffled felt wreaths, because I wanted to show you this:

As I was making the {larger} gray felt ruffled wreath, I was thinking of how I could make a similar one, only with a Valentine's theme.

I thought that a heart shape would be a good start...

{What you'll need}

12 inch gauge jewelry wire

Felt~ about one yard

Ribbon for bow

Ribbon to hang wreath

Awl

Pliers

Fabric Scissors

Glue gun/glue sticks

I used the same jewelry wire as before to make a wire heart form. The heart at this point was about 12 inches across the center. I like this wire because it is so easy to work with.

I cut three inch wide strips for this wreath...a lot of them!

And just like last time, I used an awl to create holes, spaced three inches apart.

{The amount of space between the holes you make needs to be the same as the width of the strip.}

I just kept poking holes spaced about three inches apart on each strip.

Weaving the felt onto the wire...

I kept weaving it, pushing the other folds down as I added more strips.

When it was nice and full all the way around, I twisted the wire ends together to make a knot.

{I used a length of ribbon and looped it through the wire" knot", then tied the ribbon at the end. I just slipped it around so you couldn't see the ribbon tie, and hung it up by the nice end.}

Now at first after making it, I twisted the ruffles around to make it look less streamlined and perfectly placed, like I did with the last one.

But for some reason, I didn't care for it that way. So I untwisted most of it, so the folds are fairly even.

I think it's just a matter of personal preference...

I made a large bow for it too, although I now see I didn't quite get the length right on both ends...

The complementary tilted photo...must have one of those.

{For some reason, I love angled pictures.}

A super close up photo...

If you want to read about either the miniature wreaths, or the other ruffled felt wreath, you can find that here. I just opted to do a tutorial and supply list on this post as well. :)

I am linking this to the following parties:

The Shabby Nest

The Shabby Chic Cottage

Tatertots and Jello

Freckled Laundry

Funky Junk Interiors

French Country Cottage

Under the Table And Dreaming

Thank you so much for stopping by! I hope you have a beautiful Thursday! :)

Blessings to you~

Jenni

Vintage Window {With Galvanized Sheet Metal}

Hi sweet friends!

How is your week going? I hope this second week of January is going well for you all! :)

I wanted first to say thank you for all of your kind comments on my previous post! I so much appreciate each of you, and the encouraging words you take the time to leave! :) I will be by to say hello to you all, and to catch up on what you have been up to this past week! I guess you could call the last week and a half another wash out~ between getting back into the swing of things last week, and my husband being away on a business trip this week, it has been a little crazy around here! Thankfully, David is back home now, and I am so glad! :)

So anyway...today I have a little something to show you...

Last April, I planned this project out, but just finished it this week! And although technically I didn't actually start those plans until this fall, how's that for a project taking forever to complete?

Now you are probably picturing a full kitchen remodel, or at least a living room renovation, and it's true we do have those going on right now. But that is not the project I am talking about...

No, this involves an old window...

and some galvanized sheet metal.

I first noticed this sheet metal while at Lowe's a year and a half ago. I mean, really noticed it. I love this stuff!

You can buy it in large pre-cut pieces, but it costs an arm and a leg. I believe you can also have it cut to your specifications, if you'd like, though I am not sure of the cost.

But...you can also buy large rolls of it in different widths and lengths, and it is affordable. SO much kinder to the pocket book.




In this case, my window had vertical panes, and so I only needed narrow strips of galvanized metal.


{Old window before}


And...


{Old window after}


{What you will need}

old window frame, minus the glass
galvanized sheet metal
5/8 inch nails, with large heads
work gloves
canvas drop cloth or old towel~ for protecting your work space
black Sharpie, or other permanent marker
ruler
large straight edge ruler
*Deco Art Slate Grey acrylic paint
*Deco Art Snow (Titanium) White acrylic paint
Paint brush
Old plastic container
measuring tape
tin snips
hammer
slotted screw driver
pliers
*Gorilla Glue Precision Glue Pen~ if needed



{How to}

My window was already missing its glass panes...If the glass in yours is still intact, you will need to break it out. Make sure to use eye protection and work gloves while doing this!

{If your window is just one square frame, then you will have to purchase a larger sheet of galvanized metal.}



On the back side of the window, there will most likely be an old layer of glazing putty around the edges of each window "pane". This is what is used to secure and seal each glass pane in these old windows, and will look just like the wood at first glance. This needs to be removed so that your piece of metal will fit into the space properly. It comes off easily with a chisel, and will break off into pieces like in the above picture. It may take a trace of wood off with it, but this won't be a problem.

On my window, the top part on one of the strips of wood~ I'll just call them "panes" for reference~ was loose. I used a little Gorilla Glue underneath the loose part to fix this, and clamped it for about a hour and a half. This kind dries white and is perfect for small or tight spaces.




After you sand and clean your window, you're ready to prime it! I used Valspar's gray primer spray paint...




Now the fun part...playing around with colors to find the perfect hue!





I wanted a light gray color, because all of the walls and our fireplace are white. I mixed and tested, and finally decided used approximately 4 oz. of Snow (Titanium) White by Deco Art and 8 teaspoons of Slate Grey, also by Deco Art, to make my shade of gray.



I love this color Slate Grey! I wish they sold it by the gallon!


{Large craft sticks that look like tongue depressors make the best stir sticks for small containers...who knew?}



{If you see it isn't completely painted down the sides, this was taken before it was completely finished!}


Once you have painted your window, place it so the back side is facing up. If you bought the roll of sheet metal, you will need to measure the width and length of each "pane" of your window. I subtracted about 1/16 inch or so from my measurements, to allow for a little give when placing the metal inside the pane.




{If your window has no panes, then simply measure the width and length of the frame, and skip down to where we will be actually attaching the sheet metal to the window frame! :) }

Now I was a very bad girl and did not use work gloves while cutting the metal, and have a nasty cut to show for it now! However, I felt more in control while cutting it without bulky gloves. In good conscience, however, I have to tell you that the edges of the sheet metal are very sharp, so you may want to use some leather work gloves. ;)




Look at all of that gorgeous shiny metal! Love it! When you roll it out, decide which side you think looks the best. I felt the inside of the roll looked the nicest, so that is what I used.





I measured on both sides of the top of the piece of metal, and made little marks with my Sharpie.





I used a simple ruler to draw my line where the marks were. This way you get an correct measurement and an even line to cut on.





Use your tin snips to cut in the middle of your line...







Then you just do the same thing to measure the width~ measuring and marking the top and bottom of your metal piece.




I used a long straight edge ruler to draw the vertical line...





Now it's time to nail the metal onto the window. Out of all the nails, I found the 3/4 inch by 18 nails worked the best. These have a larger head on them, that makes it easier to work with.







I didn't actually nail the metal into the window frame. Instead I hammered the nails into the wood so they were like clips holding the metal in place.

There are two ways to do this, depending. The best way is to hammer your nail laying flat, directly into the side of the window frame or pane, and tap it until it is securely in the wood, about a fourth of the way in. It will look about like this:





While hammering, you can use pliers to hold your nail in place if it is difficult. When nailing into one of the pane strips of wood, nail carefully so as not to split the wood. Also, I found by hammering only until the nail is securely in place, the nail wouldn't stick out through the other side, which would not be such a good thing! ;)





The other way is to hammer the nail in at an angle, into the slot between the metal and the wood, like this:





Test it to make sure it is secure, and then, using your pliers, carefully bend it over flat.





Either way you do it, you want the nails to be laying flat, close to the metal, but not touching it.





Continue nailing it along the window frame. You can look at it from the other side as you go, and test it to see if it is secure. Some places may need more nails than others to get it to look right.





Then just repeat the whole process of measuring and cutting your metal, and nailing it in place, until it is finished.





And then you have it~ a fun piece of wall art...





Or in this case, mantel art. ;)





I like how it fills in the large space of brick above the mantel...








Up close and personal...





And with tall candlesticks on either side...

SO...what do you think? I should mention that galvanized metal is a wonderful way to have a unique memo board, since it is magnetic; I just opted to put it above the fireplace instead! :)

{I am linking this to The DIY Club Project party, the monthly contest.}

I am also linking this to:

French Country Cottage
The Shabby Nest
The Shabby Chic Cottage
Tatertots and Jello
Along for the Ride
Funky Junk Interiors
Under The Table and Dreaming
Sew Chatty
Coastal Charm
Perfectly Imperfect
Crafting with the Stars at Sew Dang Cute.


I hope you are all doing well, and have a wonderful Thursday! :)

Blessings,

Jenni