~FRESHENING UP THE GUESTROOM~

Did a wee bit of redecorating in one of our guest rooms.  No paint color change or anything super big~no time for that!  Window treatments (simple sheers with French Lace added at the top) stayed in place as well...

Just a little rearranging of furniture and the addition of the vintage iron bed I showed you about a week ago.  I'm loving it and don't miss the four poster bed (that had seen better days) at all!

The biggest difference (aside from the fabulous bed!) can be found behind the headboard.  I saw a picture on Pinterest that showed vintage shutters used on a wall.  They were a bit more primitive than I personally like, but the concept is one I just fell in love with.

And so...I gathered up tons of the old shutters I've collected over the years (clearing OUT our storage shed in the back is my goal!) and freshened them up.  Light dry-brush painting and some gentle sanding was all that was in order.  Wires were attached to the back side and then they were hung in place...kinda like a puzzle.

The most challenging part of the project was the wall above the window.  I wanted the shutters to go across the entire wall and so my Mr. AGPMan finagled two long shutters and refashioned them into six smaller pieces (connecting them with small strips of wood). 

After a quick paint job they came out exactly like the vision I had inside my head!

 Visited one of my favorite Thrift Stores last weekend...found this amazing vintage chandelier for $4.99. :)  The prisms were missing, but that is OK.  I have enough left over from other projects to fill her up.  I'm keeping this one and replacing the fixture in another bedroom once this aging beauty is newly wired!  

Chat more with you soon.  Have a fabulous Thursday!

Love to you...

~HOW WE REPAIRED OUR VINTAGE IRON BED~

Way back in May of 2012 I shared with you a POST about the antique iron bed I found at a local thrift store for $45...  It's been sooo long ago you may have forgotten!  Not me!  I've been dreaming about the day when this awesome vintage find would make it's way into one of my upstairs guest rooms and I'm happy to tell you today is the day.

 

The hold-up you ask?

A couple of things.

 

One...my guy was in school when I found the bed and since it was in need of a MAJOR repair it was put on the back burner.  Simmered out-of-sight for a long, long time!   After all...we've been super busy with a humongous kitchen remodel and that has honestly taken precedence over almost everything.

OK...so back the the repair.  Someone out there in GoogleLand will one day stumble upon this post and be sooo happy to find a way to actually fix a broken iron bed.  Repairs to broken iron bed brackets are very expensive and that is IF you can find someone to do it for you!

  My Mr. AGPMan promised me he would get to the bed this summer and get to it he did!  Because one of the brackets on the foot-board (that held the left bed rail in place) was broken off it would no longer support a mattress.  He racked his brain for a long time before coming up with the idea of shoving a new metal rod up the legs of the bed and then drilling into that to attach a new bracket.  This by-passed the original bracket and raised the bed up about 1".

 

Here's another picture/view of the repair (above)...   You can see the new rail sits right above the old bracket that was snapped off.  The new bracket bolts from the inside into the iron post of the bed so no bolts/screws show from the outside.  The new rods that are inside the legs support the new bolts, etc.

Makes sense?  Well...it didn't to me either...not until I actually saw it all repaired.  Then I understood perfectly!  The repair may seem simple, but it wasn't.  Took hours upon hours to do and metal shavings were everywhere!

Because I wanted the intricate details of the bed to show up I decided to first paint it with a mix of golden umber, cream and black. Layered one after another allowing each color to dry about an hour.  After letting the entire thing dry overnight I went back over everything with my favorite soft white paint.  This allowed the darker colors to show thru just a bit so the entire bed looks aged and fabulous.   Much safer than led-based-paint, too! It almost looks like it would have looked after years of use and most certainly BEFORE someone painted it bright a gold and green (the colors when I found it!).  Finished it up with two tones of clear wax. 

This guestroom will soon be transformed.  I've grown very tired of all the clutter and stuff in this room and it's ready for a facelift.  Since the room also doubles as my office I'm in there a lot.  Just ready for something fresh, updated and...well...less complicated.

My plan is to use natural linens and cottons.  I'd love to make a wispy tattered linen bed-skirt if I can find the fabric.  Found one pre-made that I LOVED, but it was $400 and if you know me then you KNOW that ain't gonna happen!

And so now you know what's been taking so much of my focus.  Love working on my own home and finishing half-completed projects.  My guy is amazing!

Hope your day is wonderful.

Love to you...