Belated reveal of our upcycled hall tree for charity!

I didn't get to post this when it happened just recently, but my Dad and I finished the hall tree we created out of an old interior door and an ugly bathroom vanity! Here's my earlier post on it.
This was part of a design challenge issued by a local reuse/salvage store that benefits Easter Seals.
We got $100 to spend in the "store" and then had to create something new and fabulous.

You might have seen this pretty image floating around blogs and pinterest...

It's from an awesome blog called Pretty Handy Girl.  It was exactly the spark we needed to make our hall tree!

And here she is:

That's my sweet Dad who worked happily with me to create this - and make sure it won't collapse when someone sits on it.  :-)  Thanks, Dad!!

The only things "new" about this piece are the cushion (I made it...foam, fabric, and piping from Joann) and some plywood my Dad used to reinforce the bench.  Everything else - even the four matching hooks, mirror, and door pulls came from Building Value.  Lovin' it!!  So, this is my completely uncompensated pitch for you to scout out your local reuse and salvage outlets and USE their stuff.  Very cool.

This little beauty was auctioned off for charity, but if it wasn't, I would happily have this piece living in my house right now!

Here's the befores:

And here's the after!

Have a great day!

Anne

Yep, home should be great.  But it's hard to make it great when you're not home!
It has been a whirlwind the past 6 weeks or so.  We moved from our rental house into our new, beautiful home.  I am thrilled with it, and still "making friends" with all the nooks and crannies, learning all its little secrets and how things work.  It's kind of like the time right after your honeymoon, when you come home and reality starts to set in.  It's not that you don't love the house or the person as much.   But now the real work is upon you.  And a different kind of love sets in.

I remember this quote that I ripped out of a Real Simple mag eons ago.   It is attributed to Truman Capote.
“If you sweep a house, and tend its fires and fill its stove, and there is love in you all the years you are doing this, then you and that house are married, that house is yours.” 


I agree.  But once we moved into the place here, it was time for our trip to Italy for our 10th anniversary!  So we unpacked a little.  Packed our suitcases...and off we went.  

It was fabulous.  We stayed in Florence the entire time.  It was uncrowded, lovely, incredible, and relaxing.  

I couldn't have asked for a better gift.
Thank you, sweetie!


We were gone nearly a week.  Then we came home, and it was spring break for our oldest...and time to head to Wisconsin for my mother-in-law's birthday.  

Super fun!  
Fam and friends were there and our kids had a great time seeing their cousins from the west coast.  


Whew.  We finally made it home.  And let me tell you... moving into a new house then leaving for Europe for a week then leaving again for another week is the best way to lose track of every earthly possession you have.  Worth it!  But holy cow is this house an unorganized disaster.  :-)


No rest for the weary, though!
I am knee deep in an awesome project that I think will turn out so cool, and it's for a great cause.


A local non-profit salvages building materials then trains people to work at the warehouse selling them. (They do way more than just that but that's the basic gist).  They hold an annual designer challenge where they give you a $100 credit to the "store" then ask you to create something new and wonderful from your items.  The finished product gets auctioned off to support their cause!  I basically signed me and my dad (who is an endlessly good sport, and has carpentry skills I lack) up for this, and he and I have had such a good time figuring this out!


Here's my inspiration piece, from the blog "Pretty Handy Girl."

We picked out a door 

and a not-so-lovely bathroom vanity (part laminate...yuck) 

and decided to blend them together to make a hallway, entry bench thingy.  


After weeks of Dad finding time to cut apart the vanity and take it down to a size we could use, and also cutting off the door to bring it into proportion with the vanity...

Here we are!

I'm still trying to decide exactly how to paint and finish it.  It will get some hooks for hats and dog leashes and such... and I think it's adorable! Now, we'll just have to wait and see how much it goes for at the auction. :-)


I feel so fortunate to have found this little challenge to help launch me into this next step of my life.


Is there anything better than a good project to get your juices flowing?


Have a great day!!


XO,
Anne