Rescued Wood Pallet

My husband already thinks I am crazy, but when I asked him to help me lift a dirty, wet wood pallet sitting next to a dumpster into our car, I got *the look*.  You know... the "You can't possibly be serious about putting trash in the car?!?" look.  I attempted to prep my husband before said dumpster diving by showing him a bunch of wood pallet displays on pinterest.  Nevertheless, he seriously thought I lost my mind.

Rescued from the dumpster

I used a handsaw to cut off two of the supports so that the pallet could function better as a shelf.

 

Removed two of the supports

This beat up wood pallet had some rough times in life and needed some love. The wood was cracked, splintered and jagged.... but, but it has a lot of character and charm, right??  Lets hope so or my husband is going to give me another look. The "I told you so" look.

Sanding off the rough spots

Used short screws to secure splintered wood

Once the pallet was smooth enough to handle and the loose pieces were secured, I added picture hanging hooks and wire gauged for heavy duty support.

Hang the pallet Take 1: Heavy duty picture hanging hooks and wire

While the heavy duty wire did hold the pallet on the wall, however, I had nightmares that the wire would come undone and the heavy pallet would fall on the unsuspecting guests sleeping on the bed underneath.  I looked to the only place that I can find all information... google.  Lo and behold, I found a tutorial called How to Hang a Wood Pallet. Off to home depot I went to get a french cleat.  The pallet does not weight more than 100 lbs but I purchased the french cleat for 200 lbs because it was longer. We were able to screw the cleat into three of the wood boards on the pallet and two wall studs.

Hang the pallet Take 2: French cleat to support 200 lbs

I spent some time styling the pallet while it was on the ground. I added hooks and picture hanging brackets to where I wanted to hang china plates, teacups, paintings, etc. The great thing about the rustic wood pallet shelf is that you can screw and nail whatever you want into it, pull it all back out and the remaining holes only add more character to the piece.

Add hooks and photo brackets onto the pallet to secure items

The final product of upcycling a wood pallet found next to the dumpster into a rustic display!

Rustic Wood Pallet Display

Adding a little rustic to our guest room

Even my unconvinced husband now agrees that the wood pallet project turned out pretty cool. Mark the calendar - that's a win for the wife!

Dear Husband, how about them apples?!

Desk Reborn

Inspired by one of my favorite blogs Miss Mustard Seed and many of the blogs linked to her site,  I recently embarked on my first crack at chalk paint with an old, drab wood desk found on craigslist.  The poor desk was screaming for a makeover!

Blah wood desk

I sanded the top of the desk down to the raw wood to remove the old finish and imperfections. In hindsight, I could have used a paint stripping gel as an alternative, but the sander got the job done.

Bye Bye Blah

I used Annie Sloan Chalk paint in Pure White and Duck Egg blue. I mixed the colors to create a subtle ombre effect on the drawers. I used a walnut stain on the top with pure white chalk paint to outline the desk top.

Desk on its way to greatness

Two coats of stain and two coats of paint later, I lightly distressed the piece and finished the desk with Annie Sloan clear soft wax. Additionally, I spray painted the drawer pulls to rubbed oil bronze so they all match.

Can you see the subtle ombre drawers?

Rubbed oil bronze drawer pulls/knobs

What I learned:

• Chalk paint is expensive but saves time because no sanding or varnish stripping is required.
• Chalk paint clean up is simple because it is water soluble.
• The white chalk paint does not cover as well the colored paint. I’m not sure if it was just the can I had, but I could never get the white paint to mix properly. I stirred it a lot with a metal spoon but there were still chalk lumps.
• The clear wax is no joke. Get a good waxing brush and watch online tutorials such as Simple Reinvented.

Welcome to Strawberry Jam House

Welcome and thank you for visiting Strawberry Jam House!

My husband and I are lucky to have built a brand new home of which we adore. However, our new home can sometimes feel a little "builder grade". Over time, I hope to incorporate a bit of charm and character into the decor to give our new home some personality.

Through this blog I will share my DIY ideas, projects and tutorials. Thanks for reading!