a DIY card file

So there's this blog, called The Painted Hive; this blog has a DIY that I fell in love with. Please admire it HERE. Everywhere I would go, I would look for the perfect piece to make my own. Guess what? I found it. An ugly little box with crooked handles at Goodwill for $5.99. As soon as I saw it, I knew it was perfect for this project.

Isn't she a beauty? I think so at least.

 So here's how this ugly little box came to be. The handles were unscrewed as well as the silver bottom and the whole box was sanded down to the wood with a thick 80 grit sandpaper. The corners were rounded with the sandpaper as well to make more of a worn look instead of a modern one.

Such a different already! Using a Dark Walnut Minwax stain, the bare wood became darker. All it took was one stroke of stain with a brush and a wipe with a towel to get the excess off. Then to make it even more worn, I used a minimal amount of left over white paint, and brushed a few strokes on the wood. The whole thing was then gone over randomly with the same 80 grit sandpaper to let some of the natural wood show through.

Next came the hardware, and oh that hardware. I knew I wanted some vintage brass card pulls, and I found mine on eBay for $1.95. They were smaller than I expected, but any bigger I would have had to shell out the big bucks. They were tacked in place and filled with some handmade stained paper. The final touch was the Martha Stewart stencils. Placed on the box and lightly touched with paint, I think they really complete the boxes.

I can't wait to fill it with items and I hope this inspires you to do something creative. Like, run to Goodwill right now and find something to redo. It will become your weekend therapy, trust me.

So here's the breakdown:

box: 5.99

hardware: 11.00

tacs: 2.00

stencils: 5.50 (with coupon)

all other items were already purchased

totals around: 24.00

 

It's hump day everyone! Friday's just around the corner.

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Don't forget about the bib/burp cloth giveaway!

get those entries in HERE

winner will be chosen Thursday, June 26th

Also, I am hosting an ad space in a group giveaway over at Living In Yellow
Check it out!