DIY Distressed Gate Tutorial

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I am so thrilled to have you stop by and check out this fun tutorial.

 

 

 

 

It all started with a massive stockpile of free lumber I have scored over the past few months.  This particular unit of 1x4 came from my dad's best friends lumber mill.  This was all scrap that they did not need. SCORE!

 

I grabbed a good amount of boards and headed into the house (yes, I build inside, because the workshop is not done) and started laying out the gate.

I used 10 - 32" Boards for the base, and then measured the width and cut the top and bottom boards to fit.

Using my cordless Ryobi Airstrike stapler, I attached the top and bottom rails.

This is hands down, one of my all time favorite tools.  This is a must have and you can score it here.

I then measured vertically between the top and bottom rails, and cut 1x4's to create side rails.

Again using my Ryobi Airstrike Stapler, I attached the side rails.

This is the tricky part.  I laid a 1x4 across the entire gate, and lined up where I wanted my cross board to be positioned.  (no picture, I apologize) I marked on both edges of the board and then used a square to draw a line at the exact angle needed. 

 

It worked like a charm.  This is not the correct way a carpenter would do it, but in my 10 minute build it worked!

I did the same thing for the next set of cross boards.

I then threw on a quick coat of faux stain.  What's that you ask?   It's simple. Brown acrylic craft paint and a little water.  It's odorless stain and works great!

I wanted this project to move quickly, so I grabbed my craft blow dryer which sped up dry time quite a bit.

Alright, so I will admit, this is where my project took a wrong turn.   I love the chippy paint look with Vaseline.  You rub Vaseline on your board anywhere you want the paint to look chippy.  Well I wanted it to look REALLY chippy.....

Once you have the Vaseline on, paint a thick coat of paint over the entire surface. I used Behr Flat interior white paint. Notice ALL that Vaseline?  Yea..... I got carried away.

I used the dryer again to speed up project time.... I think we are at about 25 minutes at this point.

 

Once it dries, grab a putty knife or anything with a straight hard edge and run it along where you have placed the Vaseline.

It looks like perfect chippy wood.  I was thrilled.

Wrong.... I got so carried away that it looked like a spotted dog.  I was so bummed, but knew it was a quick free project that I could just start over if I couldn't salvage this one.  Well, I decided to just paint over it all again.

I had plans to finish it the same night I started it, but a strange and scary turn of events landed me in the ER about an hour later.  Everything is ok, and I will be fine, and boy do I have a fun ER story from my visit.

 

 

However, the next day my poor gate looked soooo sad.  So I took it out to the garage and hit it with my orbital sander and absolutely loved how it turned out.

I was ready to start over, but once I got this perfect distressed finish, I was thrilled!  I added an old rusty white gate handle and called it good.

I scored about 10 of these at an estate sale.  At the time, my husband thought I was slightly nutty, but now he loves it.

I added a boxwood wreath that I got at Real Deals here in Eugene, and was excited to bring my mantle back to life.  It's been empty for a week since I took Christmas down.

I brought my collection of white pitchers out and absolutely loved the bright crisp vignette it created.

But if you know me at all, you know I can't just leave it like that.  We have Valentines Day coming up in just over a month, so I was ready to get the mantle decorated for the occasion. 

 

I used some pom pom yarn and bakers twine that I had on hand and then grabbed the arrow garland from Target Dollar Spot, along with the heart doilies and arrow clips. This cost me $5 and I love it!  Simple and to the point.

 

I look forward to decorating my new gate for all of the holidays this year!

 

Thank you for stopping by today.   Don't forget to follow me on Instagram, Facebook and Pinterest, and you can find me on  Periscope @OneThriftyChick.

Come Join me weekly at the following Parties:

 

Monday: I should be mopping the floor, Home Stories A to Z, Sugar Bee Crafts, Carrie this home, 

                Mad in Crafts

Tuesday:  The DIY Dreamer, The Winthrop Chronicles, Thrifty Décor Chick

Wednesday: Gingersnap Crafts,

Thursday: A Glimpse Inside, The Pin Junkie, The Answer is Chocolate, Imparting Grace, Meadow Lake Road, Designer Trapped in a Lawyer's Body

Friday: Remodelaholic, The Shabby Nest, Serenity Now, The Crafted Sparrow , Tatertots & Jello, Just Us Four, The Pin Junkie, My Turn For Us

Saturday: I heart Naptime,  Flamingo Toes, Sew Many Ways,

 

I'm Dreaming of a Thrifted Christmas......

 This year I wanted to do something completely out of the ordinary for Christmas, I wanted a very vintage/thrifted Christmas!  Everything I am about to show you either came from an antique shop, or thrift store!  (included in there are handmade vendors inside antique malls)

*NOTE* The pictures are not very good quality, I had to take them at night and with my iphone..... continue at your own risk.

Here is our giant mantel with the oh so beautiful thing we call the tube....  I am doing all I can to work with what I've got!

 Another view....

 

Some piano player music (am i saying that right)  Only $5 for the roll, and it is so perfect!

This metal star garland almost reminds me of cookie cutters.... maybe an idea??

I was wandering around Goodwill, and happened upon a bag full of wooden spools, some new, some old, but ALL of them for $0.99!  Hello, who could resist?  Plus I will use them at a later date for some sewing room decor, SCORE!

  I just put them in the dome, and added some battery operated lights from Ikea......

Do you kind of see a theme?  Vintage/seamstress???

Another dome, this one has music paper shreds, silver vintage ornaments, and silver pinecones, also lit up with lights!  I added some old skeleton keys for the extra ahh!

A close up of the burlap rosette I made for my wreath.....

I should note that once I finish our stockings, this wreath will have to move!  I will have those finished when I take the pictures of my Christmas tree!

here is the wreath I made....

I grabbed two of these buckets at a local vintage shop in Shedd Oregon!  They are called Christmas at the Shed, and the place was UHMAZING!  I want to say local, but it's about a 45 minute drive for me!  But well worth it, and I cannot wait to back next year!

Here are a couple more mantel shots...

  

 And just before you go... here is a sneak peek of the tree... I am planning on getting that post up tomorrow!  Thanks for stopping by!

 

I am linking to the following parties:

Fireplace Update & Thrifty Finds!!

My Mantel is so close to done I can taste it!!! Here is the LAST sneek peek I will be giving before it is complete! It is killing me that I have to let the paint cure before I can decorate!

AHHHH.. I could squeel so loud... it is just lovely!!

And while I was locked in my scrapbook room playing, and the hubs was working on the mantel, here is what the boys were doing......

Creating a BIG mess of laundry and blankets for me to do all week long!! Ok, not really, they were building a fort... but REALLY everything off of all 3 beds??????? ACK!

Onto a more fun note, I spent New Years Eve day thrifting with my bestest friend Heather! Her and I are addicts, and it's so hard to drive by thrift store without stopping!! However, about 2 years ago, there was NO way she would have gotten me into one of those store, let alone buy things!

I was what you would call a thrifty snob!!! LOL I liked to Garage Sale, but goodwill? Fuuuhhhgett about it!! :) She has since molded me into a seasoned thrifter, and now she can't keep me away.. buwahahahahah!

Here are some great things we found!

The little planter box was $1.50, the class dome on the stand was $5.99, the wreath inside was $2.99, the little bird house was $0.99, the two mini wreaths were $0.49, the red hook (that I LOVE) was $1.99 and then the single dome lid was $0.99, and YES I did get another one... I can't get enough of them!!

I also got this pretty little thing for $1.99, and have BIG plans for it, so keep looking for them!

And, my fave thing of the day was this nest with the egg. We stumbled upon the most amazing little shop downtown called NEST, check them out on facebook here Anywho, I picked these up for $6, and it is EXACTLY what I needed!! We will be back there soon!

And, we went back to middle school and bought best friend necklaces! We laughed so hard about it later, but really they are awesome! I dont have a picture, but they are silver chains with an angel wing. So I am the left wing and she is the right, and together we can fly to new heights! WOW! Did I just rhyme??? Cute I know!

Well thats all I've got for now! Hope you enjoyed!!

I am linking up to Frugal Friday at The Shabby Nest, here