Rona Rehabs / or How I Spent My Lockdown

Recently, someone asked me what I had been up to. It immediately took me back to elementary school and the annual assignment in September. I think writing the "What I Did On Summer Vacation" paper is a memory shared by most.

 

But this particular summer vacation has taken place during the spring and it's been everything BUT a vacation!! Of course, I'm referring to "the lockdown" that's also an experience shared by most!

 

The community curbs quickly showed evidence of what was going on in households as everyone started cleaning out. We were included in that number, though, we pretty much stay in a state of clean out so didn't have much to add.

 

Games, binging on Netflix, cooking, walking the neighborhood, reading, etc. filled the time; as did Rona Rehabs! So this post is in answer to my friends question.

Welcome to my "How I Spent Springtime Lockdown" post!!

 

I always have ideas lasering through my brain, and typically have  project or two in the queue. Lockdown started with rehabbing the bed that had belonged to my folks. For the most part,  it just needed a good cleaning and a fresh rubdown with poly.

 

 



 

Did a bit of research on the maker, and removed 80 years of dirt and congealed finish...

 

 

And made a VERY interesting discovery. Evidently, when this bed was originally produced, someone made a mistake. It was assembled so that this beautiful piece of woodwork has spent it's entire life unseen and against the wall!! After discussing it with little brother, who also has a vested emotional interest in this particular piece of furniture, and considering the amount of work it would take to completely disassemble the headboard, and the risk of damage that would introduce, we decided to make it a piece of it's history and leave it alone.

 

 

It still has a lot of years of life left in it.

 

***

 

Next came another family piece. This mirror is a part of a bedroom set that came into my husbands family in 1958 when it was brand new and purchased by his grandparents. It's graced our home since we married 42 years ago.

 

 

 

 

It was always this weird pinky brown color that I never really cared for. Officially, called "Antique Brune", I opted for a black gel stain, and like it much better now.

 

 

While the mirror is done, the rest of the set is in process. 

 

***

 

By the time these were completed, it was getting warm outside and I started thinking about this...

 

 

 

A few years ago we had to do some foundation work around our house and in the process, all of the landscaping was torn out. While it was put back in place, not all of it survived the trauma. One of the casualties was a rose bush. When I  finally realized this wouldn't make it, I pulled it out of the ground and was so intrigued by the shape of the root ball, that I decided to just set it out on the front porch with a bunch of driftwood. I knew that eventually it would morph into "something".

 

The time came thanks to Rona, and after sitting a couple of years on the porch drying out, I decided that I could explore my artistic side (which I don't possess, by the way). So I brushed off all the crud and then washed it with plain soap and water. Since I liked the way it looked when it was wet, I decided to put some stain on it, and then, out of curiosity,  set out to do some research to see if my efforts were worth anything.

 

 

WHAT!?

 

Yes, now I've put the word out to friends and family to save root balls for me!!

 

Maybe someday I'll build a stand. But for now, it's kinda cool.

 

***

 

Are you bored yet??

 

***

 

I'm a self admitted sign junkie, and I saw one I liked. Yup. Too cheap to pay for it, so made my own. Why not? It's not like there was anything else to do!!

 

 

Because every household needs an "Ice Cream and Confectionery" sign.

 

And it kept me off the streets for a couple of days.

 

***

 

So in 40 plus years, you "go a lot of places, do a lot of stuff and collect a lot of junk". Maybe that should be spelled "junque", but whatever you call it, we've accumulated it. Even 40 years ago, one of my favorite places was a real live junk shop in a neighboring town. That's where I started picking up plates that I liked.

 

Up until recently, they've been spread through the house, and there are still a few random ones here and there, but I decided to pull them all together and try something different.

 

Enter the mirror that has been in our bedroom for quite some time. When we make our next move, this mirror and matching dresser won't be going with us. There is nothing wrong with it, but we just won't need it anymore, so rather than waiting and eventually putting it at the curb, I decided to get a head start and remove the mirror now and get into the basement paint stock.

 

Collect the plates, remove the mirror, and dig into the paint, sandpaper, stain and poly...

 



 

And Voila!!

 

I know the Boho Chic crowd is all into "basket walls" but we already did everything they're doing in our hippie days. So this is my take on a basket wall.

 

***

 

Ok, if you've hung in there this long, you might as well finish the lockdown journey! The most current projects ran concurrently.

 

 

 

This cute little cabinet was given to me by a friend. He wasn't sure what it was or what it was worth. Upon seeing it, it was clear that it had been a part of an antique oak secretary desk. The outline of the other half is clear on one side. The missing half and it's condition sadly robbed it of any value.

 

So I gladly accepted it, cleaned it up and repaired the damage to the frame and veneer. We lived with it for awhile until it became clear what should be done with it. Then, once again I headed for the basement.

 

 

The only thing that had to be purchased to complete this makeover was a new medallion to replace the decorative crest that once adorned the top of it. It's a sweet little addition to the Junque family!

 

***

 

While working on the cabinet, I also picked up this window on FB Marketplace. I really liked the shape of it and the fact that it was uber cheap!! But it was a mess!!

 

 

It took several hours, several razor blades to clean several layers of paint from the glass, and a good scrubbing to clean this up. But the weather was beautiful and working outside is always a plus!

 

All of the original wavy glass has survived the journey. I can only imagine the stories it could tell.

 

***

 

Obviously, I like old stuff. The unknown history is so intriguing. Sometimes I learn about the past when I take things apart to rehab them, but more often than not, the story is left to the imagination. I'm okay with that.

 

You made it to the end!! Thanks for spending some of your own Rona ride with me! I'd love to hear about your own journey!

 

Be encouraged. It won't go on forever!

 

 

 

 

How blessed is he who considers the helpless;

The Lord will deliver him in trouble.

Psalm 41:1

 

The Spirit of a man can endure his sickness,

But as for a broken spirit,

Who can bear it?

Proverbs 18:4

 

Be very careful to observe the commandment

And the law which Moses,

The servant of the Lord

Commanded you;

To love the Lord your God

And walk in all His ways

And keep His commandments

And HOLD FAST to Him

And serve him with all your heart

And with all you soul.

Joshua 22:5

 

 

 

 

Family Stuff

 

Good Junk Cheap!

I think the title of this entry pretty much encompasses the whole point of this particular blog. It's easy to have nice and unusual things if you're willing to keep your eyes open and put in a little sweat equity. I've been distracted by other projects for the last year and so not much has gone on here. But I have a sweet friend at Eugemia's Creations   who is constantly busy and keeps me motivated. If you've never taken a look at her facebook page, spend a few minutes there. Her style is very different than mine, and I love it! 

But even though I may not have things in the pipeline all the time, in the spirit of "cool stuff on a budget" I'm always on the look out for potential projects. This one came in the form of a frame hidden in a pile in a local junk store. That would be "junk". Not "junque". One of those places that you dress for because you come out so dirty. Those are getting few and far between and I'm glad there's one near me. 

I found this Eastlake style frame hidden behind several other things and covered in years worth of dirt and grime. Didn't think to take a picture until it was cleaned up. As I looked closely, it was obvious that it had been crudely rebuilt, but I liked the look so picked it up. I think the guy checking me out was disappointed I found it before he did! Not bad for a couple of bucks!

 

 

It was a mirror frame and I wanted to get it back as closely as I could to it's original state. So after cleaning it up, I was  off to the glass cutter. It's an unusual size, and I knew I'd never find anything off the shelf. After hearing that any kind of mirror with the look I wanted would be cost prohibitive, I  decided it couldn't be that hard to do it myself, so just had them cut a piece of plain glass. After spending a few minutes on the web, (on my phone while sitting in my car!) I headed to the hardware store and picked up what I needed.

 Vinegar, water and a couple of cans of spray paint. After cleaning the glass I was ready to go. 

 

The first step was to spray the glass with equal parts vinegar and water. A little hard to see, but it went on the glass pretty randomly and that's what I wanted. 

After spraying directly over the wet glass with Krylon looking glass paint, I carefully dabbed it all over to remove the water.

 What was left behind was getting close to what I was looking for, but it was still not "mirror" looking enough, so I re-wet it and spray painted it a second time, and once again blotted off the water. Much happier with the result the second time around. 

 What came next was a coating of flat black spray paint. I just used the really cheap stuff and sprayed it more heavily around the edges than in the center. Seemed the right thing to do to achieve the desired effect.

 After drying overnight, it was ready for a new home. 

  
I'm pleased with the finished product. I think the only thing missing that the original would have had would be a beveled edge to the glass. I can live without it!

The Lord will give strength to His people;

The Lord will bless His people with peace.

Psalm 29:11 

Family Stuff 

It's Gonna Be Great!!

You know how when you grab the vacuum, and go into the family room to run it and get distracted? Well, as I prepared to give the carpet a once over, I noticed that the grandchildren's train board was still in there. So, I picked it up and headed down to the storage area, and when I entered the basement, these little vinyl shelves caught my eye. 

I ran across them in a give away pile recently, and knew that I could put them to good use. Now was the time.

I measured them, and then measured the pantry to make sure they would fit, and decided they'd be perfect. The pantry is small, and any extra storage is amazing!

I was supposed to be vacuuming the family room, remember?

But as I measured the pantry, I realized that we had never painted it when we redid the kitchen a few years ago, and it was looking tired. Is it necessary to do cabinets and closets when you repaint a room? Not necessarily, but it's always such an "ahhh" moment when you open them up to find things looking fresh and organized.

We had painted the kitchen white simply because it had been decades since we had enjoyed a white kitchen, and it was a nice change. But this was how the pantry was left

Since I didn't really have anything pressing on the calendar today, I decided it was the perfect time to take care of this sad little cabinet. I had a bunch of paint in the basement, so I figured I could find something that would work. 

I had visions of greatness!!

My grandmother told me often as a kid that I had "St. Vidas Dance". You can read that whole story here. The way my days go sometimes proves her right! 

Remember that vacuum?

When I started looking at the selection of paint cans on the shelves, I didn't see anything that really caught my eye as a good color. So it was time for another distraction.

We plan on moving eventually and don't know exactly when, but someday we won't be in this house anymore. So, slowly, I've been cleaning out and using things up that won't be going with us. This would be a good day to take care of some random paint!

I pulled out everything that no longer resided on the walls in our house and started pouring it into a can. I'll be honest that some of it actually predated our purchase of this house nearly 15 years ago, but I figured it was going anyway, so why not give it a try?

I started with a little bit of very pale yellow in the bottom of a gallon can and started pouring everything in that I wanted to get rid of. 

This would either be amazing... or I could go back to that vacuum that still waited for me. 

And this is what I ended up with!!

The vacuuming could wait!! 

The little pantry only took a few minutes to empty and I got started.

I'm not kidding when I call it little. The shelves are only 24 1/2" wide. The exact width of the vinyl shelves I had squirreled away. Remember? That was on the front end of this distraction!

It didn't take long to get the paint up, as it's a small space. But it's still a workout, because....... yes. It's a SMALL SPACE!! Remember that 24 1/2" width I just referenced?!

The color ended up being perfect, as is the sheen. Not flat, but not shiny. The concoction included interior and exterior paint, flat, gloss, sample pots, random mis-tints... you get the idea.

And it turned out great! 

The shelves JUST fit. If they hadn't been a bit flexible, they wouldn't have gone in. Amazing how they multiplied the space!

I picked up these old fruit crates a couple of years ago. I sealed the labels and my handsome half fitted one with wheels. They've come in very handy for storage and its just another fun moment in the kitchen. Maybe in our next space they'll come out of the cabinet, but for now I like them here. 

It obviously doesn't take much to amuse me, and a few hours after I walked into the family room, I came full circle and finished with the vacuum. 

It's been a good day.

Older women likewise are to be reverent 

in their behavior,

not malicious gossips 

nor enslaved to much wine,

teaching what is good,

so that they may encourage the young women

to love their husbands,

to love their children,

to be sensible, pure, workers at home,

kind, being subject to their own husbands,

so that the Word of God will not be dishonored. 

Titus 2:3-5

*I love this passage*

Family Stuff

Unexpected Collection

Over the last 40+ years, our sweet family and friends have unknowingly collaborated to curate the most amazing collection. They're not things I would have set out to gather, but every single piece is such a special gift. 

They never communicated with each other about what they were doing, and quite honestly, I didn't even notice it until fairly recently. 

We're in the process of cleaning out in preparation to downsize and move. It's not something that's happening immediately, but we want to be ready when it does. 

So as I went through the sideboard in the dining room pulling out wedding gifts to "re-home", I noticed I had an impressive collection of silver spoons and serving pieces. 

 


They come from far and wide, including places like Ethiopia and Whales. Some of the things I can only guess at their purpose, and one in particular actually looks like a mid evil medical device! But I'm fairly certain it's for serving pickles or olives and has a plunger to push them off of the tines. Genius!

Many of these things are much older than we are, some are family heirlooms and others are from friends and loved ones who thoughtfully chose them because they thought I would love them. And I do. 

My folks carried these home from Belgium in 1953. I spent several hours of my childhood cleaning them.


 Several years ago when cleaning out our dresser, I gathered an impressive pile of pins and rank related to my husbands flying career. I had never done a shadow box, but was fairly certain I could pull it off, and along with my youngest daughter, created a beautiful display of his accomplishments. It made for a very special Christmas gift, and thankfully his parents were even with us that year to witness him receiving his gift. Needless to say, they had a HUGE part in his career and I was so glad they could see such a wonderful overview of his achievements from the last 40 years.

It was time to once again break out my shadow box game. 

The old spoon racks are no longer in vogue, and they're difficult to deal with; making things fit, keeping things clean... Shadow boxes would be perfect!

I started the process by gathering all that I had and spent some time at the sink cleaning all of that silver. There wasn't much cleaning OUT to do because quite honestly, every single piece had a story to it. They all deserved to stay!

Once they were clean, I sorted them into "categories" and decided what I would need in the way of frames. 

After doing some research online, and knowing that I didn't want to spend a bundle on custom frames, I visited my local Lobby of Hobbies and gathered these. They aren't exactly what I had envisioned, but I would have had to wait 10 days to get exactly what I thought I wanted. So since instant gratification is the name of my game...

Then I got to work with my hot glue gun. 

I found that an inexpensive chip brush was invaluable in cleaning out the "glue strings" that happen with glue guns. After I finished attaching them to the frames, I let them sit overnight, and then stood them vertical for another 24 hours to make sure they would hold before putting them in the frames. 

I'm so pleased with the finished product, and every time I look at them, I think of all the special people in our lives who have had a part in such a beautiful meaningful collection.

I know Marie Kondo is all the rage now, and "everyone" is cleaning out and throwing things away. But I think we have some responsibility to preserve the past. Keep some of those things that have value and hold meaning. And what better place to do so than in a place where others can enjoy them as well? Much better than piled in a drawer!

For whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction so that through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope. 
Romans 15:4




Family Stuff

Special Places

Several years ago, I got inspired to put a sign post in the yard. I had seen a picture of one that I really liked, and what really inspired me was that it had a good bit of history on it. I knew that with time, mine would look the same. The first step was to come up with places that meant something to our family, and I put the question out on social media asking for the locales our friends might pick. I got everything from the ridiculous to the sublime, including "Rest Rooms". That one I REALLY liked!! 

Ultimately, I decided on actual locations that we've enjoyed  from all of the places  we've lived over the years. In the spirit of Resurrection Upcycle where things are rehabbed or created nearly for free, I got my hands on a pallet and enjoyed a great work out tearing it apart. No easy task! Sadly, the hammer didn't survive.

Next I raided the basement stash of left over paint and came up with the 5 original signs.

 

In 2013, when it was fresh and new, this is what was planted by our patio.

Years went by as our signpost weathered the seasons while it picked up the history I was looking for. We also added some new locations. 

 

Once again, it came time to make an addition. Some of our children moved to a new locale, and they deserved a place on the post! I still had a piece of the original pallet, amazingly, so I got to work on it. I never claimed to be an artist, and totally own the fact that I depend on a computer and a printer to create these things!

No worries! It's gonna be great!

 

The actual logo, and my interpretation of it.

 

Today I just beat the rain to get the new sign installed on the post. 

Now with the history that caught my attention in the first place, it's just a little something fun in the corner of the yard!

I would have despaired unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.

Wait for the Lord;

Be strong and let your heart take courage; 

Yes, wait for the Lord. 

Ps. 27:13-14 

Other Projects 

Family Stuff