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May 1 2015

art and a bargain

Posted by hayley
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The name Eastman Johnson may not ring a bell when it comes to famous artists. But I’m pretty sure you’ve heard of one of his greatest accomplishments — he co-founded the Metropolitan Museum of Art (The Met) in NYC. Yet he himself was a painter and his work Woman Reading is one of my all time favorites.

art and upcycling  greyhouseharbor.com

Handsome and I got married 3 months before his first deployment – a 7-month-long separation. Not one to sit around pouting, I adventured all around San Diego to fill the time. On an outing to the SD Museum of Art, I saw the original of this painting and was instantly smitten. She felt familiar and I connected with the idea of reading letters from a distant love (this was before Skype, people!). I found the sparse composition and muted color palette calming and loved how the water is not actually painted but rather implied with the reflection of the sailboat.

This past Christmas, twelve years after first seeing it, my cousin bought me my very own oversized print of Woman Reading. For several days I let it sit under my set of trusty cornhole bags to flatten it from its shipping tube.

art and upcycling greyhouseharbor.com

Most of the art that hangs in our house was done by yours truly. Not really a bragging statement, I’m simply too picky (and frugal) to hang just anything. But this piece was to be framed and displayed properly! I got quotes from custom frame shops and craft stores… HO-LY milk maker. Those 60% off framing ads are nonsense. The minimum they wanted to rob me of was over $200.

My bargain hunter alter-ego kicked in hard.

The kids and I scoured thrift stores for something that might work and found this …

art and upcycling greyhouseharbor.com

Scary right? But you gotta look past the two-tone wood frame and faded ensemble of creepy kids! Here you can see just how large it is (as well as another nice frame I snagged for a different project). Bug wasn’t convinced.

art and upcycling greyhouseharbor.com

Below is the frame shop quote for a chincy frame with single mat (left) and what I paid the thrift store for a large, solid wood frame with glass and double mat (right). Cue the happy dance.

art and upcycling greyhouseharbor.com

After disassembling the frame, I patched a few nicks in the edges with Ready Patch spackling compound, let dry and sanded flat.

art and upcycling greyhouseharbor.com

art and upcycling greyhouseharbor.com

art and upcycling  greyhouseharbor.com

A couple coats of Rustoleum Oil Rubbed Bronze spraypaint took care of the rest.

art and upcycling greyhouseharbor.com

Initially I planned to cut a brand new mat, but luck was on my side and it was a precise fit (I’m talking millimeters)! Then I was going to spraypaint the mat, but when I placed it on top of the artwork, it was pretty much perfect as-is. Even the dark gold inner color worked.

art and upcycling greyhouseharbor.com

I cleaned the glass and reassembled everything. Framing staples originally held in the art and backer board, but since I had to tear those out I kept the new art in place with small wire nails instead.

art and upcycling greyhouseharbor.com

Then I just replaced the hanging hardware and added cut adhesive felt furntiure pads on each bottom corner to keep it from scratching the wall.

art and upcycling greyhouseharbor.com

art and upcycling greyhouseharbor.com

If that’s not an uptown look for a downtown price, I don’t know what is. Can I get an amen?!

art and upcycling greyhouseharbor.com

Now every morning I wake up to my favorite painting and feel mighty good about my latest thrift store success story!

art and upcycling greyhouseharbor.com

Tags: art, our home, trash to treasure
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2 comments
Nov 6 2014

sink or swim ?

Posted by hayley
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Did you know that I don’t make any moolah writing this blog? Sad but true. Lots of bloggers have figured out how to make a buck from putting words and pictures out into the world wide web, but I’m not one of them. I blog simply for the love of sharing neat ideas and family stories.

But, if you’ve looked around this blog a little, you may have noticed a button on the left labeled Bottle Breacher. A few nights a week I do earn a few shillings as the staff graphic designer for this awesome all-American company! Bottle Breacher’s owners, Jen and Eli, are close friends and my former San Diego neighbors. I designed their logo, do all their promotional images and handle any in-house design needs they have.

Bottle Breacher

One day while picking up our girls from preschool, Jen asked me how to open an Etsy shop because Eli wanted to sell the bottle openers that he creates from 50-caliber bullets. In just a year and a half, they have turned that small side business into a legit company that employs 9 people — all of whom are active duty service members, reservists, and veterans!

bottle breacher

Eli has recently left the Navy (honorably, of course) to pursue building his American dream full time. I am so excited to share that they will be pitching their product on ABC’s hit show Shark Tank for their Veteran’s Day episode TOMORROW NIGHT at 9pm eastern time. Be sure to check it out!

Shark Tank Graphic

Handsome owns two of these unique openers and I’ve gifted them to several other people in my life. You can customize yours with a name or special date and they’re available in chrome, black, or polished brass. If you want to get an awesome gift (hello, stocking stuffer!) for the beer lover in your life, today is the last day to take advantage of their Pre-Air special.
Use code PRESHARKTANK at checkout to get $5 off!  www.BottleBreacher.com

Because supporting them is kinda like paying me too. ;)

bottle breacher

Tags: art, bottle breacher, graphic design
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2 comments
Jul 3 2014

creative collaboration

Posted by hayley
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Today is my Mother-In-Law’s birthday!

After getting stranded overnight in New York due to crazy East Coast weather, she finally made it to Virginia in time for dinner! She was supposed to spend her birthday poolside with a strawberry daiquiri in one hand and a grandkid in the other, but she’ll have to settle for a day in the airport, a home cooked meal, and some balloons. Ok, ok… there might be froyo in the plan, too.

Inspired by this mother/daughter duo, Songbird and I have been collaborating on birthday gifts for family members this year. Grandma L got to open up her gift this evening… a special custom portrait! Because Grandma loves nature hikes, Songbird surrounded her with butterflies, flowers and mountains. She completed the outfit ensemble with a red backpack and “special heart pockets to put her hiking treasures in.”

creative collaboration  |  greyhouseharbor.com

In May, Songbird’s cousin was having a “Frozen” themed party, so drawing her as Elsa was clearly the right choice. She wouldn’t let me do much color on this one, because “it’s supposed to be all snow, Mom.”

creative collaboration  |  greyhouseharbor.com

My Dad loves to sail and although she didn’t have room to put him on a sailboat, Songbird did place him at the beach with a remote control sailboat instead. I adore the controller in his hand and the creative zipper on his jacket in this one!

creative collaboration  |  greyhouseharbor.com

Pretty fun, right? I think I need to do a family portrait like this of Handsome, myself, Songbird and Bug. That could be epic!

Tags: art, portraits, songbird
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Jun 10 2014

oversized patent art

Posted by hayley
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oversize patent art  |  greyhouseharbor.com

If you’re searching for statement art, then look no further than the US Patent office. For our dining nook these RIBBA frames from Ikea ( previously used in our old playroom) were the perfect size. But purchasing art prints that large would have been pricey.

oversize patent art  |  greyhouseharbor.com

Instead, I used Google’s patent search to find technical drawings for nautical items. After typing in your patent search term, click the “Search Tools” tab.

oversize patent art  |  greyhouseharbor.com

This bar will appear and you can narrow your search to a certain date range and US Patent Office. The “sort by relevance” tab is also useful, as you can instead choose to sort by filing date (oldest or newest). When you click through to the image, there is a option to see the “original image” which is better quality. Then just right click on the drawing and choose “Save As” to save it to your computer.

oversize patent art  |  greyhouseharbor.com

I especially love the patents from late 1800s and early 1900s. All the drawings are hand-sketched and the signatures have lovely scripted charm.

oversize patent art  |  greyhouseharbor.com

After finding the perfect drawings and saving them to my computer, I simply took the files on a thumb-drive to Office Max. They enlarged them to my desired size and printed them for me as “engineer prints” on their oversize printer. At 24″ x 30″ they were only $4 each! I then cut them down and positioned them in the frames, unmatted.

oversize patent art  |  greyhouseharbor.com

The best part about this idea is that it can be adapted to fit all types of decor, because any product worth it’s salt has been patented at one point or another.

So, whether you’re into WWII bomber planes, ladies footwear, or eyeglasses for chickens (if only I were joking) there’s something for everyone!

oversize patent art  |  greyhouseharbor.com

oversize patent art  |  greyhouseharbor.com

oversize patent art  |  greyhouseharbor.com

Original patents of classic toys would be super cute in a playroom. Adding color with art pencils or markers would go a long way in bringing these to life.

oversize patent art  |  greyhouseharbor.com

oversize patent art  |  greyhouseharbor.com

oversize patent art  |  greyhouseharbor.com

How about the original Barbie or GI Joe dolls?

oversize patent art  |  greyhouseharbor.com

oversize patent art  |  greyhouseharbor.com

Antique toys would be lovely hung up in a nursery. They wouldn’t even have to be large scale, just print an 8 x 10 at home.

oversize patent art  |  greyhouseharbor.com

oversize patent art  |  greyhouseharbor.com

oversize patent art  |  greyhouseharbor.com

The possibilities are endless and if you print them on your inkjet, it’s totally free.

Since the frames were pre-owned and the engineer prints were very affordable, this whole art installation cost a whopping $12. At some point I may want something more colorful on there, but I sure like it in the meantime!

oversize patent art  |  greyhouseharbor.com

Tags: art, diy, home decor
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I'm Hayley. Wife and mother by day, DIY enthusiast by night. Fueled by sweet tea and jelly beans, I own power tools and know how to use them. Consider yourself warned.

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