Tuesday, December 15, 2009

I've Been Framed!

Okay, well not actually me. It's my dining room wall.

About six months ago, I decided it was time to retire the wrought iron adornments that were previously hanging here. Coincidentally, I made that decision the moment I found the gorgeous antique oval frame. From that point on, I was on the hunt! They had to be the right patina of weathered gold, made of wood and not 65 dollars. That last one has been tricky to find around here. Which is why at the moment there are only three. But, I'll be back on the hunt full force, after the New Year.

As you can see, I've spent the last couple of days dressing them up.

This first one, is my take on one of Teresa's latest e-zine projects. Hers was actually a wreath, but I decided on a garland instead.

I was going to glitter a few of the leaves with some silver glass glitter, but really just didn't have the time, so added the jingle bells instead.


For this one, I took the vintage image plaque, that I already had, and just glued some gold foliage to the back. I had a few extra paper holly leaves left over from the garland so I tucked those in too.

And this one, will no longer make the dogs bark at the front door.

What?
Let me explain...
The big jingle bells used to be attached to a thong of gold vinyl, that was made to hang on a door knob. It was ugly. But I used to hang it on the front door anyway. And the dogs learned, a long time ago, that at this time of year if they heard loud jingle bells, then someone was opening the front door. Which of course means, if you are one of my crazy dogs, that you must run as fast as you can, while barking as loud as you can, to the front door to either greet or eat whomever it may be. But unfortunately for them, we got a beautiful, new front door this year and I wasn't about to mar it with that ugly jingle bell thing. So this is what I did with it instead. And as you can probably guess, there was A LOT of barking and running and confusion during the alteration.
Funny dogs.

Till next time, have a beautiful day!

14 comments:

FILIGREE MOON said...

What a funny story. Beautiful idea, especially to frame your fantastic creations - love that garland, did you cut each leaf out or do you have a super big leaf punch? Clever use of bells, I'm crazy for them even if it's just to look at them, let alone jingle! ~ Angela

Unknown said...

I'm totally stealing this idea. ;)

The Pink Birdhouse said...

I agree, I am totally going to steal your idea and hang frames on my wall like that, with some added decorations. I love the idea!!! I have been looking to do something different in my livingroom, and this is the perfect solution to my dilemma of just "what". Thanks so much for sharing. ~~ Debby

Elizabeth said...

I love your holly garland- so elegant!! i have used old empty frames all over the various houses that we have lived in and they always work so well to decorate almost any space!! Love how you ahve used them here!!
Elizabeth

the wild raspberry said...

so lovely.

Lori said...

i bet i wouldn't even be able to find three around here...i look for frames occasionally when i am out...the only pretty, old frame i have found was at a garage sale about 3 1/2 years ago...yours look lovely!!!

Julie Ann said...

Love that garland!! It's totally eye-catching! :) Great job decorating!!

knitterbeader said...

Laughing about your dog story. I know I have some old frames in a box in the garage that I no longer want the pictures in them. Soooo, I'm also stealing your idea and see if I can come up with some pretty "stuff" to put in them. Merry Christmas to you Alisa!!

Suz said...

That is really clever, Alisa. I love the story of the dogs, as I have two dogs that constantly bark when the door rings.

Allie said...

What would we do with out our dogs? You can always count on them for a good laugh and lots of love! Happy Tuesday, Alisa!
~Allie

Tiedupmemories said...

Such a cute post! Your frames look wonderful! Great idea! The sprucing up with holiday garland looks awesome...you can keep it up throughout the year with different types of garland and stick antique postcards in the garland or berry sprigs to go with the seasons! Fun!

Marianne said...

Love those frames! Love your decorations even more! Here is to a happy and quiet Christmas without barking dogs!

Splashes of Pink and Mint said...

Haha, what a great dog-story! I love your empty frames! Nicely decorated with the paper garland, very pretty!

Anonymous said...

Alisa, you've given me an idea! I have several antique scrolly floor heating grates on the wall behind our couch! They're the perfect place for hanging ornaments! I've never thought of doing that before!

Love your idea of adding the bits to the inside of empty frames! Very stunning!

Diane