Thursday, February 24, 2011

Bulletin board re-vamp

Two years ago we moved into our new house and chose a warm neutral palette of gold and green (not the gaudy gold, but the fields of fall corn sort of gold).  We kept everything quite conservative but decided that we would go crazy in our offices, picking whatever colour we wanted.   

My husband picked the exact colour that is in our living room and foyer because once he likes something, he sticks with it.  I, on the other hand, decided to go with a vibrant green that I first noticed on a little Hyundai that was parked in the lot at work.  Yep, matched my office paint to a car.  Somebody else’s car.  Well the best colour to go with this green (called Somersault) is black so I thought I’d revamp an old bulletin board to go with the room.



Here it is pre-vamping with plain paper taped on so I could spray paint the frame.   


This was my first attempt at spray painting.  I knew I should work in a well-ventilated area but I live in Ontario and it’s February so well-ventilated = freezing.  I suppose the garage with the door partway open would have been warmer than outside and still airy, but that seemed too cold also.

In the end, I decided to paint in the basement with the little basement window open.  Heat and cold air had to be better.  Well, I donned my mask, painted my frame, and then went to open the window (no point in being cold any sooner than absolutely necessary).  I couldn’t budge the window.  I broke a nail in half (vertically, ouch!) trying but it would not budge.  When I hoisted myself up finally to have a good look, I noticed there was a piece of fabric or carpet that was blocking the opening.  I grabbed pliers and tried to yank it out but to no avail.  I called the manufacturer to see if there was some reason for the fabric to be there. No, they had no idea what I was talking about but suggested I lift up on the window as I tried to slide it.  He comforted me by saying that it might feel like it was going to break but that it wouldn’t.  Hmmmm. 

By the time I finally got that little window open, the fumes could be enjoyed all the way upstairs.  The cats vacated the basement and headed for higher ground.  I had visions of the paramedics resuscitating me but fortunately it didn’t get that crazy.

Once the fumes subsided a bit and the frame paint dried, I hand paint the centre the same colour as the walls in my office.  This took two coats and maybe should have had a third.



Next I glued on the black circles with plain Aylmer’s glue and called it a night.  The black rings were from a thick manual.  I wanted to recycle it so I cut off the black binding rings and then thought to glue them to the board.  They are not perfect circles because I cut into each one, but that makes them sit up a bit and looks kind of neat that way. 




 I’m not sure if this is where it will stay in the office, but I’m going to leave it here for now and see what it feels like.  The artist's rendition of a kid in new snow pants at the bottom right was done by my nephew, Lucas, for his aunt and uncle.  How cute is that!  Oh yeah, and that's my corset to the left because my waist is just that tiny.  I am linking up at Spunky Junky Feature Friday Party and Serenity Now's Weekend Bloggy Reading so be sure to check out the fabulously creative links there.  








10 comments:

Michelle said...

I love your bulletin board! How clever are you to use the binding rings as an accent. They look really cool!

Little City Farm said...

I feel more lucky than clever. It was such a fluke. Glad you like it.

Mrs Mary Joy Pershing said...

What fun! I love painting bulletin boards! Fabric works well to cover them too. :D Your color scheme really rocks! :D

Thanks for sharing your experience. I really LOVE the way you tell a story! You made me smile and chuckle...needed that! Thanks!

Building Home with Him,

Mary Joy

Little City Farm said...

Thanks Mary Joy. You've made my day. All the best with the challenges you're facing at home. :)

alanna rose said...

Aren't bulletin boards super fun to be creative with? I've got a one half done in my office...now I'm feeling inspired to finish it. Thank you!

Amanda @ Serenity Now said...

Love the fabulous wall color, Terry! Great way to makeover a plain old bulletin board. It looks great now. :)

Thanks so much for joining my Weekend Bloggy Reading party! Have fun finding some new blog friends, and I hope you'll visit Serenity Now again soon. :)

Reginia @NotSoModern said...

Very cute! Love the rings. Great color - I am so loving it!

Little City Farm said...

Alanna - be sure to let me know when yours is done. I'd love to see it.

Amanda - thanks for having me. It was a lovely party. ;)

Reginia -- thanks, I just wish I could take a photo like you. Someday.

Yvonne@StyleBurb said...

Hi Terry,
I'm visiting here from Serenity Now. Your post is quite comical! You must have really felt like spray painting! I'm from Ontario also, and I can't wait for the weather to warm up so I can paint some things- but after reading your post I think I'll wait! The bulletin looks great...so it was worth it! :) Yvonne

Little City Farm said...

LOL - thanks Yvonne. Glad you could learn from my less than stellar choice.

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