Fun with chickenwire!

                Today I was browsing Pinterest, as usual, and came across an old picture frame with chicken wire that you could use clothes pins to attach pictures, letters, etc. to it. As I clicked on the pin to find out how they did it, I realized it led me to a blog/website where the person was selling the items NOT giving you DIY instructions. Immediately I run out to the garage to go down my own checklist… Frame… CHECK! Chicken wire…CHECK! Paint…CHECK! I was determined to create the same product, if not better, than what I pinned. Just to paint a picture for you, there is me in my Picasso mad woman mode trying to start this project, my son throwing dog food ALL OVER the garage, and my min pin growling and running around trying to eat all of the dog food before it hits the ground. BUT I was determined! I had a goal!

I have taken pictures throughout the process in order to share with everyone the process I went through to create the frame with chicken wire.

Beginning with the frame; this was purchased at an auction for $15.00… It used to have a mirror in the frame but it was old scratched and useless, so I took the mirror out and have been gazing at the frame for months now trying to decide what to do with it. I sanded the frame and then using a damp paper towel (if you have tacky cloth use that, I unfortunately could not find it anywhere in my husband’s garage) so a damp paper towel works just as well. Make sure to let it dry before painting.

This next step is completely up to you, I decided to tape it off where I didn’t want the paint to go. I still liked the “antique” look of the frame and didn’t want to completely cover up the color it already had. SO if you feel the need to create a design of some sort feel free! J

The next step, of course, is to paint! This was very rushed due to my child needing to get ready for bed and going crazy running circles around the frame (which yes he did end up with a little bit of paint in his hair). When I was pregnant I had the urge to paint EVERYTHING. I had some lime green and blue paint left over from my son’s dresser so I mixed it together and got this color. Now is the waiting process… I let it set over night.

So it’s been a few days since I’ve been able to “mess” with this project due to life… After peeling the tape off and revealing my work I quickly realized I HATED IT! It was not at all what I imagined in my head…

I knew that I needed to do something to try to fix this PROBLEM. I decided it would be best to sand it down (rough it up) and do a white wash…

Here is the result of the sanding (the roughing up) with my little helper in the background who was up to no good (surprise surprise)

I white washed the frame with ½ water and ½ white primer/sealer, and an old baby wash cloth. I let the first coat set over night then did a second coat in the morning.
After letting that dry I had my husband assist me with attaching the chicken wire to the back… Now that it is up in my kitchen/dining room I plan to add plenty of pictures using clothes pins. I am VERY happy with the finished product and can’t wait to add the pictures.