Barn Door Media Console

Surprise…I’m back! Happy weekend everyone!  I know it’s felt like 100 years since I’ve posted anything but I have been soaking up every second possible with my little dude!  He’s almost in 6 month clothes, ahhhh.  But it’s time I get back on the blog train…I miss it!  Okay…maybe I missed my lovely husband building awesome things for me to post about 😛

Today I am posting pictures of our most recent project…plans by Ana-White.  (Similar plans found here)  Prior to me moving in, Reid liked to call the downstairs hang area his “man cave.”  Sadly for him, I have pretty much taken over!  We needed a little spruce up downstairs in order to add some life which is where this media console came into play.  Warning: You do need a lot of power tools in order to build this piece but once you own them all, you pretty much can build any type of furniture!

We decided we liked the look of the “rustic” wood versus just spraying it white or grey.  Most of the furniture in our house is that color scheme so we thought we would branch out a bit.  In order to stain the plain pine wood, Reid made up a concoction of steel wool and apple cider vinegar as well as steel wool with white vinegar and let them sit in separate mason jars overnight.  The two vinegars make different colored stains.  Instructions for this found here.  Before the vinegar stain is applied it is important that you essentially “beat up” your wood.  Reid used tools such as hammers and socks stuffed with screws in order to imperfect the wood.

Once the stains have sat for 24-48 hours you are able to brush on the stain and let sit..it’ll continue to get darker so don’t fret when you brush it on.  He ended up doing 2 coats on all of the wood to achieve the color we were looking for.  You can do more if you prefer it darker, or less if you are looking for a lighter more natural wood finish.  After the stain had fully dried I picked out an ivory spray paint in order to achieve that “unfinished look.”  Vaseline was applied in random splotches (paint won’t stick to vaseline) which helped that rustic look.

Reid made the barn door hardware in order to save money and painted the metal with Rustoleum oil rubbed bronze spray paint.  The hardware plans are found here.

Now for the fun part…decorating!  I was able to go to Tj Maxx & Hobby Lobby and get all of the decorating items for $50!  Navy blue & white patterned baskets, wooden pig, metal water tin with faux leaves, candles and white lantern are all courtesy of Hobby Lobby and their awesome 50% sales!  That place is a dream come true.  I found the white S at Tj Maxx and the metal basket was a gift from a friend but I have seen them many places!  My  next step to finishing our cave is refinishing the table, adding a colorful area rug, and built in cubbies along the wall where we can set up a kiddie play area.  So much to look forward to!

I hope you enjoyed this project!  Full step by step instructions located at www.ana-white.com.  It’s really cool to see the different variations all of her followers have done!  If you have any further questions on the media console we are happy to help!

For our next project…Coffee table!!!  We just ordered these amazing grey leather couches for our main living room and are looking for a nice wood coffee table to add a little pizzaz 😉  I think I found the perfect one for Reid to do…it’s a good thing he likes me!

More posts to come soon.

PS-How is Auggie going to be 4 months next week?!  Someone make it stop!  Recent pictures of our lil’ family posted below.

Sincerely,

The Smith’s