Tag archives for DIY

PinkPianos at NiceDwells

I think I’m going to love being a blogger over at NiceDwells, here’s a peak of what I wrote for them yesterday.

I’d like to share a few tips for bringing the outdoors INSIDE for Fall.

Use natural materials

Like this Driftwood coffee table. In this room, I see natural materials like stone, leather, driftwood, iron, and wool fibers have been incorporated into the living space.

Rain Shower

Relax into a tropical downpour each day with a rain shower. I love experiencing these on vacation in my hotel room, so why not bring one home? A rain shower is easy to install, you just need to right shower head.

Accessorize naturally.

DIY or buy accessories that remind you of nature.

I can be pretty ambitious and I’ve noticed that driftwood mirrors are really in. I’ve seen them everywhere from Etsy to Neiman Marcus and  this autumn I plan on sculpting my own.

Natural centerpieces

for entertaining are a must!  You can design them yourself by taking a nature walk and collecting leaves, branches, and pinecones, or you can go to the nearest florist and mix together an original bouquet. I like these beauties because they are all vivid and bright. I also like the vintage glass jars that I see being reused.

Art

This living wall by Flora Grubb serves as artwork and greenery at the same time. Plus, it is eco-friendly and takes little water to keep alive.

To Go

Or maybe you are like me, never home and always on the go, I have found the perfect natural accessory. This birch bark cuff is so clever! Each piece is handmade and no two pieces are the same due to the quality and texture of the bark. The smooth side is flush to your wrist leaving no itchy feelings. I don’t know about you all, but I’ll never look at bark quite the same!

How will you accessorize your home and entertain guests in this post Labor Day season?

Posted in Art, Green Living, Inspiration | Tagged , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Still Crushin’ on Violet

It feels so good to be back after a relaxing and fun Labor Day weekend, (yes, I did rock the dress:)

She’s all painted up and ready to go. Remember when I debated using Hunter green? Well, I will probably still do a piece that color in the near future, but you all voted for Violet. So, Violet she is!


I will be offering this piece in store and in my shop. The knobs are beautiful textured white porcelain with gold accents. All drawer pulls and trim has been completely rebuffed in Antique gold.

Look forward to my newest crush/designer I just discovered later this week.

Posted in Facelift | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Secretary Desk: Facelift (Surprise!)

So, I bet you would’ve never guessed that I’ve been hiding out in my studio all week, since I’ve been back, working on this vintage, soon to be antique, Secretary’s Desk. When I got it, it was a sight for sore eyes! My neighbor thought that I would enjoy restoring it and fixing it up more than he would, so…I got to work!

I loved the shape of this piece especially. I thought of a dark wood Jacobean desk with shiny gold knobs, I had seen a while back.

Inside there is plenty of built-in storage, aplace to hold papers, letters, books, a envelopes. For a stationery lover or a writer, this would be a dream!

I almost put shiny gold knobs here, but when I came across these brass pulls, I changed my mind. I had to include this photo because of the blue light in the background. I buffed and shined the surface of the wood with Howards Feed in Wax. It is a natural way of sealing wood and does not emit any harsh fumes. The wax simply penetrates the grain of the wood and hardens. Then, the surface can be polished to a high shine! I prefer this method of finishing wood these days.

Overall, the color of the desk is dark, rich, and stately; but in direct sunlight the stain becomes warm allowing the wood grain to stand out.

Why don’t they make more beautiful carved wooden furniture these days?

I would buy it;)

Posted in Facelift, Furniture Design | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Pink Pianos Etsy, peacocks, and vintage

It is rare that I find the time to promote my PinkPianos shop on Etsy. Perhaps, now that I am on vacation in Kentucky, I can really get to work!

It has taken me some time to launch, but keeping the doors open I have had lots of lovely visitors trickle on in which makes me happy.

My shop is a bridge to all the furniture and design work that I do. Here I offer home accessories, vintage finds, hand painted knobs, along with original artworks. As always, custom pieces are available simply email me at hilary.hahn@pinkpianos.com to talk about what you envision.

Just look at what the creative people on  The Wedding Channel did with peacock feathers.

Isn’t that sweet?! Then, there’s also hair clips, bookmarks, and I’d love to see a peacock feather garland!

Well, I’m going back to relaxing and catching up on all the blogs that I love to read. I promise to share inspiration from my visit to Kentucky before I leave and to post the final pics of the Girls’ Room Metamorphosis for those of you that have been following.

What could you make with feathers?

Posted in Art, Furniture Design, Inspiration | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

Moroccan Mirror DIY

I’d so love to give you a peak at my latest inspiration and current DIY stencil fab project.

I came across these amazing graphics via DesignAmour.

There are so many talented designers out there, I love to discover someone new each week. They have so much going on over there, check out round two of the moroccan graphics, I found there.

What really grabs me are the colors along with symmetry and composition of the designs.

I’d love to find tiles along a similar vein for a bathroom that I’ll be working on soon!

Now for a peak at my current DIY project…

Here is the large square mirror that I inherited from a friend. As much as I liked it’s original finish I wanted to enhance it.

I know it looked cool in it’s orignal form, but I just can’t wait to layer in some more colors and details. I promise to show you when I do

Friday, I will post a finished product along with pictures of a huge art hang that I just did at a Melrose residence. Stay tuned :)

Posted in Furniture Design, Surface Design | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Glitterrific

Well, she’s done it again…that Martha!

She never ceases to amaze. Tiny dust-like flecks of glitter in every color of the rainbow.

Next week, I’ll show you just what happened with all this lovely glitter and I bet you will not guess what I’m gonna do with this glitter buffalo.

…a simple thought in sparkling text.

Posted in Art, Inspiration | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Getting Folksy

This is the story of a chair.

It belonged to my neighbor, who had purchased a whole set, but upon her big move she left this lil’ beauty behind.

I’m sure some of you are thinking “I own this chair!” , and it is  a popular type of Windsor loop-back reproduction commonly sold at Target amongst other places;) So, I decided to try my hand at stenciling and making this piece a little more one of a kind.

Another inspiration to revisit stenciling came from a Storque article on surface designer Lena Corwin.

Here is what Violet looked like after I stripped and sanded all the white paint off of her seat.

Not too shabby! I like the look of her with the oiled and sanded natural wood. Ahem…you may also notice the amethyst curtains that I hand dyed this week!

Next, I cut flower shaped stickers from contact paper. I did this by tracing the design onto the contact paper, then applying them to the seat of the chair.

This method of stenciling can be used to create a wall mural too.

To do this yourself, you simply need:

  • A wooden surface
  • Roll of contact/self adhesive paper
  • Scissors
  • Paint and roller
  • Brush for touch ups

I decided to let the natural wood show through the surface, so I didn’t need to do a base coat of paint.

I am pleased as punch with the final results.

Ain’t she a beauty?

If you have similar stencil projects you’d like to share, send over the pics to hilary.hahn@pinkpianos.com.

Next Monday, I will be sharing the work of a talented artist along with an interview here!

Until then, XX!

Posted in Facelift, Furniture Design | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment
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