Upcycled Wood Display

My friend Kim at NewlyWoodwards is hosting a DIY blog party and today’s the first day!

The Mission for Monday, Nov. 16: Dare to… be thankful!

Take some time making your own DIY Thanksgiving project. It could be a fun Thanksgiving advent calendar, a banner or something completely unique. Post about what you made, how you made it and photos in its new home.

Here’s the thing about most Thanksgiving craft projects… gingham & fake flowers are not really my style. Of course there are exceptions to every rule, I think Dorothy totally rocked the blue gingham and fake flowers are a must for any theatrical production {real ones are a total no-no}. Also, our home is not big enough for crap that just sits there and I loathe dusting. Knick-knacks, bric-a-brack, doo-hickeys and other assorted thingamabobs are welcome to live elsewhere. So what’s a girl to make?

Remember how Rob & Dad A unceremoniously ripped the zip-tie-errific fence down to put in the lovely brand-y new recycled composite fence?

Seeing it cast aside, destined for a landfill made me a little sad. Obviously it couldn’t be a fence anymore but maybe it could be something else.

Thinking about Kim’s challenge, I had an idea. I percolated; how would it be made, what supplies do I need {can I do it for free}?

Being thankful isn’t a sentiment that should be reserved for one holiday a year. And it’s not about turkeys, leaves, pumpkins, or stuffing yourself silly.

We should be thankful everyday. Grateful for our family and friends. A reminder to be happy and content with what we have and significantly less concerned with what else we want.

It’s about memories; making & remembering. It’s about relationships; nurturing, repairing, & enjoying the bonds we share with family and friends.

I wanted something that would be displayed year-round as a reminder and came up with this.

This photo display is made completely out of our old fence.

A symbol that something beautiful & useful can be made from something once neglected & discarded.

Subtly burned into the wood at the bottom of the frame are the words:

“give thanks with a grateful heart”

This comes from a song we used to sing at my childhood church but I think it’s a wise sentiment to remember no matter what your religious perspectives, no matter what time of year.

I plan to use it to display things we are thankful for; pictures of family & friends the most likely candidates but I’m not limiting it to anything in particular. Once we get some walls painted, it will hang in our home. For Thanksgiving, it will reside with my parents.

{that’s my mom sitting on my Gram’s lap}

In the coming days, I’ll post a “How To” to show everyone how exactly I made it. It wasn’t hard but involved enough to necessitate a separate post.

My DIY bulldog pins are also pretty fun and super easy to make. I love that they stick into the wood but don’t harm the picture. Rearranging is incredibly easy!

{Uncle John}

Thank you Kim for putting this together!! Be sure to pop on over to NewlyWoodwards and check out everyone else’s creations!