Hanging iron pieces in windows

Like a lot of people, I have numerous windows in my home that are over doors or other windows or just in an odd place that can't be treated with drapes. Why not fill them with an iron piece to help make them more decorative. Just take your measurements and account for any odd shapes.  They can be set in the opening or hung.  It depends on how much of a ledge you have or if you have a lot of movement in the wall (doors closing, etc.)

This is an odd modern-shaped octagon window I have in my non-modern house. I used a bold graphic circle piece to try to draw the eye away from the shape of the window.  It was a frame to a broken mirror in an as-is section.  It is hung with a single hook using the mirror's original hanging hole.

This is over my front door and is an eyebrow window. I needed a cascading piece to account for the arch.  This is just leaned in the window (it is lighter and has never even moved no matter how much the door has been opened and closed).

This is over my study doors and was originally filled with a "lovely" etched glass piece. After I replaced the glass myself (that will be another post), I hung this piece to give the blank area some interest. Double duty because it can be seen from both the study and the master bedroom.

Hall closet organizers

These are dollar store pocket organizers I found. Staple gunned them to the inside of my coat closet. Super inexpensive storage solution for gloves, scarves, hats, earmuffs, etc. $4 later and we are no longer hunting for our cold weather accessories. We use an armoire for our stuff, but it would work just as well on a real closet door (you could fit more than I did :)

Adorable kids bouquet

Just came from a friends house, and her daughter had this adorable bouquet delivered. Real gerber daisies with googley eyes and pipe cleaner mouths put on them. So cute.

Using iron wall art as a ceiling medallion

You can probably tell I'm a fan of ceiling medallions. In this instance, this is my living room. I have high, valuted ceilings with absolutely no detail (I know ceilings usually don't have anything on them :), but in this case it's almost overwhelming to have so much space when you walk in that looks just plain vanilla.

I wasn't 100% in love with the fan, but it wasn't the finish that was bothering me (at least black with dark wood blades is neutral and goes with my decor). I immediately thought wood beams (a huge trend in my area), but that was way out of my budget. So, then I thought, why not another ceiling medallion. With so much ceiling, I knew that it was going to have to be big, but not super heavy, visually. That's what led me to iron scrollwork. Large but airy. This is what I found:

I happened upon this piece at Kirklands and hoped it would work. It was round, very large (almost four feet), and it even had a hole in the middle. That's a rarity, though many of the round pieces I have or have seen do have a center medallion that can be removed or at least knocked out. The best part was that it was only $29.99. Now came the test, was the hole big enough to accommodate the fan.

I borrowed an high A-frame ladder (it needed to be 10 or 12 feet, and the highest I have is 6). A few calls to friends with high ceilings, and I had one (always borrow when you can). Now the fun part, taking the fan down. I've done this before so I knew how, just not that high in the air :). After carefully and slowly getting that heavy, long-poled thing to the ground, it was time to see if the medallion would even work. Luckily this style of fan had a ceiling plate that mounted to the box, and then the cap screwed onto it from the side.

Like This

                      Vs. this which I'm used to (but trust me, I would have made it work if it was like this)


So I headed up with the ceiling medallion and plate. It wasn't easy but I managed to get the ceiling medallion flat against the ceiling with my left forearm, then the plate under it with my left hand and start one screw with the right hand so it would hold. Luckily the iron is hollow, so it wasn't so heavy that there was no way I was going to do it. Next I started the second screw, then began the process of raising every thing by screwing each one in a little at a time. Once it was up, I truly couldn't believe it. Just a matter of bringing the fan back up, hooking it in, rewiring, putting the cap on, then back down to admire my HARD work.

I was afraid the fan would be unbalanced when all was said and done, but it must be a good fan, because it wasn't. I adore the results, even though I still want beams! Most importantly, I think this was the project that made me realize, I probably could do anything around my house if I just put my mind to it!

Hang a chandelier over your stove...or anywhere in your kitchen for that matter!

This may not apply to everyone, but if you have an alcove with a stove (like in my case) or a sink or a cabinet, why not switch out the light for a chandelier!

I picked this one up on a Target clearance not even knowing where I was going to hang it.  In my case this brick stovetop enclosure had an ugly florescent light hanging up inside for task lighting. 

I got a ladder situated to go up in the opening, took the florescent light down, added the new chandelier and completely changed the look of my stove for maybe $15!

Maybe hang one over your island or over your corner sink.  It doesn't have to be an alcove.  You can even change out a can light without the help of an electrician with those new kits they have at Lowes and Home Depot.  Heck, hang it in your pantry.  It's about making your house feel luxurious without spending much!

Now, it's time for everyone to walk around their house to find a place for a chandelier : )

Hanging wall art between drapes (to fill large blank wall spaces)

So with the new trend to hang drapes to the ceiling, I have found that you are often left with large wall spaces between drapery panels if the window your are treating is quite a bit lower than the ceiling. 

To expand upon the post below, once I hung the drapes with the cabinet knobs, I decided the bare wall space in between was just too plain.  I found these cute rectangular wall plaques at Hobby Lobby and hung them in between to help "fill" the gap and just make the window treatment more "complete".  You could hang anything abstract really (an iron piece, a metal piece, a mirror, ceiling tins, etc.)

Who knows, maybe this tip might just give your current window treatments a new lease on life, so they seem "new" without redoing them completely.  Of course, I just use tips as a reason to get out and go shopping : )

Using cabinet knobs to hang drapes

I'm always looking for a creative way to make my windows look different than the standard pole and drape.  I like that look but just don't want it in every room.  In this case I had a window seat in my game room that needed some warming up.  It has a small header above the drapes to work with.  Looking for inexpensive options, I realized cabinet knobs are cheap (or at least some are).  All 15 of these were less than $10 at a local building supply surplus store we have.  Very easy to install. 

You do need to also buy those double sided screws that are a screw on one end and a bolt on the other (They are called hanger bolts).  Just take the cabinet knob over to the hardware section to get the right size double sided screw for your knob.  They sell them individually or in packs (just get the best priced one : )  This is what they look like.

You screw the bolt end into the knob, then the screw end into the wall.  Took maybe 10 minutes to hang these (might take a little longer if you run into metal or difficult studs and need a drill).  Hope this gives you some ideas of drapery hanging alternatives : )