French Farmhouse Bathroom Update {Part 2} - Distressed Upcycled Wood Shelf and Chippy Cross

The bathroom is coming along fabulously. The only thing that is frustrating me is the amount of time I must spend doing other things and not focusing on this project through to completion. The cabinets still need to have moulding and trim added, finish caulking, final paint and drawer pulls. The cabinet over the toilet will be sanded and refinished after we complete the vanity area.

The wall over the garden tub was needing to be completely reworked. I decided not to rehang the pictures there previously. They were too modern and the color was harsh with the softer, lighter shades. The paint colors used were Valspar Fog (wall), Valspar Du Jour (cabinets and trim). I scoured the craigslist ads for architectural items that were either free or cheap. Nothing seemed to work. Then I remembered the wood stashes in the garage and yard. Perhaps I should just make what I am looking for and be done with it. I decided for a long shelf on the wall, but was unsure of how to stage it.

Several months ago, I stumbled across a Craiglist ad for free antique barn wood from a city just 10 miles away! We got there and loaded up the cast-offs. Included were some thick, solid oak boards that appeared to have been used as flooring or stair moulding in their previous life. Whatever they were, I loved the chunky wood. (Plus it was free!). All I needed were some large corbels or shelf brackets. In the essence of time and effort, I decided to purchase them. I settled on a simple shelf bracket that cost just $10 each. Once home, I used a dark brown was on the brackets. I did a sloppy job coating them to give a distressed look that was more believable. They were then painted with a leftover white paint from another project. It wasn't labeled, so I do not know what color it is for sure, but it appears to be the leftover Du Jour from when we put up shiplap in the living room or stairway. The wood boards had a dark stain on them with a polyurethane finish. Since I planned to distress the wood, I just painted straight over the stain without sanding. When I had finished applying two coats to the brackets and boards in a VERY sloppy style, I let it dry for about an hour. After the paint was dry, I then used 80 grit sandpaper and pressed hard in long strokes to distress the wood. Beautiful! I nailed the back and brackets to the three boards which make up the shelf. Voila! Wall decor in just a few hours. the shelf was so heavy, my husband hung it using special toggle anchors. What I didn't mention in this story was that when I was looking for brackets or corbels I stopped at the downtown Caddo junk/stores. None there, but...I found a chippy old cross made from what appears to be old cabinet drawers ($4) and in the same booth, an old frame from an antique window ($7). The cross was wrapped with a necklace I made from items I purchased at Michael's and Hobby Lobby. I framed the cross with the old skeleton of a window. I plan to rework the way items are displayed by adding a few antique books and perhaps some tall candlesticks and other ephemera.

When I browse the shops in downtown McKinney, TX, there are a few favorites that have inspired my bathroom look. Chase Hall, Gray Living, Patina Green and Homepieces. Though they are each different, I love something about every of them and tried to incorporate a bit of each in my bathroom.

Still a number of finishing touches left. I will update the blog again once I have something new to show you with this project.

In the mean time, my garden is loving this mild, wet weather... I harvested and prepared one head of my cabbage. Delicious. Lettuce is going crazy as is everything else. I will have to snap a few photos once the rain stops. We also have 9 baby chicks! Things are exciting around here. Much to do...