Christmas Decor: Paper Mounted Deer

One more month until Christmas and I can hardly contain my excitement! Yes, I am one of those people who really LOVES Christmas...especially now that I'm a mom and I get to experience it through my kids' eyes. The Christmas concerts, the family get-togethers, the parties, the parades--I love it all, but I especially love decorating. This coming Sunday we'll go to the tree farm and chop down that most perfect of specimens to grace our living room for the season, but for now, it's all been all about this paper mounted deer. Faux taxidermy has become a real trend in wall decor, and I've wanted my own stag's head for a while. When I saw one made out of white cardboard in a magazine, I got fixated on making my own. And it turned out to be one of the funnest projects I've ever done.

I found instructions online for making a mounted deer from foam board. (Thank you Spins & Needles blog!) It sounded super easy, which is always a bonus for me. I printed out the templates and got my husband to enlarge them to the size I wanted on his photocopier at work. Then, instead of tracing the templates onto foam, I chose to use white cardboard boxes, since I still anticipated making a white deer, and foam always makes me think of kids' crafts, and I didn't want this to look like my daughter made it out of one of those kids' craft kits from Michaels.

But when I finished cutting out all the pieces and put my deer together, it just looked a little lackluster--not like the one I saw in the magazine. It also wasn't the sturdiest. I started thinking maybe I should have used the foam. Then, as a last-ditch attempt to make it into something I would want to display, I decided to cover it with decorative paper as they suggested in the online tutorial. And it made all the difference.

I used a heavier weight decorative paper from a book of scrapbook paper I bought at Michaels months ago and which happened to have a faux wood grain paper that I wanted for the "mount." The papers in the book were all coordinating, which made it really easy to find papers that complemented each other, and the 12" x 12" size of the paper was a perfect fit for my templates. The stiffness of the paper also made the overall structure stronger.

But the coolest part of all that I totally wasn't anticipating was that my deer head turned out to be REVERSIBLE! I just used different patterns of paper on both sides of the deer "parts" and now I can have different looks. I call the first one with the floral antlers my "Georgia O'Keeffe-inspired" deer and the other one is my "Cozy Sweater" deer. I think I like "Georgia O'Keeffe" better, but I do like them both. I am SO happy with the outcome of this project, and I loved planning which papers to use. Which "look" do you like best? I would love to hear from you!

Chalk Painted Cabinet with Map Wallpaper

I am so excited to be writing this post because I finally finished a project that I've been wanting to do for years! When my grandmother passed away in 2009, I inherited a china cabinet from her that I had always admired at her house. But although it looked handsome and perfectly at home in her house full of florals and tweeds and needlepoint cushions, I realized that it wouldn't suit my more contemporary decorating style...so what to do?

For years the stinking cabinet sat in my basement storage room while I imagined that one day I would repaint it and turn it into something I would actually use. But it wasn't until I attended a seminar at our local library about chalk painting furniture that I actually got inspired to do it. That was last May--and I bought the paint and supplies last June--so as you can see I am a wee bit of a procrastinator at times.

The cabinet was stained a dark, almost mahogany and had these ornate brass knobs and drawer pulls and glass on three sides. It also had a mirrored back, which made it way too fancy for my taste. I decided to go with a neutral grey shade called "Driftwood" by Bluestone Cottage, which is a local (Ancaster) company that makes a beautiful line of chalk paint. You can find it at Graham & Brooks in Dundas, which is a gorgeous home decor store that you should totally check out if you live in the area and love rustic vintage style.

I also knew I needed to cover that mirrored back with some wallpaper...but after searching the net for hours for the perfect paper that wouldn't break the bank, I realized that wallpaper might not be my best option since it is generally sold by the roll and I only needed about 2 ft x 4 ft. I went to a fancy paper store and almost bought some lovely chiyogami paper that I thought would work, but they didn't have enough sheets in any of the patterns I liked. Sigh.

Then I remembered I had this giant vintage-looking world map that I bought for my husband years ago but that never got put up for some reason... And wouldn't you know it, it was the perfect size when cut in half. Here is the result!

Before

After

I am so pleased with it! Painting with chalk paint is so easy because there is no prep work to be done. I didn't even sand the cabinet before I started. And it only took one coat. I thought I might do some distressing when I was done, but I realized I was happy with it like it is, though if I ever want to give it more of a French Country look, I can just take some sandpaper to it. I also didn't apply the layer of wax they recommend for added protection, though I did purchase a jar and might put it on later.

So, all in all, this project took about three days from start to finish. And the total cost was just around $75 for the whole shebang:

Paint - $25
Wax - $25
Double-sided tape for map - $25

This is a project that anyone can do. Chalk paint is so much fun to work with. I love the patina it instantly gives any piece, and it comes in a whole rainbow of beautiful colors. I know you've got an old chair or bookcase just begging to be brought back to life. Don't wait as long as I did...roll up your sleeves and get to work, yo!