DIY Framed Dried Lavender Gallery Wall

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A long time ago...well, maybe like 3 years ago...I changed up my house like 5 times a year. Played musical chairs with all my furniture just wondering what place they would stay put for a few months. It was fun, it was expensive sometimes, and boy do I have a whole entire basement full of things I used shortly and never touched again. That's what it takes sometimes though to find your style. It took me like 7 years, so you can imagine how full my basement is :) But, now I am finally happy with where my house is and truthfully, it's super hard to move things from a place where I already love them. It does help me save quite a bit of money though, now instead of thinking "oh that's cute! I want it!" I think, "Do I like this piece more than the piece that I'm going to be getting rid of for it?".  Nine times out of ten, it's the latter....I know, I know..so grown up :) lol

 So, that brings me to my dining room. I had a wood sunburst mirror on my dining room wall for probably about 5 years now. It's been a staple in the space. I loved it. It made me smile...seriously, even after 5 years. 

But, then I had an idea in my head that I couldn't kick. I had to try and see if I liked it. And guess, what? I love it! Now I just wish I had two dining rooms that look exactly the same so I can have my framed lavender in one and the sunburst in the other ;) 

This framed lavender project was one of those projects that I envisioned, looked good in my mind, but then had no clue if it was going to look as good once executed. I'm so glad it turned out half decent lol.

Here's how I made the frames and dried the lavender for them:
Supplies:
1/4" plywood (I used a starting 2'x4' piece.)
4 -1x2s
Stain
Paint
Nail gun/nails or screws
Picture hanger (the claw type)
Lavendar
Small nails (to hang lavender)

First, I measured out my plywood, and divided it up into 6 pieces.

 I cut six of them at 12"x15". If you don't have something to cut it, ask your local lumber store to do you a favor. I used my Dremel Ultra-Saw,  ...the none scariest cutter in my opinion :) 

I decided it would be easiest to paint and stain all the pieces before assembly. I stained my 1x2s dark walnut and painted the plywood white.

 I then cut the wood pieces (not shown). For each frame, I had two 14" pieces and two 13" pieces.

I placed the longer pieces on the top and bottom and smaller 13" pieces on the sides. So, this made the entire frame measure 14" wide and 16" high. I placed the wood stain side down on a flat surface. I then placed the plywood paint side down onto the wood letting it overlap onto each piece of wood. I secured each side with my nail gun using 1/2" nails.

 I did this with all six of them. Next was to touch up the stain on the cut edges. 

 I then added the claws onto the back. I made sure that each one was in the same location as the others. About 1" down and 7" in the middle.

 I then cut some fresh lavender from my garden. I separated them into 6 handfuls, tied the ends with some jute and then hung them all to dry for a couple of days.

Once they were dried and the frames were made, I tied another cute jute bow onto the ends. Nailed a small nail into the center of the white, and hung the jute from it. I made sure not to hit the nail into the plywood so hard that it went through the back. Just enough that it stayed put though.

 I just love the new look these gave my dining room. It was so weird getting used to it. A little busy at first, truthfully, but once I got used to it, I had no problem with them. 

Here's a quick look at how my sunburst mirror looked in here. See? Totally a hard decision to get rid of it, huh?! 

Here's the same angle with the new framed lavender gallery. Also shows that not much has changed in here in the past year :) See, if it still makes you smile, why change it, right? 

Don't worry about the sunburst mirror. It found a new home in my front room. This is actually where it's first home was years ago. 

I am now going on a complete tangent, but check out this before picture when I first posted about the mirror :) 

Whaaaat? Same room. Yep. Crazy!! That's when my couch actually stayed clean and stain free. Now it's just a constant mess lol :) Here's the link to make the mirror if you are so inclined to want to make one for yourself :) (click HERE)

Pin for later :)

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