Now My Kitchen Is DONE

My favorite kitchen decorations have been in boxes in the garage and attic since we moved into this house.   A few weeks ago, I finally decided how I wanted to hang them, got out the big ladder, and went to work.

I have had most of these red and green handled kitchen tools since I moved into my first apartment after graduating from college.   Mama and I bought some of them on trips to antique malls and some of them she bought for me later.   A few of them are ones I brought from my parents' house after Mama and Daddy  passed away.   I have had vintage tools hanging in every one of my kitchens, from tiny rental kitchens to our first purchased home.   I just couldn't figure out where they would go in this kitchen, though.   In all my other kitchen spaces, there was a long horizontal space, usually above cabinets, where I could stretch them out along the space.   Here, my cabinets are deep, which is great for displaying favorite items that belonged to Mama, but it meant I had to think of a new way to display these little treasures.

I finally decided to go compact, in a square, instead of a long rectangle.   I used one of Mama's pie plates as a centerpiece and then arranged the tools around it.   The apple sign was a clearance deal and the rolling pin was a cheap purchase I made expressly for display purposes.   The basket was a dollar store find and was the perfect way to display the pin with some other tools.   One of my friends commented that it almost looks like an abstract art display.   It just makes me smile, with all its vintage happiness!



The metal boxes to the left of the apron are matchbox holders.   The black one was Mama's and hung in her kitchen as long as I can remember.   I purchased the red one at a festival when I thought I had lost the black one; it was in a forgotten box.

Well, I had a coupon, so a few weeks later, this sign took the place of the plate:)

Next, I had to hang my plates which have also traveled with me through the years.   I used to space them between my vintage tools on those long horizontal spaces.   The space above the entrance to the dining room seemed right and I tried to arrange them in such a way that they looked good now, but left me room to add any vintage plates I might find in the future.   And I earned some Justification of Time Spent on Pinterest!   I do NOT like to measure or use levels to hang things.   I'm a Just Eye-ball It kind of girl.   It generally works, but I found a solution on Pinterest which brings greater accuracy to my eye-balling whist still leaving me free from the shackles of precision.   This is one area in which I differ greatly from my beloved mama.   She measured and did things with deliberate patience.

Ta-da!   Toothpaste can be placed on the hanger of an object.   Then, just figure out where it needs to be placed and press it against the wall so most of the toothpaste remains in the spot where the nail should be driven.   It worked great and was especially helpful here because each plate had a different type of plate hanger.

The plates are now hung and the empty space has been filled.   Empty spaces in a room make me nervous.   I Must Fill Them.    This end of my kitchen is all the more happy for me now that my favorite decorations have finally found a home in this space.

Here's the other tip I can share: you can hang light items on sheet rock walls with straight pins.   Those vintage kitchen tools were hung with straight pins and I hang any light frames 8 x 10 or smaller with pins.   You just need a steady hand with a hammer.   My father made sure I didn't hammer "like a girl" and it comes in handy as I decorate.   Sometimes I use pins to test nail positions for heavier objects and then I drive a nail in the same spot once it's correct.   That tip came from my mama, not from Pinterest!   Also, a little sticky-tak on the corners of a frame will keep it hanging straight, especially if it's on a wall that gets vibration from closing doors.   And that's about all I've got in the DIY tip department tonight...