Garden of freestyle delights - a round hayrack planter meets some hot pink mini chrysanthemums

The Find

While out and about for a walk I came across this tempting pile of garden giveaways. So neatly stacked up! Can you spot the black metal wire planter in the left stack? I took a few other things too...

Discarded garden supplies

The Fix

The round metal basket was very much in keeping with the style of some other finds and purchases sprinkled through the garden, including the first and second metal hayrack planters I found this summer.

I had to buy a slightly oversized coir insert because the superstore didn't have one that was an exact fit. I figured I could just fold in any excess, and I was right.

Conclusion

Wire metal planter with coir insert and
hot pink mums.

One pot of dark pink mums was just the right size to fit inside of this freestyle find.

Happy freestyling, and don't be afraid to spend a few bucks to make that find beautiful!

Water-damaged squoval mirror makeover

 While out and about I saw this mirror out in a discard pile somewhere.  Made all the way back in 1999. 

Too bad! Upon closer inspection it appeared that part of the frame had suffered from water damage.  I think it is a press-wood or press-board frame because the damaged part had expanded when it got wet.

What do you think of the shape? I like the outer shape of a square but the inner part being a pointed oval to reveal the mirror - the best of both worlds.

The front was a bit roughed up, you can see the lighter streaks of discoloration. Luckily the hanging hardware (inset keyhold hardware) was still intact on the back side.

I thought about taking the mirror out of the frame and either cutting a new frame or mounting the mirror on an interesting shape of wood.  However, in the end, I decided to just spray paint the entire frame black in order to hide the uneven bits that had expanded.  I used a gloss black spray paint and the look was fine, buuuuuut a bit severe. It felt a little too goth chic, so I added a pop of green with a stencil in the upper left corner.  And yes, I was not careful enough about overspray. Lesson learned. 

Now it reminds me of a woman wearing a flower in her hair, instead of a look glass towards impending doom..... or something.

Free wall mirrors are always fun to play around with since they are a useful item in almost every kind of space.  Now this one is ready for a new life.

Happy freestyling!