Something Unique for your Lake Home![]() Driftwood is smoothed over time by the water which creates unique shapes and designs. Some of the designs range from mesmerizing swirls and whorls to smooth ripples, all created by water. The best driftwood is found upriver in coves where the water eddies. With the water at winter levels and the cold temperatures keeping critters away, it is a great time to get outdoors and collect some driftwood! The uses are endless! You can use them inside as wall art, centerpiece for your table or in glass vase or jars. Create something unique for your lake home. You can also drill cavities into the driftwood to make holders for tea lights or votives. Make sure you use caution when using candles with driftwood - it can be a fire hazard! Before you use your driftwood as inside decor..clean it properly! You’ll need a few tools for cleaning and working with driftwood:
Here are the steps to cleaning driftwood:
You are now ready to create your work of art! The natural beauty of the wood is revealed when you remove the soft wood by scrapping it gently with a scrapper, sandpaper or Dremel tool. If you lightly spray the wood with water, it will help remove the soft wood. You will know it’s removed when you see more of the grain and the wood gets hard…don’t scrap against the grain! You can preserve your artwork using any method that is commonly used for wood, from oiling to waxing. If you decide to use oil, it is best to apply multiple coats of wood oil, added over time. Use appropriate sized brushes to reach all those small nooks and crannies! Just remember that the color of the oil make change the appearance of the wood. If you buff the wood between coats, you will achieve a beautiful finish! So, before the lake begins to fill for the summer, walk the shoreline for unique pieces of driftwood and create your work of art! Send us a photo of your favorite driftwood art/decor at [email protected]. We will select a few for our Home on the Lake issue of Lake Wedowee Life magazine. The pieces below are soaking in the bleach solution...check back later for the progress!
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A Front Porch Re-do For A Tiny HomeBy: Mary Lee Caldwell
This newly designed front porch tells a story of what you will find on the inside of this tiny lake home. When walking up to this home, the front porch immediately catches your eye. You see pops of color, natural beauty, and vintage farmhouse sense of style, and this is just a taste of what you will find when you open the front door. Here are a few tips for your own front porch transformation: Pick a porch focal point: As you can see from the before and after photos, the centerpiece of this transformation is adding a new front door from Jeld-Wen Windows & Doors available locally at Millworks Specialties in Heflin. Changing out the bland existing door for a new upgrade with a pop of color provides a focal point for the porch that is welcoming and full of cheer. ![]()
#TinyHomeMakeover #MaryLeeCaldwell #ilovemytinyhome #SunsetPoint
Big Style in Small Spaces with a Tiny Home Makeoverby Leisel Caldwell Lake homes come in all sizes and price ranges, large custom-built homes, cabins, tiny homes, park model homes, RVs and campers. Our lake home is a park model home, we have owned for 13 years. We fell in love with our tiny home before tiny homes were cool! It has 1 bedroom, 1 bath, full kitchen, small living area and a large screened in porch. After 13 years it was time for a tiny home makeover. The plan was to create a tranquil space, and multi-functional areas for entertaining and sleeping. This was a DIY project with my husband taking on the first step of converting the porch to a sunroom. The work included new windows being installed as well as beadboard and sheetrock walls, wood ceiling, and adding a heating and air unit. It was my turn next in picking out colors and painting. I picked out a neutral color pallet of burlap, tan and off whites and used painting techniques to create a unique look. The focus then changed to furniture, space planning and sleeping areas. We needed to be frugal and use much of what we already owned. In our stash was an old futon frame and mattress. ![]()
![]() The finishing touches to this part of our makeover are the art pieces for our newly renovated space. Jessica Bailey of Reclaimed Grace Art is a local artist with a lot of talent. She has a great flair for farmhouse chic, which is the look I was after for our tiny lake home. I called Jessica and ask her to look at our space. After our meeting, I commissioned her to do 4 pieces. She had them ready in approximately 4 weeks. Let me just say, she hit it out of the park matching my color pallet of drop cloth, burlap, brown and the beautiful blues. I could not be more pleased. We have a way to go before we are finished with our tiny lake home makeover; the kitchen, the bathroom and bedroom. Stay tuned, same place, same magazine but not sure what issue! Sponsors of this content include: The Slip Cover Shop: http://www.SlipCoverShop.com
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