DIY: fireplace surround

In the past few weeks temps have significantly dropped all over the country, including here in Texas. In the spirit of staying warm I thought it was finally appropriate to share this project with you. 

When I found out a wood-burning fireplace came standard with our home I was thrilled. Hailing from the Midwest, both my husband and I have fond memories of chilly evenings and holidays spend around a hearth. The temps might not be sub-zero here in the south but we love the idea of having a fireplace to signify the central gathering place of our home. 

Sounds pretty straight forward, right? There's always a catch.  In our situation it was the surround...or lack there of. Our builder did not include a traditional surround as an option and to have them custom make one was not in our budget. Our solution: build our own. 

I apologize for the lack of photo quality. I only had my iphone at the time these were taken. 

I can distinctly remember being mesmerized by Cinderella's Castle as a little girl. It was a magical place that seemed other-worldly to a five year old. Now, as an adult, I still find myself mesmerized but for different reasons. I'll admit I still think it's a magical place but have you ever stopped to really look at the ornate detail of that building? It's pretty incredible. Not to mention is has withstood decades of abuse love by millions of small children. What makes that possible you ask? The Fypon. 

Fypon Moulded Millwork is constructed of urethane foam. The mixture is kept under pressure in a mould as it expands to any desired shape. The result is a high-density material that is perfect for interior or exterior trim.

If it's good enough for Disney, it's certainly good enough for me. Another major benefit of using this type of material is the fact that it's durable and light. We ordered a door crosshead from this website that arrived promptly on my doorstep in one piece looking like this:  

Underneath the fypon we simply measured and cut pieces of primed moulding and trim from our local Home Depot. 

                                  

The most important thing you can do at this stage is make sure your measurements are accurate. Since we were dealing with a 3 dimensional object that will need to hold weight it was very important that all of the seams matched up tightly. 

Once all of the pieces were attached to the wall we filled any nail holes, sanded rough edges and primed the entire piece. 

We completed the project with two layers of white paint and some caulking to fill in the seams.

Next I will pick a few pieces from my "lust list" to add personality and color to the space. Stay tuned!

fabulous finials...

...is a curated group of finials currently for sale on One Kings Lane.  I've had multiple people ask me about the finial featured in this post and where to find more. Mine was wood since I was planning on refinishing it but the collection on OKL features all types of materials and sizes. Finials are such a great way to add personality to a banister or even use as decor on a cocktail table.

Here are a few of my favorites from the group:

all via

game plan

Now that we've got our "new face" on, it's time to get organized. One of our goals here at C+W for 2013 is to provide better design education for our readers. This will include interviews with influential people, product spotlights, tutorials and projects that I am working on. To begin, we've added the menu on the sidebar for easier site navigation and as a introduction to our new content. 

Here is a breakdown of our new featured topics: 

ABOUT: get to know the face behind the blog and where Copper + Walnut is heading. 

LITTLE BLACK DESIGN BOOK: we will feature wise words from inspirational people here. This will be a monthly post of interviews with truly talented and inspiring individuals. Whether it's photos of their perfectly styled homes or advice about creating a functional space we plan to pick the brains of some of the coolest people we know. 

C+W PRODUCT PROFILES: this will be the easiest way to find specific furniture and accessories. Once our online showroom is up and running {give us a few months} you will be able to customize and purchase these items. 

MY HOUSE: all posts dedicated to the building and designing of my personal home can be found here. Everything from DIY projects to before-and-after shots to inspiration bards will be included. 

PHDesign: since the goal of this blog is to go beyond beautiful things, this is where we will provide educational pieces to help you choose what works best in your home. 

LUST LIST: from current trend boards to magazine features, this category will be a home for beautiful things that catch my eye. You might find fashion, food or even travel lust in this section, anything is fair game.  

There you have it, our new and improved road map for 2013. These categories were based on a few factors, the most important being feedback from our readers. If there is something you love about C+W but don't see listed here please let us know. We can't wait to share all of these exciting new topics with you! 

new years intentions

I am a total list girl. In fact, there are times I create lists that include tasks I've already completed just to feel the sheer satisfaction of checking a box. In years past these lists have included annual goals, or New Years Resolutions, that I set for myself. Whether it was career advancement, getting into better shape or finally tackling that one closet in my apartment/house that was a mess, I was strict about making sure these tasks were complete by December. This year feels different.

I follow many blogs regularly and not all of them are about furniture or design. The Everygirl is one of my favorite guilty pleasures and reading this post at the end of 2012 really hit home for me. The fact that we measure the success of our years based on the number of quantitative goals that we complete (or don't) seems misguided. For those of us that are goal oriented missing the mark or not finishing something we set out to do can be paralyzing. We end up creating our own hurdles.

So, 2013 is going to be different. Instead of resolutions I have given myself 6 general intentions to strive for this year. They aren't things that I can check off a list once completed but rather words that can pick me up when I stumble, remind me to celebrate when I succeed and most importantly to help me remember that I can create the life I dream of:

{Create my own happiness and fulfillment}

{Show gratitude more often and make sure those I love know it}

{Be present and learn to enjoy the ride} 

{Take more time for the things that feed my soul}

{Give back passionately}

{Organize} 

However you choose to approach the New Year I hope that you feel empowered to create the life you want to live.  In the spirit of my intentions I want to thank you all again for reading. We have a lot in store for 2013 and as you can see we've started by spiffing the place up a bit. I hope you enjoy our new "look" and continue to stay tuned as more exciting updates are announced. 

please excuse the mess

2013 is going to be an exciting year for Copper + Walnut, starting with a complete blog transformation! Thank you so much for your patience, we should be back up and running in a few days.

in the meantime, I wish all of my readers...