How to make a ladder with hanging baskets

I hope you all had a good weekend. Mine wasn’t so great. I felt very frustrated.

I have a number of new followers over the past few months and rather than direct you to a lot of posts, let me just quickly bring you up to date.

My foot problems started about fifteen years ago.  Over those years I had four surgical hospital trips but five different procedures. The last one was four years ago after four years of limping. That surgery was particularly difficult as a tendon in my leg had to be clipped so the tendon would stretch again. I’ve worn a surgical boot an awful lot!

As you also know, I walk forty minutes every day. But you know what I’m going to say, don’t you?

I haven’t been able to go for my walk for about three days and I’m not happy about it. I feel absolutely out of sorts if I don’t.

But I had to do something. I’m tired of lying on the sofa and icing my foot so I decided to venture out to Hobby Lobby to look around. Boy, do they have a lot of new stuff!!! I mean, it’s overwhelmingly.

There are three areas in our home where I think I need a little something and haven’t come up with any ideas so I needed some inspiration.

I’ve never been one to buy a room full of matching furniture. In fact, I absolutely hate matchy-matchy anything. And I really hate buying a whole “look”. So after walking around for what seemed hours (it was maybe twenty minutes), and everything starting to look the same, and my foot starting to throb, I’d had it. I didn’t buy anything.

I mean how many signs can a person use anyway before one’s house starts to look like an advertisement?

How many mass-produced items can you buy without making your home look just like everyone else’s?

And you know the farmhouse look that is so popular? That’s one thing I don’t have to artificially create? Who knew my old farmhouse would be so fashionable someday?

I just have a thing about originality and creativity. I don’t mind buying something new but only if I can use it in a different way. And I almost always prefer making my own wall art, changing up my furniture with paint, and dumpster diving. But I did find a sign I want to copy only I will make it vertical. I thought this was really cute. I always have a pile of lumber in the garage that my husband is threatening to throw away. (Actually, he does sometimes but then I just find more. Don’t you think he’d have that figured out by now?

For example, ladder shelves are everywhere but I just had to make my own. Apparently, WP has changed their app and when I tried to download a picture there was no option to not publish it so one picture already went out yesterday by mistake. Anyway, this piece I’m showing you today started off as a tall free-standing picture frame. My son bought it for me many years ago. It was exactly the right size for some metal baskets that have been sitting in the shed for as many years.

I cut and sanded pallet boards and then nailed them on top of the existing frame after playing around with the placement. I chose various shades of pallet boards to cut from. (The pictures are still there but can be removed from the back.)

Then I decided on the placement of the baskets and hammered nails at the appropriate places. I may change them out with cup hooks later. I painted the baskets black. I have collected vintage linen for years and have some great pieces. I think the most I paid was five dollars. They are very hard to find now and when you do, they are expensive.

Here is the finished product. I am pleased with it because you can’t buy it at Hobby Lobby! If you look at the bottom of the right-sided curtain you will see what looks like a hem that has come undone. It’s not. After painting the dining room white about four years ago, I ditched the curtains as they were red. The red curtains were stunning, I might add. But I’m going a different direction.

Anyway, some friends were over a couple of weeks ago and the wife asked why I had curtain rods up with no curtains. Long story short, I’ve tried. I’ve hated everything I’ve tried until I found this fabric. Because it’s an old house the floors are uneven, I have to pin each panel separately before I hem it. So this is how far I’ve come. There will be more about me and curtains in a later post.

As you can see, I”ve added some antique hardware. That the plan for above and between the baskets.  I see these pieces are not an equal distance apart. Will have to change that.

(By the way, I do love Hobby Lobby for lots of reasons. I just think new should be mixed with the old.)

Anyway, I know I started off talking about feet and ended up with a DIY. Who knew?

Hope you have a good day and God bless.