Saturday, June 26, 2010

Jen's Steamy DIY Dining Room

Allison sent me to this dining room about an hour before Jen (of the infamous Cake Wrecks), the creator, dropped me a line.



I love the details the most:

These are handmade buttons -- from pennies! Jen has a whole post about how she made them. I love how they look.

She steampunked a gumball machine with bronze and aged copper paint, and filled it with ceramic number balls (I have the corresponding letter balls, but no place nearly as neat to put them...).

Do you like how the light reflects through the glass onto the ceiling? I sure do.

I had to laugh at these drawer pulls -- I've been searching around for a "bin pull + label" handle for a while, and have only found one, which wasn't quite right. Jen just used her existing bin pulls and added label holders meant for scrapbooking -- 5 for $3! The labels themselves with their spidery writing are with a free font called Schoon.

Good job, Jen. Definitely send us an update if you ever settle on the perfect chandelier...
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7 comments:

  1. KatJune 26, 2010 at 11:45 AM

    I can't believe I had never heard of Steampunk before! I love it and am starting to see if i really look for it. i love your blog, it has been teaching me so much. I have a few photo's of things that I was wondering if they fit into Steampunk definition, can I email them to you? I am renovating a kitchen and bathroom right now and would love to "Steampunk" the bathroom.
    http://kat-kathleenjackson.blogspot.com

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  2. Ekio LocatiareJune 28, 2010 at 3:23 PM

    He he! Great to see Jen's dining room on here as If I remember correctly I found your blog through her's!

    I'm uber jealous of her craftieness and penny buttons.

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  3. LynneJune 28, 2010 at 7:09 PM

    Really charming, Jen! Do you have other rooms you've used steampunk decor in? If so, hope you'll send photos!

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  4. KalaniJune 29, 2010 at 7:51 PM

    This is so cool-- two of my favorite blogs, together at last :) Jen's dining room is awesome and inspiring.

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  5. Eric HartJuly 4, 2010 at 5:42 PM

    Van Dyke's Restorers carries some bin pull/label holder hardware.
    http://www.vandykes.com/

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  6. ChrisFebruary 14, 2011 at 7:48 PM

    For drawer pulls with built-in labels, check out Lee Valley Tools, one of my happy places.

    Here's some Victorian reproductions (really cheap too):

    Cast Pewter Drawer Pulls

    ...and here's some slightly more modern (like 1930's or so, some of them?) pulls:

    Brass Drawer Pulls

    If I managed to mess up the links, just go to leevalley.ca and look under Hardware, then Handles & Pulls. There's an American site too, so you don't have to pay extra shipping to get it across the border.

    Thanks for a very entertaining site! :D

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  7. CaroleFebruary 21, 2011 at 11:22 AM

    Love the gumball machine! Makes me regret getting rid of mine.

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