Repurposed Window & Hinges

Last fall, we headed out to my grandpa's farm where there is still a small, 2-room house (minus the windows and doors!), a second house that has fallen down, a barn that is kind of standing, and a couple of other out-buildings. I came across an old 8-pane window that I immediately fell in love with. At the time, I had no idea what I was going to do with it, but I knew it had to come home with me. When I found it, all 8 panes were still intact, even though you couldn't see through all the caked on dirt! Unfortunatelly, we hadn't planned very well, and by the time we made it across many bumpy dirt roads and all the way back home, all but 2 were cracked. I broke out all the cracked glass, but couldn't bear to shatter the 2 panes that survived. There's just something about the waviness of old glass that I find enchanting.

A few months ago, I finally figured out what I wanted to do with my window - turn it into a bookcase! Then, I noticed how wobbly our then-current TV stand was, so I changed my mind, and this is what I came up with:

Here's a quick (I hope!) description of how I made it.  First, I measured the outside of the window so I could figure the measurements for cutting my wood.  Using 1 x 10's (remember that a 1 x 10 really measures in at about 3/4 x 9-1/4), I made 2 boxes that had a middle shelf, as well as top and bottom supports that I place about half-way down the length of the middle shelf to help support the weight of the TV.  I joined the two boxes together using 16" strips of a 1 x 2. 

After my wonderful dad cut my wood for me, but before I put the boxes together, I painted them Country White from Wal-Mart.  I sanded the edges, added some Early American stain that my mom had on hand, and wiped the excess off with a wet paper towel.

For the back, I found a 4' x 8' sheet of Luan on sale at Mendard's for just under $10, so I traced the outside of the window onto the luan, and cut it out.  Then, I used some beadboard wallpaper (shown below), painted it the same color (without the stain) as the boxes, and screwed it onto the back.

I wanted to have the option of lifting the window out of the way, if needed, so I used a couple of old hinges that I found when we were cleaning out my great-uncle's farmhouse and buildings.  They were uber rusty, and while I wanted to keep a little bit of rust, but not have to worry about getting it on everything, I cleaned some of it off.  I rubbed the hinges with some steel wool, then soaked them in white vinegar for about 20 minutes or so.  After scrubbing them again with the steel wool and letting them dry, I sprayed them with a matte finish sealer.

I love that there is plenty of room for the TV, game consoles, games, DVD's, and photos of the boys and our nieces and nephews!  I still need to play around with decorating it, but I'm happy with it for now!

Just a few notes about the entertainment center:

*The pumpkins that are on the bottom right shelf were made by my super talented sister-in-law, Kelly.

*The left side is devoted mostly to the video games and movies.  To keep the clutter under control, and hidden, I made a little basket from fabric and burlap for the PS2 games, bought a basket from Hobby Lobby to hold the PS3 games and extra controllers, & a matching basket (also from HL) for the memory cards and all the slips of paper with cheat codes written down on them.  The smaller basket also help elevate the PS2!  The boys' movies are kept in a brown, faux leather, CD case.  The movies that the boys aren't allowed to watch are kept in the TV stand in our bedroom.  There are a few movies that J is insisting on keeping in their cases, so I still need to find some storage for them.

*That gorgeous crate is one that my mom found for me on this year's Junk Jaunt (I wasn't able to go).  I have a large, upside-down can that I draped some burlap over, then put a big crock on top with flowers in it to help hide the plug in on that wall.  The crock is one of several that I brought home from Faye's farm.  This is also where we are storing some movies for now.

*If you have any questions, please feel free to ask!

And last, but not least, see those little fabric pumpkins in my header?  I'm working on a pattern for them that I hope to get up soon.  Being sick and putting in new floors has put me behind on my to-do list, but I'm slowly making progress.

Linking to this party, so check out all the other fun finds and ideas!  Also linking to Twice Owned Tuesday Party here: