southern fried gal

It’s hard to change when you adore something you already have and it only gets air time a few weeks out of the year. I’ve definitely gotten my money’s worth out of this door bucket project. But I decided this year it was time to look for something new.

And so I did. I started out in the neighborhoods around town. This door caught my eye right away. I love the bright pop of color in the stitching around the heart. Can you believe this is just brown paper (as in grocery bag or postal paper)? 

This look is simple to recreate . First cut two identical heart shapes out of brown paper. Paint them red and allow to thoroughly dry. Next glue the edges together beginning at the top to about 3/4 of the way down. Stuff tissue paper into the pocket to the desired fullness. Then glue the rest of the hearts together. For a finishing touch, you can a decorative stitch around the edges with a large needle OR just paint the stitches on. Of course this home has a large porch to keep it out of the elements.

I was looking through pictures for inspiration and came across the wreaths my friend Bridget used at Christmas. This could easily pass for Valentine’s day just as it is or you can change it up. Instead of green, paint the grapevine wreath white with the red roses. or vice versa. It would be cute with bright pops of color, too – use your imagination! Here’s a tutorial for making burlap roses – super easy!

Next I hit up the blogs for inspiration. I didn’t have to look far to find another wreath to love. This burlap wreath reminds me of the Christmas door I did with burlap a couple of years ago. LOVE!. Fellow Arkansas Blogger, Amanda @ My Heart’s Desire has a fantastic tutorial on how to make this wreath. 

Another great resource for inspiration is Pinterest. My friend Shea found this cutie on Etsy. It looks like this one already sold but it would be super easy to DIY. 

The X form can be made from branches you collect around the yard and wire together in the center with florist wire. Hot Glue pieces of red berry garland to the branches OR to simplify spray the sticks with red paint. The O is a wreath covered in pink berry garland and could also be as simple as a grapevine garland painted pink. Wire them together with florist wire and dangle from a white floppy ribbon. Super cute!

So – after finding all this fabulous inspiration what did I do? I took the lazy route. I found this cute heart bucket made from rusty metal, wire and nails on half price at a local boutique. The price was right. The effort was perfect (drop from a red ribbon on the door). It even has a little pocket in the top for Valentine’s (hint hint to any peeps who want to make my day).