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The plan for this piece was to go simple and classic so that it can last through wall color and accessory changes and still blend with the young teen's bedroom. Here's the before...there was some additional significant veneer damage on the sides that I needed to repair before priming and painting. After painting the three pieces in antique white, I lightly distressed it; focusing solely on the decorative wood appliques. I shared on Instagram how to easily remove layers and layers of old paint by simply boiling the hardware in water and rubbing it off.

I was given several inspiration pictures to work with and this is what I came up with; a classic looking piece done in modern grays with minimal distressing. Here is the before (and I should have taken a couple of closeups as the real damage was on the bottom brace where a dog had severely chewed it). After patching and building up the damage, I painted the piece in a mid tone true gray. I lightly distressed it and glazed it in a deep charcoal wash that I created from watered down paint.

The backstory to this picture is that I actually took it a few Halloweens ago at the Sleepy Hollow Cemetery in New York. It looks just like a painting and I couldn't be happier with the texture, clarity and color of it. The bonus is that I was able to upload, choose my size/type and frame all from my phone. However, my youngest has claimed it for his room, which actually makes me incredibly happy since he appreciates the beauty in it too.

They are great to fill a tree on a budget and come from places like Walmart and craft stores. I simply secured them into embroidery hoops from the craft store and tucked them into sparse areas on my tree. Lastly, we bought a huge bunch of dried eucalyptus (very affordable with a coupon from a craft store) and tucked those into the tree instead of traditional holiday picks. It's cost effective as I can use it all year, and it gives the tree a really natural, earthy vibe without being overly Christmas.