A Tale of Two Cornices (and procrastination)

We are approaching the three year mark of living in our house and I fiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiinallllly got around to fixin' up (that's Texas speak, y'all) my breakfast room.  Be patient with me because this redo starts eight (yes, 8) years ago...

Back in those days we were sans kids (sighing and remembering the good ole days) and thought we were SO busy.  Whatev.  If I only knew...I would have taken WAY more naps.  Anyway, on a Saturday morning the hubby and I decided to wake before the afternoon and hit some garage sales.  Who knows what possessed us.  We found a couple of antique-y looking real wood pieces of furniture.  We spent a whopping $35 and discussed all the cool ways we'd paint them...blah, blee, blah.  Of course, we got so busy (seriously, WHAT were we busy doing???  oh yeah, drinking, and brunching, and sleeping) and the furniture stayed up in a room we never went in. 

Then, I got knocked up, we moved overseas, and those little gems didn't make the container cut.  They hung out in storage here until almost three years ago when we moved back.  After all the settling in and crap, I decided I was ready to paint.  There was a perfect spot in the house and so I started sanding.  This step was pre-pinterest and pre-Krissy discovery of little mouse sander.  Yes, this fool was hand sanding.  Idiot, I know.  If only...

The process was moving along smoothly, until, surprise!  Preggers again.  Between the morning sickness and kid #1, no dice. 

I know they say women nag, but the amount of 'comments' from husband about the unfinished piece in the garage would put many a nagger to shame.  Late last summer I finished sanding and commenced the quest for the perfect paint color.  I could picture what I wanted, but after two failed attempts (and this was hand painting), I was frustrated.  My Pinterest exposure had steadily increased and I had read numerous blog entries and how to's about spray painting furniture.  I figured I didn't have anything to lose at this point, but was still stymied about color.  I wanted a blueish green, but never found the right shade.  But, I did find aqua spray paint.  I LOVED it!  It was bright and exactly how I envisioned it. 

But, it did not look good where I had originally planned for it to go.  After a little disappointment and a lot of alcohol, I pulled myself out of the bottle and moved the little sideboard to a corner in the breakfast room.  Perfect.  And, it wasn't just the tequila talking. 

If you're still reading, you rock (and are probably a little crazy).  I'm getting to the point, but I wanted you how to see the 'big picture'. 

As another 'project' (my husband is thrilled when I have redecorating ideas), I had been searching for fabric ideas to make cornices in the breakfast room.  Once the aqua sideboard found its new home, I knew immediately that I wanted aqua/orange fabric for the cornices. 

Two weeks ago, after tireless online searching, I came across a pattern I loved at Hancock.  It's Top Drawer in case you're interested. 

See, good reader, you hung in there and now you get your treat.  Here's the play by play on how to make a super cheap, super cute cornice.  This is the pinspiration.  I liked the general idea of this, but added some modifications.  I didn't like the two pieces covered separately (the long piece and side piece) and I didn't think I needed to use wood.  On another pin I saw someone use insulation board for something (honestly can't remember what) and decided to try that.  Check out the steps below with the pics...please leave a comment and let me know what you think.  I really do want this to be interactive!

Supplies - spray adhesive, insulation board 8'x4', foam batting, hot glue gun, L brackets, screwdriver, fabric, exacto knife, spray paint primer**

Step 1 - measure how long you want the cornice to be and how far out you'd like it to come (I went with 4" out from the wall and just a couple inches past the window on each side).

Step 2 - mark your insulation board and use the exacto knife to cut (I scored it and then you can bend it and it pops apart).

Step 3 - spray paint prime the pieces (my fabric was light, so I thought the pink might show through).

Step 4 - Attach the side pieces to the main piece with hot glue and the L brackets.  I put a strip of hot glue on the bottom of each side piece, then hot glued the brackets on. 



Step 5 - It should now look like this...

Step 6 - Use the spray adhesive and spray the sides you are going to cover with the batting, then lay the cornice on the batting.  Spray some more on the back of the cornice and wrap the batting around the edges and smooth down.  Be careful with this step because if it's lumpy or uneven, it will show up after you cover with fabric.

Step 7 - I did two layers of batting.  You can choose how thick you want it.
Step 8 - Cover with fabric.  I laid the cornice front side down on to the fabric and arranged it so the pattern was how I wanted it.  Starting in the middle, I glued one section down.  Then I glued the section across down and worked toward the edges.

Step 9 - At the ends, I kind of gathered and pulled, then glued where the corners are.  You can see a little bit of wrinkle, but it's much better than two completely separate pieces. 

ARE YOU READY?  This is the whole enchilada.....

I took this picture just before my son's birthday party; we don't normally have four dozen cupcakes sitting around!  Here's a close-up of the longer cornice.

I used skinny L brackets to attach the side pieces to the long piece and wider L brackets to attach to the wall.  I screwed in the brackets to the wall, then fit the cornice over the brackets and screwed the cornice into the bracket.  The screws hold it because the foam board is so light. 

I am just so very happy with how it all turned out.  I love browns and grays and finally am branching out to add some color.  The aqua sideboard started it all!  Let me know if you try a cornice and how it turns out!  It's ok if it takes a few years; I won't judge you!