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You are here: Home / art / Something Old, Re-Used

Something Old, Re-Used

December 23, 2009 by ~The South Dakota Cowgirl~ 8 Comments

IMG_9736Something borrowed, something blue…Or however it goes. I’m not getting married, so don’t anybody get your feathers all ruffled; speaking of feathers I should take some pictures of my chickens and their fluffiness. They’re so cute. That is, if a chicken can be cute. The roosters are looking yummy. I really think I might have to eat one or two of them. I digress. This post isn’t about chickens. Or about the fact that it’s snowing outside and I have more laundry to do than you can shake a stick at; or about the fact that I haven’t got all the wrapping done, and there’s a pretty good chance we’ll be stuck at the house on Christmas Eve, instead of going to Uncle Leo’s and Aunt Lois’ house (a Ducheneaux tradition for the last 47 years- if they make this one). By the way, Uncle Leo isn’t my real Uncle, he’s Zach’s, and only through marrying Granny’s sister, Lois. But this post, really is about Uncle Leo. Sort of. In a round-about way. Uncle Leo is one of my all-time favorite Uncles. I can claim him, right? Leo is just one of the nicest people you’ll ever meet; he’s kind and he’s handy and apparently, he’s a good listener.  I mentioned to him this spring that Zach and I were looking for an old door because I wanted one so that I could make a headboard out of it. And low and behold, when we shipped his calves out this fall, we get to his house, and what do we find, but an old door. It’s something like 80+ years old, and has about 4 different colors of paint on it; is beautifully crackled and speckled and otherwise torn up; it even has a couple bullets in it.

I’ve been waiting for this time of year- when the days are short, and the colts are weaned and the cows pretty much take care of themselves (ok, so we’ll be feeding them this weekend during ensuing blizzard). There’s not a lot to do, so home-improvement projects get the limelight!  And sometimes (usually) I don’t even have to ask my cowboy to do them. He just does them. Because he rocks, and I’m lucky like that.

Two days ago, I walked into, Bud’s shop (Bud is the baby of Zach’s family), to find, my door, cut into 3 pieces. I must admit I almost freaked out, because I planned to use the door whole, but Zach, he had different ideas. The door was a raised panel door, and had four panels- two ran about 2/3 of the length, the other two the other 1/3. He decided that since it wasn’t symmetrical and we only have a queen sized bed that he would cut the door and just use the top two thirds as the headboard. He was going to use the other third as part of the headboard but make them usable side-tables that would fold up if you needed them and down if you didn’t. I must admit, that since I wasn’t in on the planning of this, I was skeptical, though he did consult me from time to time on options and such. I really should learn to trust him. After all he did build this, and this, and this, and they turned out great. He loves to make old things new, and I love rustic, western eclectic things, as evidenced here.

Below is ultimately what he came up with. He trimmed the door in 80 year old beadboard. This is also what the door looked like, when it was given to us. I just sealed it up with a spray acrylic sealer because I really liked it the way it is. What do y’all think of it?

[flickrset id=”72157622933997841″ thumbnail=”square” overlay=”true” size=”large”]

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Filed Under: art, decorating, family, life Tagged With: decorating and design, life, Western Lifestyle

About ~The South Dakota Cowgirl~

Jenn Zeller is the creative mind and boss lady behind The South Dakota Cowgirl. She is an aspiring horsewoman, photographer, brilliant social media strategist and lover of all things western.

After a brief career in the investment world to support her horse habit (and satisfy her mother, who told her she had to have a “real” job after graduating college), she finally took the leap and stepped away from a regular income; trading the business suit once and for all for cowgirl boots, a hat, and jeans. She has not looked back.

When Jenn first moved to The DX Ranch on the South Dakota plains, she never imagined she’d find herself behind a camera lens capturing an authentic perspective of ranching, and sharing it with others. Jenn has always been called to artistry, and uses music, writing, images, home improvement, and her first true love of horses to express her ranching passion.

Horses are the constant thread and much of her work centers around using her unique style of writing to share her horsemanship journey with others in publications such as CavvySavvy, the AQHA Ranching Blog, the West River Eagle, the family ranch website, and her own website.

Using photography to illustrate her stories has created other opportunities -- Jenn’s brand “The South Dakota Cowgirl” has grown to the level of social media “Influencer”. This notoriety has led to work with Duluth Trading Company, Budweiser, Wyoming Tourism, Vice, Circle Z Ranch and Art of the Cowgirl, to name a few. She also serves as a brand ambassador for Woodchuck USA, Arenus Equine Health, Triple Crown Feed and Just Strong fitness apparel. Her photography has been featured by Instagram, Apple, TIME Magazine, The Huffington Post, and Oprah Magazine. Jenn’s work has been published internationally, has been seen in several books and has graced the covers of several magazines.

Jenn became a social media influencer by accident when she started to explore Instagram as a way to share her life on the ranch with folks that don’t get to experience it. It’s grown into an incredible platform that she uses to empower women, create an environment for self improvement and share life on the ranch.

When she’s not working, she loves to drink coffee, play with her naughty border collie named Copper, start ranch colts, and run about the country chasing cans. Her mother still thinks she doesn’t have a “real” job.

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Comments

  1. Tana says

    December 23, 2009 at 4:05 pm

    I love it. I also have been searching for that just right old door!

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  2. The Wife says

    December 23, 2009 at 4:52 pm

    Very cool! We need a headboard. Might have to steal your idea! I love it just the way it is too. Nothing better than old stuff!

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  3. Kate says

    December 23, 2009 at 6:08 pm

    What a great idea!

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  4. Maureen@IslandRoar says

    December 23, 2009 at 6:12 pm

    What an amazing idea!
    You two are quite the creative pair.

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  5. Autumn Beck says

    December 23, 2009 at 10:32 pm

    Jen, that’s gorgeous! Come to Kerrville and make me one! Our master bedroom is bare and ugly.

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  6. Amy (Tatum's Mommy) says

    December 24, 2009 at 12:46 am

    Ooooo I love it!

    1. I’m starting my list of things your Zach can do when you guys get down to see us.

    2. You SO LUCKED OUT on the awesome-ness of the door… so old and the PERFECT color for your green walls. It’s beautiful!

    3. The side tables are genius. Way to use the entire door so practically! 🙂

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  7. Weekend Cowgirl says

    December 24, 2009 at 8:01 am

    My friend and I found a wonderful old door in Montana and used it as a headboard. It had that great patina that yours has. Very beautiful…

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  8. Michele says

    December 24, 2009 at 9:38 am

    I would have probably cried had I found the door cut up but he done good. Very clever guy you got there. Can Uncle Leo find me one of those doors? I’d like a new coffee table and some end tables.

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