What can I craft this Tuesday? An Upcycled Plant Stand

A really long time ago, at least it feels like forever ago, I mentioned that I had an old soda crate that I planned to do something with. Well, I'm proud to say that after finally getting my act together, it's now a plant stand for my fire place. I know, I know. You must be thinking that sounds odd. You'd have to understand that the fireplaces in my apartment are non-working. Thankfully, I was able to convince my parents they should stay open and not boarded up. I digress...back to the project!

I told you before that I found this in my parents' basement. It's a treasure trove - I swear. It probably would've ended up in the burn pile eventually. But I saved it, much like the hoarder I'll eventually become. Here's what it looked like before. Wonderful right? 

Did you see what appears to be an oil stain? Yea, I have no idea where that came from. My first step to resuscitate this bad boy was to wipe it down and start sanding. I mentioned that I'll be sanding with a face mask from now, remember. That's because I probably will have black lung from layers of dirt and grime that I'll sand off my upcycled pieces.

After I sanded this bad boy, I stopped. For about three weeks. I knew I wanted to put casters on it, though for the life of me I couldn't find the right ones. I didn't want the cheap plastic ones. I sure didn't want the rubber ones. There were these great cast iron ones at home depot but they were entirely too large for my little soda crate. Good 'ol Amazon had them though. When they arrived last week I was so excited I nearly peed myself. (Not really, but I was that excited).

First, I had to ask my mom two questions. When and where. I'm almost ashamed that I didn't know it but my grandfather died a week before my parents' wedding, so I don't know much about my maternal grandfather. What I now know is he was born in 1929 and in Redhook, NY. I wanted to pay tribute to him because I think it means a lot to my Nana. At 83 she's still alive and kicking - some 30 years after her husband died. 

So, I used MS Word to print the information on paper, painstakingly cut out each letter, spray glued it to the crate, and then used it as a stencil to print on it. It didn't come out perfect but I think it's just the right mix of character. 

I know I probably should have put "b. 1929" I just wasn't feelin' it. Next, I brought out those beautiful casters and screwed them babies on! Once I got a fully juiced battery that is. Harder to come by than you'd imagine. I'm just glad I had my handy husband around.

They're beautiful right? Perfect, I tell you, perfect. I used 1/2" sheet metal screws to attach them to the bottom. Once the paint dried, I added the crate to the fireplace in my bedroom, added some plants, and ta-da! It's better than the blanket basket I had. 

I showed my Nana tonight and I think she really liked it. It let's her know that he won't be forgotten in this next generation.

What have you been working on lately? Have you ever done something to remind you of someone or something?