We did this in our kitchen to brighten it up and personalize it a little. Both Kay and I love trees and nature, and so when it came to decorating our kitchen and make it unique, this is what we came up with!
The branches came from a wild fig tree that had outgrown the neighbor’s back yard. I split one very heavy round branch down the middle to create two half-rounds with flat insides that would fit flush against a wall. I mounted these end to end using rawl bolts.
The large vertical branch from which the light is suspended is mounted against the wall at the base also with 3 rawl bolts, and the top end is fixed to the ceiling beam by two small brass hooks for added support. That piece also has a few hooks on it for hanging things like kitchen towels or the wire basket you can see in the photo below. Above the door, there’s another piece of branch mounted at the top of the door post to look like part of a branch continuing from the same base.
All the wood is painted with brown acrylic art paint to seal it, but I suppose if you want, you could use varnish or another clear sealer.
Afterwards, I sketched and painted the rest of the tree mural on the wall itself, making it look like two large trees just intruding into the kitchen space, their branches overlapping each other into the distance! The second tree close to the window also has a protruding section of stump holding a length of shelf for display items, and also hooks for holding miscellaneous items.
The light fitting was a ratty old antique brass lamp suspended from the tip of the overhanging branch, fitted with a light fitting and an LED bulb. The power wire runs down the top and back of the branch to the power point.
We love it – what do you think?
Pictures included – enjoy!
Have a DIY day!
Cheers!
This website is about Christina Engela’s inspiring and innovative DIY projects. Follow Innovation DIY on Facebook.
To view her main website, visit Christina Engela – Author. To view Christina’s previous human rights advocacy work, visit Sour Grapes: The Fruit Of Ignorance. You can also visit Our Ghost Encounters, a website about the paranormal.
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