How to Make a Pottery Barn Inspired Flag! Welcome to the 129th Metamorphosis Monday!

Whenever the Pottery Barn catalog shows up in my mailbox, I know I'm going to be inspired. There's almost always something in there that grabs my attention and gets those creaky wheels in the brain turning. The challenge is always how to get "the look" without the cost. Right? :)

One of my last Pottery Barn inspired projects was Christmas garland for the columns of my front porch. (You'll find the full tutorial for the Pottery Barn Christmas Garland hack, HERE.)

Recently, I decided to do a complete a make-over of my screened-in porch for the 4th of July.

I had seen an awesome flag in a Pottery Barn catalog but the $129 price tag was way more than I wanted to spend. Also, the PB flag was 50" x 27", too large for what I had in mind. (Doesn't that light fixture look like a giant spider?)

So, what to do? I decided to try making my own. Before heading off to The Home Depot for supplies, I measured the area where I wanted to display the flag. I envisioned hanging it above the hutch for my 4th of July porch redo, replacing the large platter that normally lives there.
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Patriotic Porch for the 4th of July! Welcome to the 128th Metamorphosis Monday!

Happy Independence Day weekend! Hope your weekend has been going great! I'm having a little cookout tomorrow so I've been busy with preparations. Did you already have your 4th of July celebration or will you be celebrating tomorrow?

I'm excited to share big changes I've made out on the porch over the last week. I've been busting to decorate the porch in a patriotic vibe for the 4th of July ever since the porch was first added to my home 3-4 years ago. I wanted to do it in a budget friendly manner and up until this year, I hadn't been able to find what I needed to stay within the budget I had planned. This summer the stars all aligned (figuratively and literally) and the porch got a make-over for the holiday.

Hope you enjoy this transformation of the porch in celebration of Independence Day.

The Before:

AFTER:

Happy Independence Day!

This porch metamorphosis was done on a budget--total cost was just $155.00 for the complete transformation. Not too bad for a whole room redo. I'll break it down for you as we move through the changes.

Remember that little sewing project I mentioned I was working on? I made red covers for the pillows that are always on the swing throughout the summer months.

The blue and white spatterware pitcher was pulled from the upstairs family room. I filled it with big, beautiful sunflowers. This pitcher is very old so it leaks. I'll share the sneaky way I used if for the sunflowers in another post. Update: Shared how I used sunflowers in this vintage pitcher here.

Sunflowers were only $6 for the whole bunch from Harry's Farmer's Market.

Found the needlepoint flag pillow a couple of months back on eBay for $14.

Remember when I posted about making blue and white striped cording HERE? Now you know where it ended up. ;) I used the pillows that live on the swing during the summer, and just sewed new red covers. Only cost was for the fabric and the raw cording.

The red, white and blue patch-work pillows in the white wicker chairs are what really inspired and kicked off this porch transformation. I had a gift certificate for HomeGoods and when I spotted those pillows in the spring, I just loved them and knew I had the starting point for my 4th of July porch. (Tutorial for the patriotic "sundae" by the lamp is, HERE.)

I really lucked out on the white seat cushions for the swing and settee. When I bought those exact same cushions in green for the porch 3-4 years ago, I thought I did really well finding them on sale for $40 each at Pier 1. They are normally $60 each. They are heavy, super comfortable and beautifully made with a great fabric that isn't scratchy feeling like most outdoor cushions. I really like how they are tailored and finished with cording.

This year, after finding the patch-work pillows at HomeGoods, I came across the white cushions at Pier 1 and they were marked down from $60 to $15 each! I couldn't believe it! Even the sales clerk was shocked when she rang them up. She looked at me and asked, "$15???" I smiled and said, "Yep." That's when I knew the porch metamorphosis was definitely on for this year!

I already had the large striped pillows. They are the same ones I use on the swing in the fall, but just turned around to show the other side. The small red pillow is from Garden Ridge and was $6. I already had the needlepoint pillow with the harbor/patriotic scene...snagged it from the window seat in the upstairs family room.

I paid more for the smaller red chair cushions than I did the big white ones from Pier 1. They were the only solid red ones I could find and were $19 each from Garden Ridge.

I love how the sunflowers look surrounded in a sea of red, white and blue. The other plants are from the deck. The red geranium that normally lives on the shabby, white chair wasn't blooming. Fortunately, another one I had that is a deeper burgundy-ish red was blooming. The lanterns you see scattered around on the porch came from Old Time Pottery a year or two back. You may remember when I used them in 4th of July table setting.

I challenged myself to keep the color scheme on the porch strictly red, white and blue. The only items on the porch that are not in the red/white/blue color scheme are the sunflowers and the hutch. And y'all, I'm just not repainting that hutch for the weekend. ;)  (You'll find pics and info about the original painting of the hutch HERE.

Plate is from Hobby Lobby and was 50% off. I actually bought it earlier in the season before I knew I'd be re-doing the porch.

Stars were added to the Summer Breeze sign that's always on the porch. You can find a sign just like this by Googling "Summer Breeze Makes Me Feel Fine Sign." I found mine years ago at A Classy Flea, a local antique/thrift store.

This tablescape is a blend of two previous tablescapes posted for different Tablescape Thursdays HERE and HERE. You'll find the tutorial for the patriotic napkin rings, HERE.




Yesterday, I constructed the flag out of wood "sign" stakes from the Home Depot. A bundle was only $5.98. I painted the flag with acrylic paint from Michael's. I'm not sure yet if I'm going to "age" it, or leave it, as is. I wanted to let the paint cure before I did anything. I was inspired by a flag I saw in the Pottery Barn catalog for $129.

Mine isn't as big as the PB one, but it only cost $14 to make. Well, $14 and a whole days worth of labor.  Totally worth it, though.

The hutch was decked out with the china I used in this patriotic tablescape.

The little teddy bear was one of my son's when he was small. I couldn't resist adding him to the porch since he is dressed for the holiday.

I'll be happy to post a tutorial showing how I made the flag, if anyone is interested. Just leave a comment letting me know if that is something you would like to see. I took pics during the making of it in case it was something you would be interested in. Update:  You'll find the flag making tutorial HERE.

The large star on the wall near the swing came from Garden Ridge and was $20. Actually it was a little less than that but I'm rounding all the prices up for simplicity.

Another view

An evening view...

A little candlelight...

Hope you enjoyed this patriotic porch metamorphosis.

The budget breakdown:

White seat cushions for swing and sette: Pier 1, $30 ($15 each)
Red seat cushions in chairs: Garden Ridge, $40($20 each)
Needlepoint "flag" pillow on swing: eBay, $14
Large red pillows on swing: Sewed new covers, $12
Multicolored pillows on chairs: HomeGoods, Free with Gift Certificate
Small red pillow on settee: Garden Ridge $6
Needlepoint "harbor scene" pillow on sette: already had in upstairs family room
Lanterns: Old Time Pottery, already had
Large Star on wall: Garden Ridge, $20
Small stars on Summer Breeze sign: Michaels, $3 for both at 50% off
Wood flag above hutch:  Made on Saturday with sign stakes, $14
Large plate on oval wicker table: Hobby Lobby, $10 at 50% off
China on table: (Already had) Click HERE and HERE for details
Flowers: Harry's Farmer's Market, $6
China and decorations on hutch and table: Already had
Total spent: $155

Looking forward to seeing what you've been up to this week!



Metamorphosis Monday:
If you are participating in Metamorphosis Monday you will need to link up the permalink to your MM post and not your general blog address. To get your permalink, click on your post name, then just copy and paste the address that shows up in the address bar at the top of your blog, into the "url" box for InLinkz.

If you'd like to include the MM button in your post, just copy and paste the Met Monday button to your computer or grab the html code from underneath the MM logo under the "Join a Blog Party" header at the top of this blog.

In order to link up, you'll need to include a link in your MM post back to the host blog, Between Naps on the Porch so your regular readers will be able to find the Met Monday party which ensures your friends and fellow bloggers will receive lots of visits, too.

PLEASE DO NOT type in all caps...it spreads the links waaaay out. Thanks! :-)

Let's try something fun today! Please visit the person who linked before you and after you...that way everyone will get some visits. Hope you'll visit more, of course.


Welcome! Thanks for coming to the party!

You're a Grand Old Flag...Touring Main Street America!

In celebration of Independence Day, I thought we would take little tour of "Main Street America." These beautiful, historic homes all have one thing in common...they are all flying the colors! I love seeing an American flag blowing in the breeze from a wonderful old porch.



These homes are from various places in the southeast. Some are in Greenwood and Columbia, South Carolina and Asheville, NC but most are in Marietta, Rome and Roswell, Georgia. I've also added a few from a recent trip to Savannah and the Isle of Hope. See if you can spot the flags and/or patriotic bunting in each picture. Some are a little tricky to see, but they are there. Hope you enjoy the tour!

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4th of July Napkin Ring Tutorial

While we continue enjoying all the wonderful tablescapes linked yesterday for Tablescape Thursday, here's a little tutorial for the napkin ring I used in the 4th of July tablescape I shared.

This is a super easy napkin ring to make. It reminds me of beautiful patriotic bunting.

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4th of July Table Setting: Welcome to the 149th Tablescape Thursday!

The Star-Spangled Banner
Francis Scott Key




Oh, say, can you see,

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Celebrating the 4th of July: Welcome to the 147th Tablescape Thursday!

A Table Setting for the 4th of July-Independence Day

Happy Tablescape Thursday! I've been working on a couple of 4th of July table settings and having the best time! A table setting for Independence Day is so much fun to put together since it's all about celebration and love for our country.



Time to break out the Red, White and Blue!
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4th of July Craft or Party Favor

A Flag Day and 4th of July Inspired Craft:

Today is Flag Day! With today being Flag Day and the 4th of July just a few weeks away, I thought I'd share a fun little craft/party favor you could create to use as a centerpiece for your 4th of July table or as a gift for your friends.

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Celebrating Independence Day Touring Main Street America

Welcome! So glad you are here! I've had a wonderful day and evening...I've been celebrating a dear friend's birthday...out on the porch. This was one of those milestone birthdays and we had so much fun grilling out and feasting!

Happy Independence Day:
In celebration of Independence Day, I've pulled together a few pics from some of the historic home tour posts I've published in the past. Except, this time...all the homes you will be seeing are flying the colors!

Here we are, on Main Street America. The homes you'll be seeing are from various places in the southeast. Some are in Greenwood and Columbia, South Carolina, but most are in Marietta, Rome and Roswell, Georgia. See if you can spot the flags and/or patriotic bunting in each picture. Hope you enjoy this tour. Have a safe and happy 4th of July!


























































































Hope you enjoyed the tour! Have a fabulous 4th!