Creative Concealment

What a super idea! Melissa at The Inspired Room shared lots of tips and ideas on how to conceal the "less than flattering" areas of our homes, and she invited readers to share their own "creative concealments." Boy, am I familiar with that process because I've got lots of flaws to hide in my house!!!

We'll start in the family room...


This isn't a bad view... especially when you realize this could be the view....


Yup, this wall - visible from the kitchen, dining room, and family room - was the only wall for the circuit breaker box when we had the family room put on almost 20 years ago; the mirror does double duty, both hiding the ugly breaker box and providing a nice view of the deck from inside the house. (And I thought I was the only one concealing a circuit breaker box until I read Cindy's "creative concealment" blog post the other day!)


Just today we moved mirrors around. The larger mirror that used to hang here is now in the entryway.... But oh, dear, this will never do... Look what I just noticed - the nasty gold hanger/hook on the mirror shows, and it is ugly!



And then I had an "aha" moment....


... I went into my old 'clip earring' stash and found a sweet little flower shaped earring to sit on top of the mirror - right in front of the ugly gold hanger...


Much better!!! Okay, on to the living room....


When we (hubby) made the new fireplace surround (which, in and of itself, hides the ugly beige 80's brick underneath), we (I) didn't take into account one minor detail... the flue knob. Since hubby insisted on cutting a big hole to access it, I had to get creative... So see that little framed painting just above the fireplace screen?


Here's a closer look so you don't have to squint so much... Well, this is the ugly little secret hidden behind that miniature masterpiece:


{{{shudder}}}....

And finally, the kitchen... When I painted my dark "fake wood" 1980's cabinets a creamy white, I thought it would be nice for one cabinet to have glass or Plexi inserts... I mean, heck, I could keep at least one cabinet neat and tidy, right?... So when we took off all the cabinet doors for painting, I gave hubby the two I wanted 'altered'...

....Well, after hubby cut out the center panels, I realized that this was the cabinet that had the center shelf that looks like an old swayback horse! I suppose we could have gone out and bought another shelf, but I decided to give the kitchen a little "cottage" influence instead...


... so "old swayback" is now hidden behind two fabric panels... Mission accomplished!

I have lots of other concealed 'flaws' but I'll save them for a later post as I've already rambled on too long! Melissa has a link to all the bloggers who have posted their own "creative concealments" so be sure to visit her blog and check them all out!!! There are some great ones!

Donna