Today begins my final three-week attempt to get as much done in our bedroom as possible before I take my year-end break. I haven’t done much in the last four days. Just as I promised, I headed out on Thursday (which was Thanksgiving Day here in the US) to rest and re-energize for the last three weeks. But the only thing I wanted to do was finish the ceramic bird arrangement on the long bedroom wall.
I bought these ceramic birds on Amazon and I’ve had some of them for a few years. They hung on a wall in our living room to the right of the paneled opening between the living room and kitchen.
So when I was thinking about what to do on that long wall in the bedroom, I decided to steal those birds from the living room and add a few more (well…much more) to reach a much larger agreement. I went from 12 birds in the living room to 48 birds in the bedroom.
I tested a few arrangements using my photo editing software and narrowed it down to two – an organic arrangement and another symmetrical arrangement. Much to my surprise, I chose the organic arrangement. And then I cut out 48 paper birds, stuck them on the wall, and then tweaked the design until it was exactly how I wanted it.
This allowed me to place the nails precisely so I didn’t end up with random nail holes in my grasscloth wallpaper.
I hung two of the ceramic birds on the wall and then almost freaked out because I’m not sure I would like the 3D aspect of the arrangement on that wall. I almost changed course and decided to mount them on the headboard wall and wrap them through the curtains on the side walls.
But after living on the wall with these two birds for a day, I decided that I really liked their 3D appearance from this perspective, so I decided to move on.
And I’m so glad I did because this bird wall turned out even better than I imagined. I realize that people with bird phobias could have a panic attack if they entered our bedroom. When I show people our house in real life, I have to warn them that if they have a phobia of birds, they might want to avoid our bedroom or avert their eyes when they walk past that wall.
But you all know me. I can’t get enough birds. I would cover everything in our house with birds, trees, and flowers if I could get away with it. So that’s definitely “me.”
I’ve always loved unusual “works of art” and things that have a dimensional quality, so I’m pretty excited to see the result.
I like that it’s unexpected and not just another gallery wall.
I’m also very aware that something like this isn’t for everyone. And that’s okay.
And in the end, what I was most worried about – the 3D aspect of the bird wall from this particular angle – turned out to be one of my favorite aspects. I like that it attracts attention, arouses curiosity and draws the person in so they have a better view of the wall.
So the project is completed. I was so nervous about drilling so many nail holes in the wall, but I got them all in the right place on the first try. I also removed a few nails to see how visible the nail holes are, but they are not visible at all. However, I didn’t use the nails that came with the birds. They were exaggerated and way too big. I used some much smaller nails that I had on hand so they caused less damage and left much smaller holes in the wall.
I probably won’t finish the entire bedroom suite in the next three weeks, but I think I can finish most of it. I’m excited to see how much I can get done by the end of the year. I would be happy if we could move in before the end of the year, although I still have a few projects to complete at the start of the new year.
