Not being particularly gifted in DIY home improvement activities we didn’t rush at the idea of creating a design wall. I did my usual wifey trick of dropping the idea onto my husband’s radar and then giving time for it to move from the periphery to the centre of his screen (so to speak)! After studying the quilt hanging arrangements shown in photos on various blogs and Facebook pages I decided the IKEA Dignitet wire curtain hanging system was the way to go. The system looks fairly unobtrusive and would not be out of place when my sewing room becomes the guest room – in fact I’ll be able to hang a quilt above the head of the sofa bed to make the place look more homey 🙂
I found a helpful tutorial on You Tube to fill in the gaps left by the rather brief instructions that came with the curtain wire pack. All went well until it was time to cut the cable to the correct length. None of our pliers or cutters would cut cleanly through the many strands of wire that made up the cable and despite borrowing a more substantial pair of cutters we didn’t manage a clean cut so the ends of the cable splayed out *groan* (please take a look at Colleen’s advice on how to cut wire cable cleanly in the comments below – no special tools required). It took more than half an hour of coaxing (no cursing), considerable pondering, a bit of snipping and deep breathing to finally get the battered end of the cable into the spindle and the screws tightened. But the result looks just fine 🙂 Now I’m on the lookout for some of that fuzzy backed pvc table covering to hang from the cable as a removable design wall.
On a personal note the past few weeks have been a bit of a whirl. Two weekends ago we had both our boys at home and our lovely daughter and Son-in-law visiting. This week husband and I are finding our way to being ‘just the two of us’ after 26 years of sharing our home with one or more of our children – having taken youngest son to university on Saturday and having waved goodbye to older son on Monday as he sets out on training for a new career. So, we are adjusting to some big changes in our family and whilst doing our best to prepare our children for their new beginnings also find ourselves at the beginning of a new phase in our lives.Duncan and I celebrated our 29th wedding anniversary on Monday and were treated to a meal out in the restaurant where our wedding reception was held – lots of happy memories shared and an opportunity to contemplate the future. It is very reassuring and uplifting to know that all these changes and the future are God’s plan for us and we can confidently entrust our children to His care – not necessarily to always be happy but always to be faithfully loved by their Heavenly Father.
Allison
Linking with Lorna for Let’s Bee Social! Click the link and take a look at Lorna’s new designs for a farm animal quilt.
I have Dignitet on a downstairs wall where I hang the kids school work and other projects. I think that’s the same video tutorial that I found and it sounds like we had similar struggles installing it. I love it as your design wall solution. A great way to be able to hang a decorative quilt when your room becomes the guest room. Happy Anniversary! And best wishes transitioning to this new phase of life.
Thank you Sarah. I think that hi-lights one of the main problems with DIY – it is only really possible if your toolbox is full of equipment you only use once in a blue moon!
Congratulations on your anniversary and on the new start to your life together. It is a little different to be by yourselves, if only in the amount of food eaten!
I love your idea for a hanging design wall, Allison. And the quilt you have hanging there is beautiful. Congratulations on 29 years!
Thank you Nancy! I hope your husband is continuing to make a steady recovery, do you feel ‘back to normal’ yet? |  | | | Allison Reidabout.me/allisonreid | | |
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Hi Allison, Congratulations on your anniversary !
You are going to love that design wall ! It looks good and wide.
I’m not going to watch the video so I hope I’m not repeating anything in it. I realize that this info is after the fact but I can’t help myself 😉 …The way I would go about cutting that cable is as follows… most importantly – wrap the cable where you intend cutting it with a few wraps of that black electrical tape – nice and tight so that the the cut will be centred in the tape wraps but not too bulky. Then take those cutters and put them back in the tool box. Pick up a good chisel and hammer. Set the cable against a solid piece of steel and put your chisel in the middle of the tape wraps where you want the cut and give the chisel a couple of good whacks with the hammer – you’ll have a good clean cut and the electrical tape will keep both ends of the cable from unwinding.