Diy Old Window Frame Decorating Ideas

I am back again this year joining my fellow blogger friends as part of the At Home DIY Challenge. We will have a different theme every month and this month I am excited to share with you an upcycled project: An old window frame decorating idea! As some of you may know I am a big fan of anything that has to do with thrift store/vintage items that can be used or repurposed in a new way!

A green chippy painted window frame laying on a dry brushed tabletop

I've had this vintage window frame for over a year now, I found it for $12 at a resale store and it was too good of a steal to pass up. I mean look at that chippy green paint! When I bought it I knew I wanted to add something to the glass. It took me a while to decide but once I received these colored ink transfer I knew I had found my project.

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Supplies Needed to Upcycle an Old Window Frame

Old window frame
Furniture & Cabinetry Cleaner
Window Cleaner
Colored Ink Transfers
Household spoon

Step one was to clean the glass and wood of the frame. It had been sitting in our garage since I bought it and it had acquired a nice layer of dust. I used my favorite furniture cleaner to get the dust and grease off of the wood. I didn't scrub as I wasn't sure if the wood had lead paint. I just lightly removed the dust.

Disclaimer: When buying old window frames you may want to check for lead paint, there are many DIY kits out there that can tell you if lead is present. Because I knew that I would not be sanding this frame and that my kids are not babies anymore and wouldn't be trying to chew on it I left it as is.

A silver can of furniture cleaner sitting on a glass window frame with a white rag laying behind the cleaner

A close up picture of a vintage window with chippy green paint

A close up of old vintage wood window pane with chippy green paint

After the glass and wood had been cleaned I laid out the sheet of ink transfers to choose the specific transfers I wanted to apply to the window. These sheets have a loose paper backing and you can cut out the designs you want to use and save the rest for later. I ended up wanting to only use flower transfers for this piece.

A sheet of colored ink flowers as viewed from above

A close up of a red iris flower and leaf colored ink transfer

Cut out eat transfers laying on the glass of an old window frame

After cutting out the flower transfers I wanted to use I played around with different ways to layout the flowers on the glass until I found the version I liked the best.

In order to apply the ink transfer, you have to remove the paper backing and I used some pieces of painters tape to keep the design in place. The ink transfers will come with a wood stick for transferring the design but I prefer to use a metal spoon from the kitchen to rub the transfer onto the surface.

A view from above of an ink transfer taped onto a piece of glass using green painters tape

A close up of a flower ink transfer being rubbed with the back of a household spoon

The trick is to make sure you rub the edges really well otherwise they will start peeling up when you try to remove the transfer paper.

A close up picture of someone's hand removing transfer paper from an inked flower

A close up of a pink rose and leaves that has been transferred onto a glass window pane

A close up of an old window pane with chippy green paint and pink flowers that are rub on ink transfers applied to the glass

A zoomed out picture of an old window frame with flower transfers on it sitting on a shelf above a gray chair with a black and white kitten laying on the chair

Once all the transfers have been completed you are done! I have debated adding a quote to the top part of the glass using my Cricut vinyl but I haven't decided yet. I have the frame displayed in our living room right now and the more I look at it the more it grows on me to not include the wording. What do you think? Comment below and let me know! And check out all the other wonderful projects from my fellow blogging friends below!