I noticed Cindy over at My Romantic Home changed her French china cabinet’s cover from the landscape fabric-esque one to chicken wire! Welcome to the world of chicken wire, Cindy!
My door is made from a screen porch window frame I bought at Albany Salvage for $10. I removed the screen and saved it for future screen door repairs. I took two lengths of chicken wire off of the bottom of my coop and replaced them with wood, which will repel mice a little better anyway.
The wire cuts very easily with the sharp inner part of pliers, or you could use jewelry wire cutters I suppose. I re-sized my door with a circular saw, and nailed these funny little nails in the corners for strength. Hopefully your door will exist in the first place. I also had to ‘sew’ the two pieces of chicken wire together.
Then, I laid the door on the floor, attached one side of the chicken wire with a lot of electric staples, stretched it along the top and bottom, and then did the other side. It was the easiest part of the project!Even though my chicken wire was already shabby with a zinc-like patina, I experimented with painting one side white and liked it a lot better.
You can find chicken and landscape wire at your local independently owned hardware store. Chicken wire is inexpensive, landscape wire isn’t. Krylon makes a spray that gives a patina in rust or zinc. Nice vintage brass screen (great for pie safes) is found at salvage yards.
Chicken wire also comes in a very large hexagon shape.
This is landscape fabric. Another texture.
This is vintage landscape fabric. Thanks to my hens for allowing me to shoot their coop.
I’ve been enamored with furniture with wire fronts for years, but it was Fifi O’Neill that inspired me to do my china cabinet this way. Is wire inherently French? If so, I’m going to load up on wire baskets, wall caddies, tchotchkes, whatever.
Merci beaucoup, Fifi et Cindy!
‘Till next time, stay shabby!
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