Weathered Crate...or is it?

A perfectly weathered crate for a porch.  Or perhaps there is more to this "weathered" crate than meets the eye.

 

Take a look below at the sad, sad before of this project.  Oh, my.  This crate is not weathered at all.

It will eventually age on it's own (with some help from Mother Nature), but to get a jump start on the "look", I used vinegar and steel wool.  Variations of the recipe and method can be found on the web.

 

My preferred, after some trial and error, is to put white vinegar in a glass jar, add a piece of steel wool, and let it sit for a couple hours.  The longer it sits, the darker your results will be so find your preferred timing and have fun!

 

For more fun and personality I added some big old barn door hinges to the top (sorry you can't see them in the pics), and some adorable old license plates.

 

You likey?

 

Linked to: SNS Crazy for Crates