Pictures to Inspire You!

I don't have a how-to because the techniques I used on these pieces, I have already blogged about.  I wanted to post them to inspire my fellow crafty people on what you can do to completely change a piece of furniture.

The first piece was an oak curio cabinet that was missing its glass in the front.

I used a linen color milk paint and painted the outside.  The paint chipped off like I wanted which gave it a very shabby chic look.  I dry brushed some dark linen colored chalk paint over the off white color to give it an extra dimension.  I painted the inside of the cabinet a light blue and dry brushed the dark linen color over that also.  I added some silver embossed tin to the top window and some silver chicken wire to the bottom.  This is the end result.  It can be used for bathroom storage, clothes and shoe storage or anything that needs a cute display.

The second piece I have done a post on before was a two chair bench seat.  I added a board on the bottom this time so I could put baskets underneath.  I used milk paint again to get a distressed look, and I finished it with polyurathane so it has a hard finish.  I upholstered it with a linen material and added black nail-heads to give it an extra detail.

The bench seat is for sale. Please email me at davewhit4@gmail.com if you are interested.

A Little bit French!

We bought a twin headboard a little while ago and I immediatley knew it would be a bench seat.  The headboard had a quaint look to it but I had trouble envisioning the finished look.  I finally decided on a french distressed look and after trying many different color paints and glazes, I did it.  Here is the journey for the most part.

The headboard before:

My husband added a board on the bottom and worked his furniture magic to make this into a bench.

I sanded down the black chippy old paint as best as I could, but some stayed on which worked out for the distressed look.  I tried a couple of colors and glazes over the top before I got the look I wanted. Some of the colors came through in the end distressing and again it worked out! I eventually painted the whole thing in a french linen color(not pictured).  I put on two coats so it would not come off to much in the sanding stage. I covered the French linen color with a thin white linen color. This is pictured below.

I started distressing the paint with 100 grit sandpaper.  I sanded all the edges and groves in the bench so the darker color came through and in some areas down to the wood.  I then sanded random parts of the bench so the darker color came through and in some areas the old black paint came through.  I brushed on a light brown wax and buffed it off. I let the wax dry for a day and then brushed on a clear wax to seal in all my hard work and buffed it to a pretty shine. 

I loved how the finish turned out, but now I needed a cute cushion to match.  I glued foam to the board and wrapped it in batting.  Some of my previous posts have more detailed instruction on how to do this.  I cut out a neutral gray/blue linen fabric for the top and a cream linen fabric for the accent.  To make the   rushing  all the way around the cushion, I sewed two strips together to make it long enough to go all the way around.  I basted both sides of the cream fabric strips.  I pulled the strings on both sides to gather the fabric on both sides.  When the cream fabric was gathered, I sewed one side to the gray/blue top fabric.  I put the completed fabric piece over the foam board and stapled it in place on the bottom.  My husband attached the board to the bench and it was done.

If you are interested in a bench like this, Please email me at davewhit4@gmail.com

A Milk Paint Project!

We had a beautiful buffet I posted on my page to see if any one wanted it to be customized to their home.  Here is the before picture.

When someone contacted me, I had her pick out the colors she wanted from the miss mustard seed color palette. 

We decided on the typewriter and the French enamel and I got to work creating this beauty.  

I started by sanding it with an electric sander, just enough to make sure the paint didn't flake off to much. I could have left it as is and the paint would have been more chippy like on the drawers.  I wanted a controlled distressing so I sanded the main part. I then rubbed everything down with a tack cloth to get all of the debris off.

I then got together all the supplies I needed to mix the paint: two clear plastic cups, a small whisk, a tablespoon and a cup of water. 

I read and followed the directions on the package after I had watched some of the tutorials on the website. I put three tablespoons of water in the cup and then three tablespoons of paint. I whisked the paint for a minute and then let it sit for ten minutes. After ten minutes I whisked the solution for another minute and it was ready to go.  I painted the doors and drawers the French enamel. I covered the paint in the cup and I waited twenty minutes before whisking the paint again and painting a second coat.

After painting the accent color, I mixed the typewriter milk paint the same way and started painting the main part of the buffet. I painted the shields on the doors to give the buffet a little more depth. I waited thirty minutes between painting a second coat. 

Once the painting was done it was time to make it more interesting. I started by distress sanding it with 100 grit sandpaper. I sanded all the edges and the little details and shapes on the buffet.  I also sanded the shields enough for the blue color to come out from under the black. 

I put two coats of dark wax on the whole buffet and buffed it to a shine. I added the knobs to the doors and drawers and the buffet was done.

If you are interested in a piece like this contact us at davewhit4@gmail.com.  We have another buffet in stock!

A Little Wallpaper and Some Paint!

  We had a vintage dresser with some nice detail, but it had the classic ugly finish you see in 70's shows. I had seen a dresser on Pinterest that had embossed wallpaper on the drawers and I had to try it.  So hear it goes!
Here is a before picture.

I power sanded the whole dresser with the help of my cute eight year old.

We bought some paintable embossed wallpaper border at Lowes. I cut a piece for each drawer and painted the wallpaper before I put it on the drawers( this is what the directions said to do).  I let the paint dry overnight.

After the paint was dry, I was able to follow directions and apply the wallpaper to the drawers. After I put on the painted wallpaper, I painted the whole drawer the rose color.

I painted two coats of the gray chalk paint onto the outer part of the dresser.  

I put one coat of dark wax on the drawers and polished them with a clean t-shirt rag. I brushed on a second coat of clear wax and polished them again.  I then attached the drawer pulls.

I brushed on two coats of dark wax over the outer dresser and polished it off with a t-shirt rag.  The dresser was done.

If you have any interest in buying a dresser like this,  Please email us at davewhit4@gmail.com .

A Schooling On Vanity

Probably not the best title, but appropriate to my post today!  We found an old broken antique school desk and I immediately saw some potential.  My husband immediately saw some work :)  We spray painted the metal parts with rust-o-leum black paint.  He glued the boards back together and fit them onto the metal grooves.  He uses wood glue and clamps the wood together so the glue does not expand when it is drying. He reinforced the top of the vanity and the seat by fastening wooden bars on the bottom of both.  He made the frame for the mirror out of the extra wood leftover from the back of the school desk.  We then attached small wooden embellishments to give the mirror a little character.  We painted all the wood with a primer.

After the primer was dry, I painted the vanity with an antique white paint.  It doesn't look that much different.  

I brushed on a dark wax and buffed it off with a clean t-shirt rag.  I distressed the edges and decorative pieces of the wood with sandpaper.  I brushed on a coat of clear wax and buffed it off with another clean t-shirt rag.  

Dave attached the metal legs to a wooden board we painted black so the vanity would be very stable.  This old school desk got a brand new look and is ready for any child's room.

 If you are interested in this piece please contact us at davewhit4@gmail.com