PAINT...The Great Unifier!

I love paint!  It is the perfect tool for transformation!  Old and worn out? Paint makes it new again!  Need to tweek the color to fit your new color palette?  A little paint on the details or a wash of color can make any piece "just right!"  One of my favorite things about paint is the way you can create "sets" of pieces that do not really match.  Need a new bedroom suite of furniture, but can't afford to buy all new pieces?  Find furniture in a style that coordinates with the pieces that you already own and then unify them with paint.

That's what I did with an old desk that we had.  My daughter was moving into her first college apartment this year and she had little room for anything more than her bed.  So when space is limited, think vertical!  We decided that a desk with storage above would offer her the most versatility.  So we started with this truly awful little desk, which was well made, but covered in yellowing lacquer.

Then we picked up a cute chair with turned legs similar to those on the desk.  It was only $3.00!














Now, we needed a hutch!  I don't know about you, but I see these all the time at thrift stores or on Craigslist.  The owners decide to discard them, but keep the original desk or buffet it sat upon.  They are usually pretty affordable, since they are missing their counterpart.

We just made sure that we found one that fit within the measured width of the desk.  We picked up this beauty at Habitat for Humanity's Reuse Store for just $15. It's a great way to help a good cause, too!



Now as you can see, this is a mismatched set of objects in three different finishes.  In walks PAINT...the great unifier!  I decided to paint the pieces in ASCP's Aubusson Blue and to draw attention to the beautiful details by showcasing them in Florence. Yet another dimension was added by doing a wash of Florence over the Aubussion Blue on the arches of the hutch and the back of the chair.

Here's the finished product!  Three mismatched, discarded pieces find a new home and serve a new purpose together.  Unity!

Striking Stripes

These adorable blue chairs caught my eye at a thrift store.  They were a lovely shade of blue, but they had a few little nicks in the paint.  Inspired by a chest I saw on a blog, with a Union Jack flag painted across the front, I decided to paint these with a striking "patriotic" stripe.  For the blue, I custom mixed a blue shade.  Then added ASCP in Old White and Emperor's Silk.

The blue paint was applied first in a circular motion to accentuate the shape of the chairs.  I did that on both the front and the back of the chairs.  I allowed some of the original blue paint to show through, adding a little texture and dimension.

Then I used 1 inch blue painter's tape to create stripes down the center of the chairs.  First, I centered one piece of tape down the length of the chair.  I did this by measuring and marking the center of the chair with a piece of chalk and then lining up the tape so that it was perfectly centered.  Then I put four additional pieces of tape on either side of the center piece of tape being sure to align the edges of tape without overlapping.  It is crucial to place the first piece of tape correctly, or else it will all turn out crooked.  

When I was finished I had a total of nine pieces of tape.  Next, I removed the tape on either side of the center piece, as well as the second to last piece on each end.  I painted these areas with the white paint.  Once this was dry, I replaced the tape over the white parts and then pulled the tape between them off.  I painted these areas red.  I then removed all of the tape, revealing equal 1 inch stripes of red, white and blue (which was the original color beneath the tape).
 
After seeing the result, I decided that I would prefer that the red stripe was wider, so I went back in and expanded the red stripe by once again taping off the area that I planned to paint. Had I planned that from the start, I could have used two pieces of tape together to create a 2 inch stripe of red.  But all's well that ends well.  Sometimes you just have to experiment a little. 

I decided to stripe only the front of the chairs and left the back sides blue, with the circular paint effect.   They would look great in a boy's room or as accent pieces anyplace that could use a little drama.

"Oh, it's so You!"

Easter and taxes and birthdays, oh my!  These are just a few of the things that required my attention in April.  It's been a whirlwind!  But I did manage to get a few things painted, too.  A lovely friend sought my help in creating a custom table for her beach house that would work with her new color scheme.  We decided to layer a Provence teal with a Napoleonic Blue.  The result is this beautiful beachy blue that looks wind swept and sun bleached.  Ah, makes me long for the rhythmic sound of the ocean and a tall, cold Pina Colada!  Oh, but I digress!

I also started on my daughter's bedroom furniture.  This is an American of Martinsville end table, circa the 1960s, that belonged to my grandmother.  We decided to paint it in two tones to play up it's clean lines and mid-century modern design features.  We used Paris Grey and Old White to get this quiet, subtle contrast.  We also added new hardware.  She loves it and it looks great in her room!  Just one end table, and one dresser to go, but you get the idea!

 

Customizing your existing furniture can be a very affordable, easy way to update your home to reflect your current style and tastes.  Not to mention saving yourself hours of shopping!   It's fun to create your own "one of a kind" custom piece of furniture.  If you would like to recreate one of your tired, outdated pieces, contact me and we can work together to design a custom look just for you.

BAM!- Let's Kick It Up A Notch!

Sometimes, even though a piece of furniture is nice the way it is, you just need to spice it up a little. I decided that's exactly what I needed to do with this recent purchase, a Broyhill server.  "Let's kick it up a notch!"  That is the well known catchphrase of the famous chef from my hometown, Emeril Lagasse. Not only does his philosophy apply to food, it also applies to style.

BAM!  The addition of some Annie Sloan Napoleonic Blue paint, took this piece from ordinary to extraordinary!  When you add a pop of color to a space, it can bring it to life.  Here we are able to do that without changing the wall color, but instead by working with the more neutral tones of the foyer.  The color energizes an otherwise boring space. What a great way to greet your guests!

A little storage cabinet can serve a multitude of purposes.  Small enough to fit just about anywhere, it is perfect here as a foyer/entrance table, a great place to store keys, book bags, or purses. It would also work as a flat screen TV stand, with plenty of space to stash away your DVDs and gaming equipment.  It could provide extra storage in a bathroom, bedroom, living room or kitchen for just about anything.  Of course, you could always use it as it was intended, as a server in your dining room.  So why not spice up your life and "kick your style up a notch" with some painted furniture? 

Passions Ignite

I just recently discovered my newest passion.  Painting once loved, but now neglected, abandoned or forgotten items to give them a new, fresh beginning.  Some call it "upcycling," but whatever you call it, it's better for the planet to reuse perfectly good items, rather than haul them to the dump.  Not to mention, better for your pocketbook!  Many of us "well meaning" folk bring our outdated and unstylish items to our local charities for donation, hoping they will find a new home.  It's kind of like the "island for misfit decor."  You need vision and a sense of adventure to sort through those cluttered shelves. I've always loved the hunt for that perfect little treasure that will solve some organizational problem, or fill some empty gap or need in my house, but often the finish or the color of an item prevents me from using it as I'd like. 

As the new year dawned, I found myself contemplating all of the unfinished projects that I still hadn't gotten around to doing.  I had several pieces of furniture that I had been putting off painting.  A conversation with my mother, who is a decorative painter, clued me in about a new paint that was perfect for furniture.  It's a European paint and wax system called Annie Sloan Chalk Paint that results in a beautiful finish and is especially perfect for those french country distressed pieces.  It sounded too good to be true, but I had to try it out.  I attended a workshop at a faux finishing studio to learn some finishes to use with these products and came home ready to jump right in.  This new endeavor combined my love of decorating, creative play, restyling, repurposing, and thrifting, and it's good for my home, my budget and the earth!  Imagine that!  I was so excited about the possibilities!

So now all I needed was a project to get me started.  I wanted to start with something small and inexpensive, before I tackled my daughter's furniture.  I found these great little candlesticks at a local thrift store.  I loved the shape, but I was not crazy about the color. 

 A fresh coat of paint, some wax, and a little sanding to distress and voila!

A beautiful vignette to show off my latest creations!