harlequin dresser
The first piece I did was a dresser with harlequin diamonds and stripes (see the before and after here)
A few pieces BEFORE…
And here they are transformed. This one I painted to match the first dresser.
Here are two of the smaller pieces. I just loved the lines on both of these..
Cash Desk
We found this dresser on Used Victoria and thought it would make a great cash desk. The back just needed to be remove the drawers modified but it was the perfect size. I think this piece was my favorite because the lines and shape are so beautiful and painted in the white was gorgeous. The pictures don’t do it any justice. I painted the hardware the same colour to make them blend in and just look like a pretty detail.
Two more little side tables that turned out super cute.
Voila the main piece!
I’m so happy how it turned out and it looks fantastic in her shop.
Unfortunately I wasn’t able to get a before picture of the hutch because it was so big and I painted one piece at a time. It was stunning in it’s original form and was made by Gibbard Furniture so it was solid wood and very well built. But it didn’t go with the black and white theme of the retail shop so it was painted! the doors were removed to make it more of a display cabinet. My client was looking for some sort of wallpaper to use on the back to add some interest and texture but she didn’t find anything she liked so I suggested we use a stencil. I found this lovely bow stencil from The Stencil Library out of the UK. They have some gorgeous stencils and shipping didn’t take very long.
FRENCH PROVINCIAL SIDEBOARD – GARAGE SALE SCORE!
I found this piece at a garage sale just down the street. It was in great shape with a bit of water damage and in it’s current state it was not very pretty. But it had good bones, great lines and I had a vision for what it could be.
BeforE
damage on the top
I sanded the finish off the top because it was going to stain it and then gave the rest of the piece a light sand. Because I was using chalk paint on the body I didn’t prime it but soon I was disappointed to see some staining coming through. It’s so heartbreaking when this happens but it’s easy fix. I used Zinsser Shellac which I purchased at Home Depot and it did the trick. I used the spray, it dried quickly and soon I was back on track.
I used Ebony stain on the top and Annie Sloan Old White Chalk Paint on the rest of the piece and here it is finished.
I wanted a more contemporary look so I didn’t distress it at all and only used clear wax.
I contemplated using a bit of dark wax but I love the clean lines so decided not to. I added new hardware and I had to order pulls online since it was an older piece and 4.5 ” to center pulls are hard to find. I searched the internet and finally found some at Build.com
Here is a picture of the ebony stained top
which I also covered with 4 coats of wipe on poly. I love the smokey gray brown colour.
I’m thrilled how it turned out and I am going to keep this piece for myself for now and use it as a TV stand in our basement.
Corner Cabinet Makeover
One day when I was out an about checking out used furniture stores, I stumbled across this corner cabinet. It was not pretty but I liked it’s curved lines and I could see it’s potential.
When I was down in Palm Springs I picked up some lovely knobs at Anthropologie. They have the most amazing hardware that I wrote an entire post on it. See here
I knew I wanted to paint it white and I was a bit concerned about the horrible orange stain bleeding through so I sanded it and then primed it with BIN 2 Zinsser primer to be safe. It smells terrible but well worth it.
I decided on Benjamin Moore OC-65 Chantilly Lace in a gloss to add a bit of glam. I love how it turned out!!!! I was originally going to sell it but I think I may have to keep this one for myself 🙂
Before
VINTAGE SIDEBOARD RESCUE
I found this beauty under someones deck.
She was in rough shape and had been sitting under a tarp for a very long time. I don’t think the owner realized its beauty. It had some water damage and needed lots of TLC but I could see it had good bones and was worth the effort so I loaded it up in the truck and took it home.
I knew as soon as I found it that I wanted to paint it in Annie Sloan French Linen Chalk Paint and finish it with a dark wax. I think French Linen has to be my favorite ASCP colour.
It needed a lot of sanding and some wood fill.
I wanted to use the original hardware as it was so pretty but covered in rust. I soaked it in some vinegar and then scrubbed it clean with a tooth brush. They came out nice and still had that rustic look to them so I was happy.
Here is the final product.
2 coats of ASCP French Linen, one coat of clear wax and then I finished it with a coat of dark wax. I love how it turned out!
CEDAR CHEST MAKEOVER WITH CHALK PAINT
This lovely cedar chest that my grandfather built was just sitting in the basement and not getting used. It has some scratches and dents and was in need of some TLC. It’s a special piece so it took me a long time to decide what I wanted to do with it. Did I want to sand the whole thing down and re-stain it? Or did I want to paint it and if so what colour? Did I want to add a decal or a stencil?
I wanted to use it in my spare room at the end of the bed for linen storage so last weekend I decided it was time to give it a makeover. First I added some feet to it to bring it up off the floor.
I found some simple wooden bun feet at The Finishing Store (similar to this one )
I had a vision of a beautiful white chest with a soft gray stencil on the top so decided on Annie Sloan Pure White and Paris Gray chalk paint. But I soon ran into trouble and after the second coat of Pure White I noticed some yellow stains coming through and some water spots. This sometimes happens when a piece has been polished with oil-based polishes or deep red pieces that have a mahogany stain. So I hopped in the car and headed to Home Depot where I picked up some Zinnsser Bin 2 primer and stain blocker. I used one coat of this primer and it worked great. (it does however, have a very strong odor)
I found that the Annie Sloan Pure White chalk paint didn’t cover as well as any of the darker colours and it took quite a few coats
(I was also using a roller). But it did cover eventually and I did a coat of Annie Sloan Paris Gray on the top part and stenciled over with the white using a Martha Stewart stencil which I purchased at Michaels. It was my first time working with a patterned stencil so I wasn’t sure what to expect. It had a few spots that were not perfect and I could live with that but overall I didn’t like the white.
I had some fun with different accessories and styling and a here is a closer look at the stencil. It was easy to do once I got the hang of it. I think I am going to try to stencil some pillows next!
One of the reasons why I love chalk paint so much is that if you don’t like how a piece turns out you can just paint over it. So I repainted the whole thing with Annie Sloan Graphite and used Annie Sloan Paris Gray as a stencil colour. I finished it with a coat of dark wax first as I wanted a bit more depth to the look since I wasn’t going to distress it and then two coats of clear wax. Added some new hardware and viola…I love how it turned out!