Write-Wall Art

My husband surprised me with this inspirational wall art and hanging organizer. I absolutely love it! He took the pallet out of our junk pile and created the shelving for my books. He added the cork board and topped it all off with the stenciled birds. I am a lucky girl. 

Small Red Table

 Just finished this sweet little table. It has been awhile since I have painted anything red, so it was really fun to take on this piece. It is painted Chili Pepper Red with black glaze and white primer popping through the distressed areas.

BEFORE

Small Distressed Desk

This is one of my favorite pieces that I have done so far.  I love to use my heavy distressing technique and special ingredients whenever I use white paint.  This color is Valspar's Betsy's Linen and there is no glaze on this little desk.  The brown showing through is the original paint.  I wanted to keep some of the original finish since this was a desk that belonged to my great grandmother. 

Dresser Before

Coffee Table & Side Tables

I just finished these tables for my dear sweet friend Linda.  I especially love being able to transform pieces for my friends.  I can't wait to see these in her home!  For this project I used cream in my coffee by Valspar.  I glazed it with a tobacco color and sealed it with a semigloss top coat.

Bedroom Furniture Redo

 These two pieces were both mahogany red...but thankfully not anymore.  I have been wanting to take on this project for awhile.  I do not care for mahogany at all and my bedroom was just feeling too dark.  I wanted to bring in some fun colors that were peaceful and fun at the same time.  I saw a picture of yellow and blue furniture side by side and thought that they complimented each other really well.  I knew I wanted to use morning glory blue for the dresser.  I had used it before on a bookshelf and fell in love with this vibrant color.  This was my first time to go with a yellow color so I was really nervous about how it would turn out.  I never in a million years I thought I would have a yellow piece of furniture in my house, so I definitely wanted to get the shade right.  I decided to go with amber yellow by Valspar.  It is a perfect buttery yellow that adds that ray of sunshine warmth to the room.  Both of these pieces were primed using a brown tinted primer and painted with semi-gloss paint.  For the dresser, I used a black glaze and clear coated it with polycrylic like I normally do. The vanity was also distressed and glazed with a tobacco brown glaze.  For the clear coat finish, I had to use a regular fast drying polyurethane since the wood was mahogany.  I learned this the hard way unfortunately.  At first I tried using the polycrylic and then nearly had a melt down when I realized the red was pulling through the yellow.  After taking some deep breaths and reading the label (always a good thing) I was able to gently sand over the polycrylic and spray on the oil based poly.  This set will be complete when I recover the chair with something simple to pull it all together.  I am thinking a floral pattern will do nicely.  I'll be so glad when this little project is in the books.

Back Porch

 These are just a few of the newest additions to my back porch.  The mint green topped garden bench I found in my grandfather's shed.  It did not have a top so my husband attached one for me.  I decided to experiment with chalk paint on this piece.  I found a recipe using cornstarch and water added to the paint.  It turned out fine, if you like the dull flat look.  Personally, I don't see all the rage about chalk paint.  I can add a little baby powder to an ordinary flat paint and achieve the same look.  I think I'll stick to my old tricks!  The green garden bench came from my favorite little junk store in Hearne where everything is $5.  That's definitely my kind of place.  I found my porch chairs there as well.  The cabinet came out of an old barn that my husband was working in one day. He has become a regular picker! 

Bookshelf/Media Center

 Before

 After

This piece was originally the hutch that sat on top of an entertainment center.  At first, I thought it might be neat with some baskets below and books above.  My husband thought you could also use it to store assorted balls that often collect on the floor of a little boy's room.  Since it does have the holes for wires, I see this piece as being very versatile to suit a variety of furniture needs.  The color is Valspar's Filoli Morning Glory.  It is a wonderfully vibrant blue.  For the finish, I decided to try something new.  Normally with a paint this bright, I like the contrast of using a black glaze.  I decided to try a tobacco glaze for this piece.  I quickly changed my mind again when I thought about dealing with the oil based walnut stain that I usually mix with the glaze to  create tobacco.  So, I decided to mix up a new glaze just for kicks.  I took some light brown paint that I had lying around and added that with my glaze mix.  The result is what I call "nude glaze".  It reminds me very much of those nude panty hose that were popular when I was growing up!  As you can see, I think it was really perfect for this piece.  I hope that it finds a home soon!