{ChicByTab}: 2013

Thursday, December 12, 2013

Big Red

Oh the weather outside is frightful

But my furniture's so delightful

And since we've no place to go

I will paint! I will paint! I will paint!

I love the feeling of Christmas with 3 feet of snow to go with it!

Right now I'm busy finishing up some end tables, which I will post next week. So in the mean time I thought I could follow up on a picture I posted previously.

Found it at my local thrift shop in summer. Beauty, right? It sat in my husbands man cave garage for 2 months. Towards the end of summer it was being threatened with eviction...so I decided to tackle it. I first tried to use MMSP Tricyle Red, with the hopes it would chip.

Nope. Decided not to chip. {don't you love how that works?}

Then I tried to wax it. Nope. Looked all blotchy. For some reason the wax absorbed in some places and some places not at all. If anyone has an answer to this, please share.

SO, then I tried some Annie Sloan Emperor's Silk. Went on great. Perfect finish, etc. Waxed the mammoth and buffed her out. I should include this was still in my husbands man cave garage. Two days later I go out to take pictures and there is a giant scrape the size of a playing card on the top. ARGH!

Needless to say, I was back at it.

Sand out the scrape, paint, wax and buff! {third time} and get it out of the garage quick. I think it was worth the effort.

This is my favorite angle.

The handles kinda remind me of bamboo shoots.

This piece went to a great home to be used for a tv stand. {crammed and transported in a Rav4}

Till next time, stay warm and take care.

Party time!
my repurposed life
vintage mellie
mylove2create
missmustardseed

Tuesday, December 10, 2013

Back on

Hello...I'd like to start by apologizing to my followers. I have not been very committed to this blog. I discovered this spring, that I don't like to paint in summer. Not even a smidge. Second, I give credit to the people that post every day! {not me} I won't give you any excuses, but commit to posting my furniture upcycles until summer.

I don't have a before for this one. I love the curves and handles. This was my fav dresser thus far.

I found this sofa table. Pretty bland, and I wasn't sure on what to do with it.

Voila! Kind of a beachy color? The lady that picked it up, was using it for a photo shoot, my table will be shown off in many homes.

Here's another one, with no before. I am lovin the teal and rich wood tone.

Here's one more night stand, I LOVE the tone in the picture.

Take care.

Link Parties!!
Coastal Charm
the dedicated house
The Winthrop Chronicles
savvysouthernstyle
domestically-speaking.com
diybydesign
rainonatinroof

Tuesday, April 9, 2013

Vintage Florence Mirror

Hello Florence.

This is the second color I picked up from my good ol friend Annie {hehe}. I am lovin her paint right now. Let me list the ways I love thou...

1. You don't require prep= time saved=more time for the fam

2. Your colors and fab!

3. Did I mention I don't have to prep?

4. A little goes a long way (because you don't have to put a pile of layers on)

5. Because you are you!

Now, back to the mirror... I bought this piece with a dresser, but wasn't feeling the contour. It has been sitting in my front room (which has caused me to crop many pictures), for too long. Now, imagine living next to me...Every time you walk into your front door and look into my front window, you see a furniture store! Haha. Really? Yes! I made it my goal to start evacuating that room (I'm sure the Fire Marshall would not pass this fire escape), and start painting.

I love the country style detail in the curves at the top.

Check out the close up on the applique.

And this is the before, I almost forgot to take.

Remember this style? Perhaps you had one of these when you were young or just married? Not me...but I would take the new one in a heart beat.

Party

domestically-speaking
savvysouthernstyle
diybydesign
primpjunktion
findingfabulousblog
rainonatinroof
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myrepurposedlife
homespunhappenings
504main

Sunday, April 7, 2013

White Hutch...well half a hutch!

What a weekend. My youngest has been sick since Thursday, which makes everything a little harder here. The good news she is eating, the bad news is: the fever and rash just won't "GET LOST"!

Alright, I caved and picked up 2 cans of Annie Sloan Paint.{Insert Sigh} I wanted to paint a hutch, and see how far a can would go.

Let me be the millionth to say "This stuff is all it is cracked up to be". I mean it. I put 2 coats on, and the coverage was fantastic. I wasn't happy with the consistency of the paint, so I added a tablespoon of water to 1/2 cup of paint....Perfecto.

I decided to distress before waxing. Everyone is right, it creates a LOT of dust. Luckily I have central vac, and I sucked up all that dust in a cinch.

I love white, which you wouldn't be able to tell from my previous posts. Believe it or not, I think this is my first white piece!

This is the whole thing. I love the top, but it is quite ginormous. Seriously. Not sure what I'll do with the top now? Any ideas?

{Hi Stella}

So just to recap:

1. No prep...just like everyone says.

2. Easy to apply.

3. Used 1/4 of my can.

4. Distressing + before waxing = Lots of DuSt!

5. I love Miss Mustard Seed Wax.

Happy Sunday!

Party Time
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Monday, April 1, 2013

Unfinished End Table

This little lady has caught my eye. I'm not one to use yellow... it's just not in my eye of color. But, I am loving her. I feel like there is a burst of sun in my kitchen right now.

Here she is before.

I used TSP to wipe her down good, and remove the oils that may have built up over the years. I chose not to sand this piece. I find once I add the bonding agent to the Milk Paint, it adhere's well. I used my Homestead House Milk Paint in Orchre. It's not quite a bright yellow--- more of a soft yellow. Homestead House is the maker of Miss Mustard Seed Milk Paint, and they have a rainbow of colors beyond MMS.

So, that's how easy it was to paint.

1. Clean

2. Paint

{CLOSE UP}

{DAY LIGHT}

{NIGHT SHOT}

The lady I'm Painting this for, would like white drawers. I will update the post tomorrow [with the white]. Is it just me, or does anyone else get excited to share a new piece. I am willing to take a picture in poor lighting and unfinished, because I can not wait till tomorrow. Jeeze... one day I will be granted with patience, just not tonight.

Here's another beautiful mountain picture from our ski trip to Jasper on the weekend.

Parties

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staceyembracingchange

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houseofhepworths
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504main

Monday, March 25, 2013

Just My Luck'etts Green Table

I love it when the pieces fall into place. I have been using Homestead House Milk Paint, which are the manufacturer of Miss Mustard Seed Milk Paint. The last piece I did gave me some trouble with flaking, but not this time.

I started off wiping the tables down with T.S.P, I couldn't believe the years of grime that were washed away. Once dry, I painted a coat of paint. {for mixing, I use the 1:1.5 ratio paint:water} I find on dark colors, this works. But I was painting a vanity white, and the color was soooo see-through. After first coat dried----> which is super speedy, I put the second coat on. Next day after work, I lightly distressed both tables and waxed with Miss Mustard Seed Clear Wax. I LOVE THIS STUFF!!! I smells great and goes on easy. I have tried Minwax, but found it harder to work with.

For some reason, I always forget to do my handles. In the before picture, do you notice the problem? One handle was broken. "Lucky" for me, I had another similar set. I gave them a good scrub and a fresh coat of Rustoleum Oil Rubbed Bronze. Good as new!

Perfectly aged end tables. Next time, I'll skip the bonding agent, and let her chip away!

I party at

kammys korner
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elizabeth and co
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domestically-speaking
the thrifty home
the 36th avenue

Thursday, March 21, 2013

Snow....AGAIN??

Can you believe this? Snow again! For those that don't live in Alberta, this is what you are missing.

This is the view from my office downtown. Not sure if you can see the massive amount of snow falling. And this is on top of the 12 inches we received last weekend.

Looks like I'm gazing into a snow globe.

On the plus side---- I will be posting some pics later today of my latest Milk Paint project!!

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Weekend Off

Bad news...I didn't paint any furniture this weekend. Good news, I put in some quality family time. Friday, my daughter was in a gymnastics festival. Then after we headed out to the mountains. Our destination, Lake Louise. We had a tone of fun and sore legs by the end of the day.

Here's our first chair ride up after lunch....up into the clouds. The two in front, are my husband and youngest daughter.

This was to the side, while we were going up. If you haven't been to the Canadian Rockies, you should really make a trip.

Lastly... my oldest daughter, lovin the fresh powder we tracked up all day!

Hope you enjoyed your weekend as much as I did!

Wednesday, March 13, 2013

First Chalk Paint Hutch

Decisions, decisions. Why do I find choosing colors sooo hard? Is it because I will never come across another hutch of this style? Or because I paid so little, and don't want to waste my saved dollars on multiple coats? DO others take time to ponder the rainbow? I would love to let this beauty sit in my formal room, but unfortunately I'm tight on space. So this is what I have.

I love every detail on this beauty. Now do you see my dilemma? I don't want to waste such a work of art. Some of my ideas include.....Blue, teal, aqua. See the pattern?

This is a great color choice from Marty's Musings.

I love the 2 tone blue, from Stiltskin Studios.

This could work, from The Shabbiest Chick.

What do you think?

On a side note....it's almost Friday! Hello.

Sunday, March 10, 2013

Hello Mint Dresser

On Friday, I was stopping at my usual Junque stops and came across this beauty. I immediately called my husband and told him to "start the car!', or in our case the truck.

I should state:

THIS IS MY FIRST DRESSER PROJECT!

That's right, very first one.

It all started last week, when I discovered the Turquiose Iris blog. If you have been checking out furniture blogs, I'm sure you have seen her work. I am totally in love with her colors and style. Back to the point... She inspired me to move past my usual end tables, and test the water. Little did I know this water would be deep. I started by sanding all flat surfaces, and wiping it down with TSP. I've heard quite a few DIY'ers mention this stuff. If you have not tried it yet, I would. It worked great. The only down side I found, was it made some of the finish soft at the edges. If anyone knows how to prevent or why, please let me know. In case your rushing out to buy some...I found mine at Home Depot.

Next step, mix paint.

Paint Recipe:

1 cup paint

2 Tbsp Plaster of Paris

I am way too cheap to buy brand name chalk paint, and our local shop has limited hours. Don't get me wrong, I have tried Annie Sloan and LOVED it. I just can't take the price. I found this recipe somewhere online, and it works great. I find the key to smooth paint, is let it sit after the initial mix for 15 minutes. After that I would give it one more mix. I use a hand held mixer thing-a-ma-jig. Works amazing!

I put on a few coats, and lightly sanded with 220 Grit paper. Then wiped down the dresser one more time to remove the dust. I used Varathane Water Based Clear Coat to seal everything.