Cane Back Chairs on the Lighter Side

These chairs are beautiful.  Although I love to paint just about anything, I honestly have a problem painting furniture that is in great condition.  Most furniture I take a brush to is in dire need of improvement, and that usually comes with paint.  But these chairs were in very good condition. 

But you see … I’ve created a bit of a paint monster – my mother.  Since painting her buffet, ( in case you missed that you can see that HERE).  I’ve spied her looking around her place for more furniture to paint… “to compliment the hutch, as it were”.  

I just know there’s more to come.

So here are the Louis Cane Back chairs, in great condition but needing a lift.

The fabric wasn’t going to be changed so this presents a bit of a challenge for painting.  Fortunately by the time they came to me my mother had already taped them up.  Remember proper preparation of your piece is crucial to a good outcome.

I always start with pieces like this turned upside down.  You just can’t miss any spots if you work with it this way first.  The entire chair was primed with spray KILZ.

Cracks were much more noticeable now the the chairs were primed.  These had to be filled before going any further.  I used wood filler that was sanded with a sanding sponge when completely dry.   Remember to always sand after your primer is dry.

Because the buffet was done in Heirloom White, the chairs were also done with this color. Below are both chairs with two coats of Heirloom white.  After painting I also sand lightly with a sanding block to ensure a smooth finish.  You need a very smooth surface when applying glaze.  This ensures that your glaze will be easy to wipe down.

I used my favorite custom mixed brown glaze. You can see this has been kicking around for quite a while.

As usual, brush glaze on and wipe off.

When the glazing was dry, I gave it a couple of thin coats of Minwax spray poly.

After unwrapping…

Looking lovely

 

These chairs are going to go perfectly in the same area as her buffet.

Thanks for dropping by.

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Night Stands with Panels

If you’ve been reading this blog for a while you might remember a backsplash we did.  If not, see it here. The backsplash came from 1005 Design, a new idea in kitchen backsplashes. After doing the backsplash I knew there could be other uses for these decorative panels.  Jana at 1005 Design was nice enough to send me a couple to work with.

And what did I do with them ..?

Well here is the project.  A couple of nightstands /end tables .. plain, nothing spectacular.

I started by removing the hardware. I primed both pieces entirely with KILZ spray primer.  I used a really cool bronze color from RUST-OLEUM. I let the paint dry completely and then coated all painted surfaces with a high gloss polyurethane.  I wanted a really glossy bronze.

Here is the 1005 Design panel that I chose.  The name of this design is Art Nouveau. For simple cuts all you need is a good sharp blade, a file and a straight edge.

The panels were applied with a construction adhesive to the tops of the tables and the drawer fronts.  Hardware was updated for the new look.

 

These would make awesome night stands but as you can see I simply used them as end tables.

The panels are so easy to cut that you probably wont need any trim around the edges.

Make sure to get the adhesive close to the edges and then flatten the adhesive so it wont squish out the sides.

Check out 1005 Design for a look at this and more designs. If you don’t have a backsplash to do I’m sure you’ll find all kinds of other uses for these panels.

Quite honestly if I had more I would have paneled the whole thing.

Thanks to 1005 Design, and to you for reading ~

 

 

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Armoire Redo in Milk Paint

Mr. Charming actually brought this Armoire home for me one weekend.

Some women like jewelry, some like flowers, I like old furniture wrecks, and my sweetie knows that. Y

So this post will cover a couple of things ~

1. A vintage armoire gets a makeover and a new purpose. 

2. I’ll cover how to use Milk Paint.

I know everyone has jumped on the Chalk Paint bandwagon, but I happen to think that although the paint might be great, the paint itself is costly. Couple that with shipping costs and a quart of paint could cost $50 or more.

I’ve been wanting to try Milk Paint for some time. Thankfully I found a local Manufacturer for Milk Paint and went and picked up a few bags. Jennylyn was incredibly helpful.  She went over the instructions, the different finishes for it and the TON of colors available, (and if you can’t find a color you like for some reason, just mix up some powders to make your own). Here are some of the products I picked up at Homestead House Paint Co.

I know the thought of actually mixing your own paint might scare you off, but I can’t stress enough how simple this was. Mix the powder with water in a blender and pour in a container.

 

A few reasons to use Milk Paint:

100% Natural – No chemicals -  Environmentally friendly - No odor – No primer required – Biodegradable – A porous paint that breathes – Clean up is a breeeeeze!

You can make the consistency you want; add water to make a thick paint, or more water to make a thinner wash. During application brush marks will remain to give an authentic, textured, worn finish that a liquid latex flow out does not.  This paint gives a perfect, old world fresco look.

Milk paint is easily applied on raw, unfinished wood, but my piece had a shiny finish. With the addition of a bond mixed right in the paint for the first coat only, you can apply it over non-porous (or previously painted) surfaces.  To further ensure a good bond, I scuffed up the shine on the armoire quickly with my power sander.

Here is a peek inside. A crooked stick for a rod and a bag of ‘somethingorother’ hanging off it. 

I have NO idea what that was.  Mr. Charming said it was once potpourri, (um..I dunno, what do you think it is ??)

 

A few modifications were needed.  For some unknown reason someone cut the back legs off this unit, but Mr. Charming reattached them perfectly.  As I’m not sure that Armoires are in high demand anymore, I wanted to make this piece a little more functional so off came the mirrors. 

and on went the shelf supports.

I used a thin consistency milk paint on the outside to show more brush strokes and an even thinner wash on the inside. I want this piece to look as authentically old and worn as possible.

Now on to finishing. There are all kinds of ways to finish a project and I have products I could have used, but I wanted to try something different. When I asked the people at Homestead House about their Hemp Oil product, they told me to liken it to wetting your finger and putting it on a chalk board.  Without leaving a shine, it brought out the color and distressed areas beautifully. You can apply this with a brush or a rag.  I used both. I brushed it on sparingly and wiped it down with a rag.

I love all these products and this is just one reason.  Not only does the Milk paint clean up very quickly with water, but how many top coat finishes do you know that also clean up with soap and water?

So in place of the mirrored doors, I used Fiberglass screening in charcoal color.

I purchased these little square dowel pieces and painted them.

Lay the screen over the door, stretch and secure with the square dowels with a nail gun.

Trim the excess screen with a new sharp exacto knife.

With the addition of these awesome, rusted looking handles, the doors are now complete.

And that means the project is complete!

The finished and painted wood shelves are nailed in to add extra stability to the entire unit.

Bottom line on this project is, the Milk Paint really set this piece off. The paint looks old, worn and authentic.  I’d use it again… as a matter of fact, I plan to!

Thanks to Homestead House for all their help

and thanks for reading~

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