Renew, Redo My Coastal Shabby Dresser

Oh my gosh, with my first two projects, I got my feet wet. I was quite happy with the chair and the frame and so with this one,  I dove right in!

I forgot to take a before picture, but the dresser was essentially a knotty pine..kind of blah!

The colours I used were Annie Sloan French Linen , Duck Egg Blue and Old White

The natural wood peeking through does not look as harsh in real life as it does in the photo's

I'm really enjoying the ease of the application of the paint and the results that I'm getting.

I'm currently working on my bedside table and am looking forward to sharing with you!

Renew, Redo....Getting a little more brave!

Last week, I dipped my toe into the Ocean of Chalk Painting as I am renovating my bedroom.

This fine gem of a mirror definitely doesn't meet the "Coastal" Theme.  It did however, look quite nice over my green Formica Vanity. That was in 1997!  I would say that I had invested around 40 hours into tole painting this frame. My initial thought was to put it in the next yard sale, but then my not only lovely, but bright mother mentioned that I should repaint it! Well of COURSE! Renew, Redo! Also,  the pittance that I might receive for the clearly dated mirror wouldn't amount to the cost to replace the beautiful bevelled mirror that I had installed into the frame.

Last weeks project, the chair was all about playing around with the paint and getting the "feel for it". Funny, I've always felt that there is a distinct feeling when applying paint and knowing that you are going to have success with it. That may sound weird, but in my Tole Painting days I knew that a shadow that I was laying down would be perfect, because I felt it!

Anyway, I keeping with my Coastal Theme, I felt that I would try to get a look of Weathered Wood..think Barn Board. I was a little nervous as again, but on that note, I also know that if it didn't work, I could paint it over~

I started by applying French Linen and Duck Egg Blue wet into wet, using two brushes.

For this technique, I didn't paint right out of the can, but rather poured some paint onto plastic plates as I didn't want to contaminate my lovely paint! I have much more in store for it!

After cleaning my brushes well, I made wash out of Graphite Paint. I added about a Tablespoon of Paint into a paper cup and about 2-3 tsp of water. I went over the frame here and there to add some dark texture in.

I found it a touch dark and so after letting it dry, I dry brushed in a little more Duck Egg Blue....DELICIOUS!!!

My next step- To sand and distress it up a touch. There are a couple of places in which the "Old" Paint showed through. I was initially going to go back in and try to cover it up, but then I thought I kind of liked the look and decided to let "nostalgia" shine through. In fact I then got a little more aggressive with the sandpaper and removed more paint in several places.

It's still looking a little rough pre wax, but I had faith that it would turn out.

I wanted to have a little darker look, so I mixed my wax at a ratio of one tablespoon of clear wax, with a smidgen of dark wax!

I'm actually VERY pleased with the final project! Must apologize for the picture, but I couldn't find a bare space to take it, with all the reno's going on~ When it makes it to it's proper place, It will warrant another share!

Thanks for looking and stay tuned for more  projects!

--Vicki~~

Renew, Redo! My Maiden Voyage with Annie Sloan Chalk Paints

I've decided that my  Bedroom needed some freshening up and I want to create a tranquil space.

You may wonder what the heck this hideous little green chair has to do with that?

I've been perusing Pinterest and collecting decorating ideas for my Coastal Themed Room.

In my travels, I found some great ideas for painting furniture and decided that I definitely wanted to renew and redo my tired, mismatched, BORING wooden Furniture.

In exploring some options, I came across some wonderful samples created with Annie Sloan Chalk Paints. I found that you can't just purchase these paints at any paint store, but rather you have to find a "Stockist" who has trained with the famous Annie Sloan as a condition of carrying her line of paint.

What was more exciting, is that in searching for a Stockist I was delighted to find that we have one  in Bath Ontario; Elizabeth at The Melon Patch 

I had the wonderful opportunity of meeting Elizabeth earlier this week to stock up on some supplies and "pick her brain" for some basics with regard to using the Chalk Paints.

That's where this hideous little chair comes in.

Rather than tackling one of the larger items on my renew/redo list, I thought I'd start small in order to get a feel for the paint!!! 

So here's a little blogography of my process!

First I cleaned the chair with a little soap and water and dried it well.

I applied two coats of Graphite for my undercoat.

I must say that the paint was so very creamy and went on well.

I used a damp brush to apply a lighter coat the second time through.

How about this Primer Red?? Oh my GEE, I love this colour!

Totally does NOT fit in with my coastal theme, but I had to get into this deliciousness right away!

I applied two coats of the Red, leaving some of the Graphite show through.

That was a little scary, but I want to create a similar effect on my larger pieces and the next time, I'm going to get a little less uniform and expose the layers even more I think!

Two coats of  French Linen to the seat, followed by some serious scuffing!!

A coat of clear wax.......Never was partial to waxing my floors or my car, but I have to say this was kind of fun!

Then the good part- the DARK wax.......again, a little scary as it is quite dark, but I applied it sparingly with the proper brush and my fears quickly faded when I realized it's actually quite nice to work with. Being a Chalk paint Virgin, I must say that I'm looking forward to working on my next piece, which is a mirror that I spent many hours tole painting....... Out with the Old, in with the New!

I think perhaps that there will be many many more projects in the works!