Louvered Door Dresser

My sister, Emily,  moved to the charming town of Pacific Grove, which if you remember,  is the place I got my start in the furniture-selling business at Blessings Boutique.  It is a picturesque, seaside town filled with shops and victorians overlooking the crystal clear waters of the Monterey Bay.  I drive around the bay weekly to see my sister and nephews.  I cannot resist sharing this adorable picture my sister took of me holding her youngest, Ezra, at the beach.  

We have a bit of a weekly ritual while I am visiting PG.  First, we meet at Happy Girl Kitchen for an organic coffee or refreshing kombucha. Then, while Emily's older boys are still in school, we like to go to sushi at the freshest and bestest of sushi restaurants around: Crystal Fish.  Next we hit the plethora of thrift shops in the area.  We finish up the day by picking the nephews up from school, going to the beach, and getting delicious organic ice cream from Kai Lee Creamery.  

I found this vintage dresser at one of the thrift shops in Pacific Grove.  I was drawn to the lovely, louvered doors.

I painted the dresser with one coat of Old Ochre Chalk Paint®.  

I replaced the old hardware with these adorable, distressed bird pulls that can be purchased at Emily's and my online shop:  www.relovedliving.com.

Little birdies!

I sanded the dresser heavily, especially the louvered doors, to make them look like old shutters. Chalk Paint® distesses so nicely with 220 grit sandpaper and it was easy to get to the wood because I only used one coat of paint.

French Provincial Hutch with Chicken Wire

I recently came across this french provincial hutch at a yard sale.  I can never pass on a frenchy piece, so this one came back to the shop with me for a little makeover.

The hutch was done in the typical cream and gold, which is a common look for the reproduction french provincial furniture made in  the 1970's.  I wanted to make the piece look more like an old world French antique than a tacky, vintage reproduction.

I gave it a softer look by painting it with Coco Chalk Paint®.  I wanted to create a weathered look to make the piece look authentically older. After applying two coats of Coco Chalk Paint®, I made a wash by mixing 50% Old Ochre Chalk Paint® with 50% water. I painted the wash on in sections and blended it over the Coco with a rag.

BEFORE

AFTER

The Old Ochre muted the Coco and transformed it into a soft, warm, neutral grey. After the wash dried, I applied a coat of Annie Sloan Clear Wax, which made the color even more beautiful and added a smooth, creamy look. I coated the brass hardware with rustic brown spray paint to offer a nice contrast with the paint.

I painted the, previously gold, back and shelves with Old Ochre to brighten up the inside of the hutch.

The final part of the transformation was taking the glass out and replacing it with chicken wire that was also sprayed a rustic brown.   

The transformation from 1970's French provincial to antique French country is complete!

China Cabinet with Secretary

I picked up this china cabinet from the flea market recently for a great price toward the end of the day. It is really heavy and I could tell the man selling it wanted to get rid of it, so he didn't have to haul it back home again.

I love the doors, trim moldings and metal wire fronts on the cabinet.  The man that sold it to me also gave me the orignial old skeleton key that locks all the cabinet doors.

This cabinet is really special and even has a secret secretary in the center, disguised as a drawer.

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I mixed a batch of Chalk Paint® using equal parts French Linen and Old Ochre.  The resulting color is a soft and pretty, warm grey.

I clear waxed the entire piece and applied the dark wax with an artist brush only along the edges, grooves, and molding to bring out the details on this lovely piece of furniture.

The upper cabinet was dark inside, so I lightened it up by painting the interior with Old Ochre Chalk Paint®.

This amazing cabinet did not last very long at Loot.  This is one that I would have kept for myself, had I the space for it. Besides being easy on the eyes, it is also a very functional piece.  I love the amount of storage it has and the added convenience of a little desk, which is an ideal place for sitting to write letters and/or pay bills.

Amazing Chalk Paint® Transformation on Oak Kitchen Cabinets

A few months ago, I was hired to paint the dated, oak cabinets in this spacious kitchen.  The owners wanted a custom look without replacing all the cabinetry, which would be quite costly in a kitchen this size.  

Before

The kitchen looked drab and uninviting before, with the heavily grained oak overpowering the whole space. It was definitely the perfect time for a fresh look in this kitchen.

After

After scrubbing the cabinet doors with an orange oil cleaner, I applied three coats of Old Ochre Chalk Paint® to cover the open grain of the oak. I sanded all the doors using super fine, 600 grit sandpaper before painting the third coat.  After the final coat of paint, I used 220 grit sandpaper to sand all the edges, adding dimension to the drawers and doors. When all the sanding was done, I applied two coats of Annie Sloan's Clear Wax over the paint and the finish turned out smooth and silky.

The man of the house, who happens to be a contracter with an eye for detail, was fairly skeptical that Chalk Paint® would live up to its reputation as the best paint in the world.  I think he was also a little bit doubtful in my ability to handle painting a kitchen this large all by myself and, although I did not let it show, I was a bit doubtful myself (my business partner sprained her ankle the first day on the job). However, by the time I finished painting all the cabinets, he was singing praises!

The old linoleum was replaced with a rich, dark, hardwood, which offers the perfect complement to the creamy cabinetry.

Initially, the owners were considering replacing the tile countertops with a solid surface, like granite, but after seeing the painted cabinets paired with the tile, they love the combination and decided to keep the tile.

They put iron cup pulls and knobs on the cabinetry, which definitely added to the new custom look of the kitchen.

 Old Ochre is a beautiful, soft color and it brings much needed warmth to this spacious kitchen.

Another enhancement the owners added to the cabinetry, is the lovely crown molding on top. This is such a small detail, but it made a monumental improvement to the look of the kitchen cabinets. 

The final improvement to this kitchen was replacing the boxed-in flourescent light with an elegant iron light fixture.  What a lovely kitchen we created together!

Pretty Paloma Dresser

Paloma Chalk Paint is a soft, pretty, lavender with grey undertones.  Annie Sloan knows how to create beautiful colors!

I recently moved and I needed a dresser for my new room.  I had this old, black dresser in my closet at my previous house and decided to spruce it up and bring it out of the closet.

I love it so much more painted with pretty Paloma!  The crystal pulls and silver keyhole look lovely with this subtle shade of lavender.

I found the perfect pair of vintage lamps at a yard sale for $10 each.  They are actually brass, if you can believe it?  I have never seen brass lamps in this shape.  I love these unique, French shaped lamps so much, that I knew I would keep them for myself.

I love using Chalk Paint on metal because it adheres so well and looks so natural.  I painted so many layers of paint on these, that I do not remember the exact order or colors.  It was something like this:  Old Ochre base coat, French Linen second coat, a lot of distressing, then an old ochre wash followed by a little more Old Ochre with a dry brush.

I needed a mirror to complete my bedroom vignette.  I just went shopping at Loot and took home this large, shapely, vintage mirror that I painted a few months ago.  I got it for $10 at The Salvation Army.  The frame is a plastic material, not wood, but you would never know by looking at it now.  Chalk Paint does amazing things!  I painted one coat of Pure White on the mirror frame and finished it with a wash of French Linen.  Because the plastic frame was dark brown and had faux wood grain the one coat of Pure White makes the mirror look like white washed wood.

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Vintage Dresser and Bed Set

I picked this vintage dresser and bed up at a yard sale in Sacramento.  

The set had been covered in a red enamel that was cracking and peeling in places.  I did not want to strip the entire surface, so I peeled off the red paint, in the places it was flaking off, and filled it in with wood filler.  After sanding the wood filler to level it, I was ready to start painting.

I did not get a before picture of the dresser, but I did snap a blurry picture, with my phone, half-way through painting the headboard.

I painted the drawers, top, and sides with Old Ochre Chalk Paint and the trim and knobs with Old White.  

I finished the little dresser with Annie Sloan's clear wax.

Look at the lovely, curved foot board on this bed!

I love the monochromatic combination of Old Ochre and Old White together.

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