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.

Graphite and French Linen China Cabinet

 

A customer at Loot traded me this beautiful china cabinet for a desk I painted.  I love the simple, clean lines and the doors remind me of paned windows.

 

The veneer was damaged in places, which I repaired with Gorilla glue and wood filler.

 

 

 

I painted the exterior of the cabinet with Graphite Chalk Paint.

I applied both Annie Sloan clear and dark waxes to give the Graphite an aged appearance.  I only painted one coat of Graphite Chalk Paint on the moldings and details, so the wood showed through on the details after I waxed the piece.

 

The interior of the cabinet is painted with French Linen Chalk Paint. 

 

 

The clean lines and color combination created quite a sophisticated look.  This cabinet is one of my most masculine makeovers and reminds me of an old doctor's cabinet or an apothecary.

I love horses and I found this ceramic one at a rummage charity sale last week.  He was cracked and chipped everywhere and was falling off his little stand.  I had to rescue him from his fated future at the dump.

 

I filled all the little cracks and chips with wood filler and reattached the horse to his base with Gorilla Glue.  I painted him with Coco Chalk Paint followed by a Graphite wash.

 

He looks regal now, atop the cabinet.

 

 

 

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Whitewashed Gray Dresser

My friend stopped by the shop recently with this beautiful dresser in the back of her car and asked if I wanted to buy it. It is so nice when people bring furniture to me and especially when it is a fine piece like this one! I love the fancy scrolling details and the turned legs on petite caster wheels. 

The front looked like it was missing something on the raised center, so I added some wooden appliques that I acquired a while ago from a yard sale.  

This dresser is really wide and has a divided drawer at the top, so it could also be used as a buffet or sideboard.

I painted two base coats with French Linen Annie Sloan Chalk Paint.  Then I dry brushed Old White over all the details.  

I wanted the color to be more subtle and chalky, so I mixed some Old White Chalk Paint with water to make a wash and painted that mixture over the entire piece.  I whitewashed one drawer at a time and wiped it back with a cloth to leave a thin layer over the gray.

I love the way the French Linen looks with the whitewash over it.  I also whitewashed the lovely hardware on this dresser.

I finished the dresser by lightly distressing here and there.

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Paris Gray and Old White Mirror

My parents rehab houses and they are always finding junk left behind in the rehab houses.  They pulled this large, gold mirror out of one of their rehabs and saved it for me.  My parents are great at fixing up old, run-down properties and they have done this since I was very young. They have always inspired me to see beyond the broken down facade.

The mirror was dusty and gold with raised grape vine designs.

I painted the mirror with Paris Gray Chalk Paint and then dry brushed the corners and edges with Old White.

I applied clear wax over the entire frame and then blended in dark wax for an antiqued look.

I have not used Paris Gray for a while, but after painting this mirror I am reminded what a pretty hue it is.  I am planning on using it again soon on an old dresser waiting for a little relove.

Upholstered French Side Chair

Nancy had this chair for a long time and I offered to reupholster it for her.  It had been sitting in the corner of Loot, since we opened with just the stuffing, since she had removed the previous fabric. I love the lines of this French chair with the round back and curved legs.  Unfortunately, I do not have a before picture.  

Nancy painted the frame of the chair with French Linen Chalk Paint and then I applied clear and dark wax before upholstering.

Nancy and I went to our local fabric store and picked out this fun, linen, zebra-striped fabric.  

I cut the fabric pieces for the front, back, and seat and then I procrastinated upholstering it for over a month.  I am not always confident with my upholstering skills and sometimes I put off working on projects that intimidate me.  I would love to find the time to take an upholstery class to learn more.  I do not know how to make double welting yet, so for now I used natural, linen-colored gimp to cover up the upholstery staples.  

Upholstering this chair was easier than I anticipated and my mom's pneumatic staple gun, no doubt, helped immensely.  

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French Linen Buffet

My friend gave me this amazing, old buffet.  One of her friends gave it to her and she did not have space in her house, so she passed it on to me, thinking that I may be able to salvage it.  

The details on this buffet are very special, but it was in pretty rough shape.  I will take you through all the repairs I made to it.

First, I had to flip it over and clamp and wood glue the legs because they were a little wobbly.

Some of the beaded wood trim was missing from the doors of the buffet and I was worried that both sides would not match.  Then, I noticed this strip of trim that ran down the center, between the two doors.  I used a flat head screwdriver to pry it off in sections and used that to patch the missing parts on the doors.

Now all the trim on the doors is complete.

Mr. Rubbish put this drawer, that came to me in pieces, back together again.

One of the drawer pulls was broken off when I got it.  Nancy had some JB Welds, so I mixed that up and clamped the pull to the broken, metal post inside the drawer, clamped it, and waited for it to dry. I was relieved that it worked because I like the old hardware and I did not want to replace any of it.

I dry brushed Old White Chalk Paint over all the lovely wood trim and appliques.  The Old White really made the details stand out and the details are what I love most about this piece.

I decided to do one coat of paint instead of two because I liked how the wood grain underneath showed through.

I waxed the entire buffet with Annie Sloan clear wax and buffed it to create a soft sheen.

I put it in the front room at Loot and we sold out of French Linen Chalk Paint this weekend because so many customers loved the look of the buffet.

I have to admit that this is one of my all time favorite pieces too!

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