Happy 4th!

For just a few dollars you can make a fun American Flag table or coffee table. Pick up an old wooden pallet (often for free behind businesses...make sure to ask if it's OK to take one) or purchase one off eBay, Craigslist and some local lumberyards sell them.

Pick up some Annie Sloan Chalk Paint in Emperor's Silk, Napoleonic and Old White. I get mine from Shades of Amber in Monument CO (where I also work, so pop in and say hello). http://www.shadesofamber.net You can order an awesome star stencil from Royal Design Stencils http://www.royaldesignstudio.com/products/polka-star-stencil

You can make something that is super quick and easy and only takes a few minutes to paint! See what www.mom4real.com did! How adorable is this!

Upload your photos of your projects!

Happy 4th ya'll!

Is it spring yet?

It sure feels like spring is never coming! We have had more snow and cold weather this year than any I remember in a very long time! What is a girl to do when it is so cold and blustery out? Paint, of course!

One thing I really love about using Annie Sloan Chalk Paint is that it has almost no smell! That means, I can throw a drop cloth on the floor and paint a piece of furniture wherever it happens to be in the house. My favorite spot to paint is in our family room. The entire back of our house has huge big windows, so if the sun is out, it is a great place for painting.

Speaking of Annie Sloan Chalk Paint (and paint in general), you need to keep your paint in the house during colder months because it will freeze and turn into something that looks like cottage cheese. Your paint and your furniture should be at about 67 degrees. You might not like the results you get if you try painting in a cold garage, with cold paint and cold furniture. Trust me on this one.

Here's a glimpse of what I am working on:

What would you like to see on this?

Not all paint and wax is created equal

Since it is sub zero degrees in many parts of America, I thought I would share a little paint and wax care and a little about why I prefer, and love, Annie Sloan Chalk Paint and wax.

This time of year, it gets below freezing in many parts of the world. Paint, not just Annie Sloan, but most paints like an ambient temperature of about 68 degrees Fahrenheit. If you don't keep your paint inside (basement is usually fine), your paint will freeze and that will change the consistency. It will turn into paint cottage cheese. Yuck! And then, your paint is wasted! So, bring in your paint and hope it hasn't frozen already. Also, your furniture likes to be warm too, so you either need to bring it inside to paint or warm up your painting space a couple hours before you paint. Your wax is probably fine if it gets a little cold, but you will want to bring it to room temperature before applying as it will be easier to work with.

Is there a difference between Annie's paint and other so called, "chalk" paints. YES! Annie Sloan Chalk Paint is non-toxic (in fact my coworker Jen drank some thinking it was her coffee...she assures me it does not taste very good), very low VOC, lead free, odor free and EG free. You just can't say the same about most others. A lot of people have tried to make their own chalk paint by adding things like sandless grout, Plaster of Paris or baking soda to latex paint. Pretty toxic stuff. The other couple issues are: it is next to impossible to get your homemade paint to be smooth, so you end up with some pretty gritty paint and it is pretty difficult to get your color to match if you need to make another batch, and thirdly, when you figure the cost per item of using Annie's paint versus making your own, it comes out about the same, so why not use the best? Most knock-off paints are made using latex and Annie Sloan Chalk Paint is not. I don't know exactly what's in this magical goodness of paint, but this stuff goes forever and is so delicious! (looking that is, not tasting).

A little on wax. Most waxes are designed to sit on top of a surface, whereas Annie Sloan Clear Wax is designed to actually be absorbed into this scrumptious paint to help in the curing process. Speaking of wax, more is not always better when it comes to wax. A little goes a long way. If you use too much, you are just wasting your wax! I even use Annie's wax on other paints like Miss Mustard Seed. There is a ton of really, really bad information on how to use Annie's wax, so make sure you are getting the right information from the right source. Try to find a stockist or go to Annie Sloan Unfolded to watch her tutorials.

The Princess Bed

Awhile back, I was contacted by a very special friend, Nora, who wanted me to paint a bed for her daughter. Nora's family is very near to my heart as their family has been affected by cancer too. Little Abigail is three and a half, and up until now, has shared a bedroom with her big brother. Her little brother is now big enough to move from his crib and thus, Abbie is getting her own room!

What started out as a very ho-hum dull bed has been transformed into something so, so sweet. An older maple twin bed, missing the spindles, pretty scratched up and looking yucky! The only perimeters were in needed to match the colors of her bedroom. The colors in the bedroom are brown, pink and one other that I keep forgetting. Abbie's request was for hot pink (which I love) but I wanted to paint the bed so when she finally tires of hot pink, her bed will grow with her. Hmmmm, how do I do that?

Perusing Pinterest for color ideas, I came across the GORGEOUS bed painted with Coco, Antoinette and Old White. So, off to the mixing room (AKA the kitchen) to make my own custom colors.

I made a mix of about 2 parts Antoinette to one part Coco (kinda looks like melted Neapolitan ice cream) and painted a coat and a half. Then I made a color wash of Antoinette and slapped it on, let it sit for a few minutes and wiped off the excess. The look is amazing! I topped it with one coat of clear wax.

 But, the bed needed a little something. So, I used a little Miss Mustard Seed Antique wax in the crevices. Now, if you wonder why I didn't use AS dark wax, it is because MMS antique wax allows a little more precision. Still, it wasn't done. I mixed Old White and Clear Wax and used an old rag to hodge podge the bed. Still....it wasn't done. It was looking pretty good, but needed a little shimmer for our very precious little princess, so I used a fine paint brush and applied a silver gilding wax. Perfect! It will get one more coat of clear wax and a good buffing to give it a high shine and then, it will be perfect for Abbie!

The sign of a Productive Day

Island Fever

It's been awhile since I have checked in. Life has been so busy, but I am finally slowing down and finishing up some small projects and starting a couple big ones.

I was commissioned to redo a boring oak kitchen island in an otherwise great space. This island was begging to be redone. It had been painted black, but the paint was starting to chip off. (This is why painting cabinetry with standard oil base paint can be a bad idea). It took a little bit of work to convince the resident that French Linen with clear and dark wax would give her the look she wanted, but in the end, I told her if it wasn't exactly what she wanted, I would redo it. After the first couple coats of ASCP French Linen, said resident loved the color. But wait! There's more! After the clear coat of wax, the piece was looking lovely, but not quite done yet.. As soon as I started putting the dark wax on, she started crying! OK, not really, but in my imagination she was. ;-) However, she did absolutely love it, and was amazed at how adding a little dimension through wax changed the entire look. What do you think? Feel free to ask questions, or leave a comment.

Springtime = creative juices flowing!

I'm finally getting some energy back and not in such pain. (yea!). The mister has been requesting I clear out my work space (AKA the garage) and since I've been feeling super creative lately, I decided it is time to get busy! I am reminded of my favorite quote from the movie, "Shawshank Redemption", "You can get busy living, or you can get busy dying". Since I have no plans on dying today, I'll just get busy instead.

A while back, I wrote about the antique buffet I scored at GW (Goodwill). Built, I am guessing, in the 1940's. It had a pretty rough paint job, but has great bones about it and in otherwise great shape. Not really sure what I wanted to do with it, I started by stripping the top with my favorite citrus stripper (not to be confused with Gypsy Rose, which is a totally different kind of stripper). Once the top was bare, it revealed itself to be a beautiful cherry wood. Score! All the top needed was a fine sanding and some new stain.

before

I painted the rest in ASCP Old White, but it was too white. As with every project I work on, it evolves and sometimes gets multiple colors. So, I ended up going with ASCP in Old Ochre. Old Ochre is one of my favorites. It is a creamy color with slightly yellow undertones. I topped it with three coats of clear wax. Speaking of wax, I can't remember if I have ever talked about furniture wax in any sort of detail? There really is a difference in quality of waxes, so get a good quality like Annie Sloan or Hemmet's. You usually have to go to an antique store to get some of the better waxes. Big box stores just don't carry the really good stuff. I know some people swear by Minwax, but trust me, go up a step and get something better. You will be so much happier. I've been using AS waxes because they are super creamy and easy to work with. You can apply with a wax brush and let it sit a couple of minutes and start rubbing off the excess. I actually use old t-shirts because they don't deposit lint on everything and if who doesn't have old t's around? When I run out, I run to my local GW, and they have bags of them for dirt cheap!

After my beauty was all stained, painted, painted, and painted, and waxed, waxed, waxed. I took the original hardware and spray painted...yes, spray painted the hardware in Rustoleum's spray paint for metal in Aged bronze. I love it! Are you ready to see what it looks like now?

What do you think? Leave me a note, I would love to hear from you!