Last weekend I had a paint demo at one of my retail locations, Serendipity Market, and I painted this adorable little end-table and answered people’s questions about their upcoming projects. Don’t worry if you missed it – I have another demo coming up this Saturday – (more on that HERE).
I had grabbed this little french provincial end table at a Thrift Store for $29.96. Lots of folks have this type of furniture handed down from their childhood bedrooms or their grown children’s bedroom. I had a set like this in white when I was a little girl, complete with a canopy bed, and I just cringe when I think about how my mom got rid of it!
As you can see it was in rough shape with peeling veneer and black writing. Ahem, why do thrift stores use this obnoxious black crayon to write on their furniture?
During the paint demo I was talking so much I was only able to paint one coat of Moody onto the table and then wax the legs.
Usually I use a Mr. Clean Magic Eraser to get these drawn on numbers off of thrifted furniture but since Heirloom Traditions has such awesome coverage I didn’t even mess with it and just painted right over it.
I decided not to distress this piece because the original finish was looking a little orange next to the blue grey hue of the paint.
I used the paint to create lots of yummy texture when I brushed it on so when I applied the White Lime wax it nestled into all of those cracks and crevices I created with my brush.
See what I mean. White Lime is like adding a layer of magic to your piece.
And guess what? I sill had paint left in my sample pot after painting two coats onto this table.
I’m off to find something else to paint in Moody so I don’t waste a drop of paint. I have another demo coming up this Saturday – watch this video to learn all the details.
When I revealed Shep’s nursery makeover a few weeks ago I included a flea market dresser as his changing table. I had repainted it in a last minute nesting attempt the week before he was born. I basically threw a drop cloth down in his bedroom and made it my temporary painting station since I couldn’t lift furniture at the time. Hey, I’m not picky about where I let creativity strike me!
I didn’t use any special painting techniques when giving this piece a makeover. I just painted on three coats – yellow can be one of the most transparent colors to work with – so it requires more coats.
Here is how the piece started out. Sorry for the poor iPhone photo! It was the changing table in my 4 1/2 year old’s nursery also – his room was brown and robin’s egg blue with owls.
I didn’t do anything fancy on this piece of furniture. I just painted on three coats and sealed it with Country Chic’s clear and antiquing waxes. They had sent me the small 4oz waxes in my retailer test kit and I didn’t even put a dent it in on this project. This stuff goes a long way! I didn’t distress the piece since I was trying to cover up the previous blue painted finish.
The color is really a statement piece in the room and I love it. The yellow is the perfect mustard color and is a little more grown up looking than a pale yellow color that might typically be used in a baby room.
All of detail in the piece is brought out with the antiquing wax. Sometimes keeping it simple is a great idea. Or maybe I was just pregnant and tired and hoping to bust this project out quickly!
I even snuck a picture of this dresser in Shepherd’s birth announcements. Look at the squishy face! We just love him so. (The baby not the dresser!)
Okay, I know you guys might be tired of me talking about the Ultimate DIY Bundle, but I can’t help it. I don’t want you to miss out on this awesome deal! It’s an amazing resource of 76 eBooks and eCourses for 97% off – that’s $1200 for only $34.95. Plus, one of the bonuses, the Craftsy eCourse, is $70 alone! That’s like getting the Craftsy Course for half off and getting $1,100 worth of awesome tools as well.
Today is the last day to purchase the course – so I just wanted to remind you not to miss it! My eBook, The Lazy Girl’s Guide to Furniture Painting is included but if you already own it then the bundle is still worth it.
Go get your creativity sparked with The Ultimate DIY Bundle – I can’t wait to see what you create!
Back in December I made a display for some upcycled necklaces I made and planned on selling in my retail stores. After chatting it up with you guys online I found out we need to form a support group for those of us who struggle with retail displays. And after forming said support group we all must vow to share our ideas when we whip up a new display. Hence this blog post. So in the spirit of our newly found group of misfit display makers, here is another easy way to display your jewelry at shows or in stores.
I found this lamp at a garage sale over a year ago. I liked the combination of the milk glass and the wood allowed me the possibility to paint it into a little more updated version. But the best part of the lamp was the shade. Yes it’s urgly in it’s current state but have you ever browed Pinterest for vintage lamp shade ideas. It’s a rabbit hole of awesome I would highly recommend.
Of course I painted the lamp in Synergy, my favorite turquoise hue. I don’t know why Turq is my go-to display color? When I host paint demos I love to use turquoise because people stop in their tracks to come see what you are painting. People never react like that to black. Or beige. Or even gray. So based on those reactions I revert to turquoise for displays.
I peeled off the plastic, latex, hospital glove inspired cover on the shade.
(With all of the shade discussion this is starting to feel like a Real Housewives of Atlanta episode. The shade, the shade.)
I bought three sets of these Blue Hawk S hooks at Lowe’s for about $3 each.
I hung them on top of shade and then used the lower hook to hang the necklaces.
Okay, this is not the best picture but I just wanted to show how much light this display gives off. The more lighting you can add to your retail space the better. My pet peeve is when I go into a store and the lighting is terrible.
You can hang a bunch of pieces on a display like this. I think was able to hang 15 necklaces without it looking overcrowded.
Okay, can we just admire a few of my newest pieces?
Follow my Display board on Pinterest for more display ideas and I would love to see your favorite go-to display ideas!
PS: If you are local and out and about this weekend come see me at Serendipity Market this Saturday from 12-2pm.
Last year I set some lofty goals when it came to my home. I documented all I was hoping to accomplish here on the blog – which was my way of secretly shaming myself into getting my bottom into high gear fixing up my home. I was secretly setting myself up for public shaming if I didn’t accomplish anything on the the list. And guess what? It totally werked. I wanted to check in with you guys so you can see all of the progress we made refunking this little nest of ours in 2014. You can see the full list of Home Goals I set for my family HERE. I loved having the photos to look back on all we accomplished and the process really kept me focused when it came to projects I wanted to complete. I will definately do the same this year.
Let’s start off with the entry way. Not super welcoming but not as bad as it used to be. Apparently owning my first home math looks like this: Newlyweds + Target Gift Card Wedding Gifts = Red and Gold Damask.
I can’t even believe this photo was taken just 4 years ago. It looks ancient!
This is how the space started out – Check out the evolution of my entry way here.
And here is the full Entry Way Makeover. I stained some vintage frames with Miss Mustard Seed’s Milk Paint and recovered the seat of the bench in a fun fabric. This project was even featured on a billboard in Times Square during Thanksgiving with Black + Decker. Pretty cool, huh?
We made some major progress in our dining room this year. Here is how it started out – again this photo is 4 years old. It looks like a musuem compared to how it looks now.
I put the finishing touches on the space by spraying the chairs with the Finish Max Fine Finish Sprayer using a chalk-type paint. If you have been hesitant to use a sprayer – DO IT. I completed this project 7 months pregnant in 90 degree Oklahoma heat. It can be done. I also recovered the chairs in a chartreuse green fabric.
I made this DIY Driftwood Runner for less than $10. This project was featured on The Today Show’s website!
The poor plaid valances in my living room needed to be taken down and burned in my backyard. The original owners had them custom made for the space when our home was built in 1999. Yes, like the Prince song. I was also desperate to replace the pillows because I had bought several of them at Ross thinking they would be a temporary fix and they ended up staying for two years.
It certainly pays to have friends in high places because Hayden from Haven Interiors helped me shop for fabric and Sonya from Beyond the Screen Door made all of the drapes and pillow covers for me. Seriously, if you need design services or new drapes – contact these ladies. They are angels sent down from the gods of design.
The new pillows and drapes, although a simple change, were the most drastic change. You can check out all of the deets on the fabric selections and more photos here.
I also added a new rug from Rugs USA to finish off the space.
One surprise that wasn’t on my to-do list was adding another addition to our family! We found out we were expecting in February so that added a few extra things to tackle around our home. Nothing like nesting to get you into home makeover mode. The first project we tackled was painting our unused guest bedroom.
We completed Shep’s Modern Vintage Nursery on a tight $600 budget – and it has quickly become one of our favorite rooms in the house.
I have lots to add to our home goals list for 2015 including a new light fixture in our breakfast nook, painting the exterior of our house, and making over our office space. Looking back on all of the simple and transforming projects we completed last year has been so fun. But my greatest accomplishment has been these two.
If you need help getting your DIY on in 2015 don’t forget to check out The Ultimate DIY Bundle on sale this week only! It contains $1200 worth of DIY Resources (including my eBook!) for only $34.95! Check out all of it’s awesomeness HERE.
I’m off to find something else to paint in Moody so I don’t waste a drop of paint. I have another demo coming up this Saturday – watch this video to learn all the details.
