Staircase Progress

Pheew!
The staircase is much more work than I thought it would be. I started sanding the rails Monday morning, primed and painted 2 coats of what I thought was pretty dark....turned out it wasn't the right color I was going for

So I went with Bombay Mahogany Satin Finish from Minwax over the current coats and I might actually do one additional coat on top of that but I need a break today....I actually have to go to work :-)

Here is the first coat of the railing with color choice #1....just slightly darker

In the beginning I envisioned the posters white with dark knobs on top...

(this is after 2 coats of the minwax)

To me it just looked awkward and didn't flow right when I looked at the whole staircase

So what did I do...I sanded them down lightly and painted them all white. 

I think it has a cleaner look to them. What do you think? 

Of course I am not done yet but you get the idea... Next is tackling all these little odds and ends and another coat of white on all the trim...

Happy Hump Day

*HUGS*

Bryn

A Full Size Bed

My youngest turns 13 this coming Friday. 

I asked him what he wanted for his Birthday and he said 

A "Full" size bed...

Mom went shopping since the boy is turning into a teen and he's always been very tall for his age, so it's only fair that he rests comfortably in his own big boy bed! 

These are the before pictures of his bedroom. 

I decided to snap photos without picking up the stuff from the floor but however I did make his bed...let's just be realistic...the kid is a slob and even though there is a no eating policy upstairs he consistently breaks that rule and stuffs the wrappers behind the bed or in those drawers underneath.... When his brother moved to college this fall he decided he would take over the basement and moved his desk down there so his bedroom is mainly for  sleeping. 

Today I need to take apart this bedroom and empty it. I am planning on shampooing the carpets and cleaning the walls (one wall is chalkboard paint- very cool)

Tomorrow is delivery day for the new bed and dresser so you have to wait until then for show and tell.... Make sure you stop by then

Monday *HUGS* 

Bryn

Brimfield Adventure

Okay, I admit it...I am bad with dates, and all numbers...I am surprised that I can count!
I messed up the dates for Brimfield Antique Show and a FB friend nicely pointed that out to me before I left. I was still going on a field trip in my head. I wasn't going to let a little mistake change anything about that. So off I went...There was still bunch of antique sales going on and tag sales. Miles and miles of tents were up and dealers from here and there were still cleaning up. I had a fabulous day with a good friend, cruising through Brimfield and Sturbridge. We ate lunch in a very charismatic restaurant...It was so quaint and the weather was beautiful. Perfect Day!
I was able to pick up some junk...Junk to some folks but treasures with a purpose for me.
I hit a great tag sale and here is what I picked up:

#1 Mirror

$4

#2 Rocking Chair

$4

#3 Copper Plates

50 Cents Each

#4 large Picnic Basket

$3

#5 Tall Bar Stool

$2

#6 steel spoon

"free"

Needless to say I have been very busy this weekend....Not much has been done in relation to housework or cooking...But that's alright....It's a weekend!

I started on the rocking chair. When I saw it I knew what I wanted to do with it. I cleaned it up a bit and then added 1 coat of Annie Sloan Paris Grey. I waxed the seat a little bit with clear coat and left it as it. What do you think?

Doesn't it look pretty? It's not secure enough to sit in so I am using it as a flower holder. The Orange Mum's I had already picked up look beautiful together

More to come on the rest of the projects as I work through them

Enjoy your Sunday 

Chalk Paint and Chair Makeover

My girlfriend Cindy called me yesterday morning and said that she was in the driveway and had something for me. I ran out thinking that she was bringing me a homemade Banana bread or warm cookies...(joke)

 She opened the trunk of her car and whipped out 2 chairs she found in the trash.

They were dirty and beaten up but pretty sturdy. I could see why someone didn't want them anymore.

She asked if I could use them or do something to them...We made a deal, we would both get one each but it was my job to refinish them babies...

I used Anne Sloan Chalk Paint and Wax that I had bought previously

I started sanding them down and cleaning, there was a lot of cobwebs stuck in there

I decided to paint the first one in Paris Grey, I think I might have found my favorite paint so far...it goes on thick and dries quickly...so nice...

I roughed it up and sanded after 2 coats- it was incredibly easy to weather it since the paint is so chalky

 I felt doing something different to the seat so I went online to The Graphics Fairy and she has the best free downloads. Choose from vintage signs or beautiful drawings, so beautiful!
I read a couple of blogs to see how to transfer the image to wood. She has a good tutorial on her website and links. At first I printed the image on a card stock...Fail!

So I started all over again. Sand down, repaint and sand again

Here are both of the chairs before the transfer. I choose Ann Sloan chalk paint in white for the 2nd chair

Same thing...printed out an image from the http://graphicsfairy.blogspot.com/

on regular printer paper....and reverse picture

I choose this image for the grey chair. Vintage Paris Style.  

I love it!

I choose this one for the white chair.

There were missing tabs that cover the ugly sight of screws on the white chair so I painted these little wood roses grey and glued them over the gap. 

I waxed the chairs and sanded them again to get a smooth finish

Now the fight starts over who gets which chair :-)

Here is the link for the transfer method I used: 

http://www.graphicsfairy-diy.com/2012/01/12-easy-image-transfer-methods-for-diy.html

And here is a blog from a lady in Australia that I found really helpful

http://irestorestuff.blogspot.com/2012/02/french-shabby-chic-serving-tray.html?showComment=1344132313323#c26055070241183809

 All the best!

A Little Tray Goes A Long Way

I love trays. Big small medium I use them all.

I found this unfinished square one at AC Moore and immediately thought wow... perfect size for me when I eat my breakfast on the patio. So with that in mind I started the project. 

I wanted white weathered look but with an accent to it so I started going through my 12x12 papers and they fit perfectly inside. So armed with white paint and decoupage I started.

I found this perfect paper. looked so good on there...

The tray was painted and I started the decoupaging ...once...twice and...fail

Too many bubbles...it seemed such a simple task but I was failing at it miserably. So I did what I do best...I left it overnight and started all over next morning. 

Here is my 2nd try with a new sheet. FAIL!

This is a brand new day and third time is a charm...It looked kind of bathroom-y after all...so this breakfast tray got a job upstairs in the master bedroom for now!

It looks perfect with my lotions and potions