I love lamps! I picked up a pair at a yard sale a few weeks ago. The finish was dated but the “bones” were good. They are nice and heavy but the finish was dated.
Nothing a little paint can’t fix.
Sprayed with grey paint.
Then for a little more interest, I did somewhat of a whitewash with gesso. It toned down the paint and added a little depth.
The original shades were definitely not a match for the lamps so I bought shades and added a beaded trim.
Installed in the shop!
I picked up this curio cabinet last Saturday at an estate sale on Cape Cod.
Nothing a little white paint (Chantilly Lace) and toile can’t cure.
The original applique was kind of blah…..so I changed that too. Something more in keeping with the with toile.
Already installed in the shop.
Gotta love a quick flip!
I love the soft curves of Art Deco style furniture. When I saw this piece, I had to have it! For me! I thought it would be perfect a sideboard in my kitchen/dining area.
It could have been used ‘as is’ but there were veneer issues so I decided to deal with them and then repaint it.
It turned out it was too big for my kitchen and so off to the shop it went. Boohoo! Such a beauty.
I use white paint A LOT! Not because it’s the only one that I like but because it can fit into so many color schemes. That’s important when you sell furniture…mass appeal’ish. I love doing Flow Blue and other gorgeous colors and I would like to do them more often but I always need white in my booth. They’re just more likely to sell.
So why is it that when I finally get a piece that is white I feel inclined to paint it something other than white?
Once I stripped the top, I just wasn’t ‘feeling’ it. So it sat in the garage over the winter until inspiration hit.
I thought Paris Grey & Louis Blue (ASCP) were in order.
Then Miss Mustard Seed’s White wax to tone it down. I was loving the look and even decided to keep the original wood knobs.
A little German Silver wax and it was good to go!
I wasn’t even sure how to label this post. It was a colossal amount of work. I kinda, sorta knew what I was getting myself into when I bought it and if it hadn’t been so cheap I would run away in a heartbeat! I thought at very least it would be an education in what NOT to do.
The appliques on the doors (which were my favorite part) had pretty much crumbled. I glued the pieces that I had back on and then used Bondo (used for repairing auto bodies) to make the missing parts. When that was dry (it dries very quickly) I used a blade to carve the parts to blend in.
(I don’t have any before pictures because I started working on it before Christmas last year and then it was put away for the holidays. Then my computer died…pictures were lost….yada yada. Plus, I needed to build my stamina to tackle this one!)
The top was a mess and rather than try to repair the veneer (been there, done that…not fun), I chose to take it all off revealing the most beautifully imperfect top. A little dark stain called Kona (I think – it’s been a while) and the top was beautiful.
The veneer on the upper right recessed panel was bubbled so I sanded it as best I could and called it a day. A couple of years ago I would have obsessed over it but not anymore….I‘ve learned that people embrace imperfection in beautiful old pieces.
Thankfully all of the old hardware was there and it just needed a bath.
With that, it was off to the shop where it took up residence for a week and then sold!
I’ve always had a thing for old windows. Years ago I dragged my dad out with his pick-up truck when a local nursery had changed out their windows and there was a stack of the oldies outside. He was always game for my nonsense and we loaded up his truck. I hoped to one day make a greenhouse with them but dad is now gone so…. so is that dream.
I’ve since dug into the stash and done some upcycling. You can see some of those projects here.
My latest project is similar to this one that I have over my bed….
I did this one for the shop……
I used waistband elastic to hold the pictures in place. I glued two strands across each pane on the sides (you can see them below) so that the pics can be easily changed out.
NEXT!
I have been experimenting with Miss Mustard Seed’s Milk Paint and I must say, I like it!
I chose to strip only the top of this one and not the ‘body’. I love the look.
I did the same treatment on this.
I have a fetish. For lamps! Lighting is so key to setting the feel in a room because it creates so much ambiance. I even have a routine for when certain lamps are turned on in my house.
Like furniture, old lamps can be recycled too. The old ones are usually quite nice and solid, and heavy ! Like this one.
This is a big one! For reference, that the covered BBQ in the background!
Nice lines. Ugly finish. Nothing a little spray paint can’t handle!
Maybe a little sump’in else?
Silver Guilder’s Paste maybe?
The old shade seemed a little off scale.
How about a hand-tyed rag shade?
Despite the shadow in the pic, I like it!
When it comes to furniture I am all about curves. I love ‘em! I am not a fan of mid-century modern nor Eastlake. That’s not to say that they aren’t nice but hard lines are not for me.
There is one ‘style’ (and I hesitate to use that word because it certainly is ‘stylish’) is 70’s chunky pine with a dark stain. Like this…
Uh-uh-uh-ugly! I would never have picked this up but it was dropped off in my driveway. Free is good. As I pondered how I would get rid of it, I thought that since it couldn’t look worse than it already did, I would play with it. Out with the grey paint….
A little distressing.
A little better.
Add some appliques?
Hmmmmm……. I thought this one couldn’t be rescued but it’s not tooooo bad!
