A Custom Cabinet

A friend of mine recently asked me if I could restore an old mirror and cabinet she had but wasn’t loving it anymore. I of course jumped at the idea! It was fun working with her to pick out the paint color and overall style for her furniture. She picked Annie Sloan Old White for both pieces which I think is a great first choice.

I loved the shape of the cabinet I knew a little paint would spruce it right up! I painted over the hardware and then took a rag and instantly wiped the paint away leaving a weathered look.

I loved the glass knob she already had, and left that as is.

I painted the inside of the cabinet paris grey one of my favorite colors.

Here is the before and after!

New and fresh! I didn’t forget about the mirror, here is a before and after.

Chalk Paint

It was only a matter of time before I would be posting about Chalk Paint. All the other bloggers I follow were doing it so I had to  try, and now I am addicted! If you have never heard about Chalk Paint then at this point you probably think I am crazy, so let me explain. I have recently been using Annie Sloan’s Chalk Paint. It’s not chalk board paint as some might think. It’s a two-step process of painting furniture (or anything really) and then waxing it. That’s right, that’s all you have to do! No sanding, no stripping, no priming, nothing. It’s awesome, it’s fun to work with and as I said before I am addicted! I have painted many pieces that I will share later this week. Today I wanted to share my very first painting experience so you can see even a novice like me can turn something old and ugly into new and pretty.

I thought for my first “experiment” piece I would try our old entryway table, which since we moved has been sitting in the basement. It is a nice little table in good condition, but it was ready for a makeover!

I did two coats of paint since the wood was so dark. You will not believe how fast this paint dries, seriously 20 minutes and you can start the second coat! You can see how it gets its name, it looks really chalky and powdery before you wax it. I distressed the piece before I waxed.

Here it is all waxed and buffed!

So cute, right!?