Floral Bouquets

Now, before you start thinking this is about bouquets of Valentine’s flowers, let me assure you, these are much longer lasting!
I recently completed what I think is one of the absolutely prettiest pieces of furniture I have ever seen! It started with the drawers. 

I loved the carved detail on them.  A little elbow grease and furniture wax, and the drawers started to shine!


So excited about the drawers, I started work on the cabinet doors.  The glass doors cleaned up pretty quickly, and very pretty!  I love the detail on these doors!

   

I couldn’t wait to start on the carved doors.  I have never seen prettier carved pieces. 


So excited, I started on the outer cabinet.  To my dismay, it was in a little worse shape than the drawers and doors.    However, inspiration soon    struck, and I thought this would be a perfect piece to have a little fun with!  A coat of grey, some distressing, and wax, and the piece had been reborn! 
As much as I fell in love with this piece, I was reminded that I am on a bit of a diet… furniture diet that is!  So, the piece is now in my booth, patiently awaiting a new home! 





Oh well, I have always felt flowers were much prettier shared! 

Happy Painting! 

Karen




   

Technorati Tags: furniture,antique,floral,french country

Happy Valentine’s Day!

 

Just wanted to wish all of you a very Happy Valentine’s Day!

Shhhh….. Don’t tell my Honey, but I have a special potion brewing for him.

I kissed a lot of toads in my life, but he is definitely my Prince! 

I have some awesome pieces I have been working on.  Can’t wait to share them.  However, I just wanted to wish you a wonderful Valentine’s Day and to let you know how much I appreciate you!  Now, I need to hide the chocolate.. from myself… 

 

Happy Painting with Love!

 

Karen

French Provencal Desk

Has the town next to yours ever been having a Town Wide Garage Sale… on a Saturday… that you can not make?  What is a girl to do? 
You do a drive through the day before and hope  you spot a “I have to have that NOW” piece!
Such was the case with this piece. 

Can you blame me?  Oh, I see I was so excited, I forgot to take  pictures before I took off the hardware and started to clean off the …  uummm…. grime….., yeah, that is a safe word for what may  have been on this desk.      She sure had some sexy legs though.. just a little dirty!
However, I knew that it was nothing that a good scrub and a fresh coat of paint couldn’t cure. 

Hmmm, I am thinking this beauty to be has much more character than one color of paint would show.  Time to kick it up a notch!

Ahhh, getting better, but now she needs  a bit of sparkle….and I need my spectacles…  This is a first for me….


Now to bring out some of her hidden character..




And add a faux marbled top…

She moves into a temporary home. 

If you are near Bellville, TX, this piece can be found at Nothing Ordinary Antiques, but not for long! 
What treasures are you working on?
Happy Painting!

Karen

Technorati Tags: French,furniture

DONE with my Word of the Year

 

A few days ago, I ran across a post from The Lettered Cottage.

 Layla is hosting a Word of the Year party.  I laughed, thought of a few words, and went about my day. 

Over the last few days, the post continued to nag at me.  My conscience can be very annoying sometimes!  What word would really define my year and my goals?  One word….

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I went back to working on a piece of furniture that I wanted to repaint to add to my booth.  I was then sidetracked.  I started working on another piece that I wanted to finish before my Honey returned home from a trip.  I needed to cook dinner, throw in a load of laundry…

My mind wondered again… one word….

I realized I never actually sat down this year to write out my goals and resolutions.  I have a mental list, but I have a few other projects that need my attention more. 

Frustration started to set in.  Several projects started, none completed. 

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Why am I getting nowhere?  Nothing seems to be getting DONE.

So it was time for a change!  I sat down, and made myself a list. 

Then I realized what I  needed to do.  I need to focus on a few projects at a time.  Due to paint drying times, I can usually juggle a few different  projects at once, but I need to concentrate on finishing one before starting another.  I need to get one thing at a time …

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What stops me on days from getting things accomplished?  A grocery shop, a trip to Home Depot, dinner is cooked, clothes are clean….  A lot was still accomplished, but was anything Done?

 

I guess a lot can depend on your definition of DONE! 

As for my resolutions, already 1 pound is DONE!  My goal of one blog  post per week, so far, DONE!  A few pieces of furniture – DONE!  I can’t wait to look back at the end of my year and see all that I have DONE!

What will you have DONE by the end of the year?

I hope you will stay with me through the year, see all that I can do with paint, creativity, and imagination.  Come December, I hope we can all look back and smile at a

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What is stopping you from getting your goals and To Do list Done?  I would love to hear your comments!

Happy Painting! 

 

Karen

Your time is up Oak Cabinet!

 

10 years ago, I was picking out cabinetry for my new house.  I would Ooohhh and aaahhh over gorgeous cherry cabinets, details, mouldings….  I wanted it all!  

 

 From Better Homes and Gardens

Then, the builder reminded me I was on a very small and very tight budget.  Bye bye to my dreams…

Back to the Building Center I go.  Telling the people of my woes, they politely suggested unfinished oak cabinets.  Well, OK, I think…  I mean, I am a faux finisher.  I have painted furniture, walls….  I can do something with these….right???

This is about as far as some cabinets got. 

 

So, 10 years later, it is time for an update!  I pulled out my chalk paint.   Away I went, adding layers of colors,

sanding,

and glazing. 

Yes, you heard me right.  Glazing.  Because these cabinets are in the mud room  and I wanted something more durable.   I also did not want to use a petroleum based wax. 

I figure my cabinets are pretty permanent in my home.  When you use a petroleum based wax, the only way to repaint that item is to strip it.  YUCK!  Isn’t that why many of us are using chalk paint?  We love that we don’t have to strip or sand…

I quickly over glazed with Caromal Colours.  When dry, I added a few quick topcoats of Modern Masters Sealer Master Clear.   Love this stuff! 

I love the new look on the cabinets.   I really love that this was a quick project that took only a couple of hours, sans drying times.  Using all water based products, makes me happy as well.  After 17 years of working with different products, I am very careful about what products I use and what those products are composed of. 

This is one project I can now mark off my list as  “Done”! 

I hope you have been inspired by my post!  I would love to hear from you!

Happy Painting!

Karen

Technorati Tags: cabinets,ASCP,glazing,faux finishes

A New Look for an old Piece

Sometimes, I have a piece of furniture in my “stash” that waits for the right moment or  inspiration to strike before I am ready to give it a new life.  This is one of those pieces.  I bought the piece in Round Top last spring.  I almost made my sister walk home just so the piece would fit in my truck.  Luckily, we were able to all fit together very closely for the 2 hour ride home! 

 The top of the piece had great display space, a glass door, oh, and a little dust when this photo was taken.  Yes, it had sat in my barn a while….

The bottom of the piece had some great lines and detail to it.  I fell in love with the feather like carvings and the curves of the piece.  I can’t tell you how many times I walked by it, envisioned the piece in every color under the sun, day dreamed about how great it would look in my house….  Of course, I have to remind myself that my house is full and I had no room for this piece. 
Then, I heard the angels start to sing…. O.K., in reality, my  phone rang and one of my favorite clients said he needed a piece for his office and he needed it quickly.  You may remember this client from this piece I did for him.  Did I ever mention that his wife won?  It never made it to his office!

He needed a piece, and quickly for his first open house for his new business. 

I had little time to spare.  I certainly had no time to take photos during the process. 

I did have time to really have fun with ASCP! 

Since my client was in the financial industry, I thought it would be fun to add an under lying touch of red, overlayed with green tones.  Just a reminder that our economy will improve! 

I never had a chance to photograph the piece in my studio, and I joked with him that I was going to call his wife to see if she wanted it in the house.  When he picked it up, he was thankful I didn’t call her.  It would have never made it to his office. 

This piece is happy to have a new life in a new home! 

Here is to a new life for this piece of furniture, and a great way to start of a New Year!  I hope you have enjoyed this post and will become a follower if you are not already!  I love sharing my projects! 


Happy Painting!  


Karen 

Technorati Tags: furniture,chalk paint

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