pleasure in simple things

I am excited to show you a finished piece I have been working on for quite some time.  You may have seen a little sneak peek of my progress a little while back, but today I am showing the completion of the project.  The piece is a special one because it is the only piece of furniture my friend Tracy kept from her mom’s home after she passed away.I wanted to transform this old buffet into something a little more current for Tracy’s home.  First, I did some cleaning of the piece. Then, since the piece had been exposed to a lot of smoke and I was afraid the paint may not adhere properly, I took an extra step of starting with a coat of shellac.  Then, I painted the piece with two coats of Annie Sloan Chalk Paint in Old Ochre, making sure to use visible brush strokes – I think that adds some character for an aged look.

After I had the entire piece painted, I decided I should have kept the top of the piece in a natural wood!  So, I stripped off the paint I had already put on and gave it a really good sanding with an electric sander.  From there, I added three coats of stain and a clear sealer.  I had made the right choice…I loved the way the top came out!

For the rest of the piece, I highlighted some areas with Annie Sloan Country Grey.  I love the subtle contrast between the Old Ochre and the Country Grey paint.  I also added a wash of Country Grey and water to add some depth of color.  Next, I added a coat of Annie Sloan clear wax. I did some light distressing before adding a second coat of wax and added some dark wax in areas.  I think the piece has a great aged look without being overly distressed.

Next, I needed to update the furniture’s hardware.  The original knobs were very simple.  I decided to use something a little more ornate and found some knobs I loved for the piece at Anthropologie.  The pulls were a little harder to figure out.  You can see one of the old pulls above.  I wanted a more updated look, but nothing was available that appealed to me in the width of the old pull.  I ended up making a special order from Klaffs – a large bath and kitchen store in my area.  I would have to fill in the holes from the old pulls and drill new ones to accommodate a newer sized pull.  It took me a couple hours to look through a large selection of pulls before I made a decision, but ordering the new hardware was definitely the right decision…the new pulls are great for the piece!

I think the new hardware is perfect!

Don’t you agree?

And, I think the decision to stain the top of the piece was a great one as well!  The piece is ready for its new home!  I hope it serves Tracy’s mom’s memory proud!

Thanks for stopping by!

Remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie

I’m usually not one to post a painting project until I can share both the before and after photos.

I am breaking that practice today by showing you a couple ‘in process’ photos of a current project for today’s Friday field trip.For a friend, I am painting the only piece of furniture she kept from her childhood home after her mom passed away.

The old buffet gave me some issues right from the start…take my advice, and don’t ever paint a piece that sustained constant smoke for 60+ years!  Anyway, I am getting down to the home stretch with this project .  Here is a little peek.  The photo below is the old and new hardware.  I special ordered new pulls.  Aren’t they nice?  And, I think the knobs I bought look great as well!

The base color of the piece is Annie Sloan Old Ochre. After I had already painted a first coat on the entire piece, I decided I needed to strip and sand down the top of the piece.  Here is a peek of it with the new finish.  It felt great to get rid of that old orangey yellow finish!

I will share all the ‘after’ photos soon – once I have the piece completely finished!

Thanks for stopping by!  I hope I have inspired you to look at an old piece of furniture in a new  way!

Have a great weekend and remember to take pleasure in simple things, Jackie