Falling In Love With Ms. Mustard Seed's Milk Paint!

I recently had my first experience with Ms. Mustard Seed's milk paint and it was a total success! I pickup up this vanity that was an aged bright white...you know that color...that white that has a yellowed tint...ugh.  I wanted to play with some different looks and textures, so I ventured out on this one and hoped for the best. Read below for a step by step playbook of this refunked beauty.

1. The VERY BEST thing about CeCe and Ms. Mustard Seed's paints is that there is NO SANDING OR PRIMING...you just start painting!  So, I just jumped right in and dry brushed a think coat of  CeCe Caldwell's Chalk and Clay paint in Young Kansas Wheat. I did this because I did not want all that bright white as a dominate undertone.  WARNING...the chalk paint underneath the milk paint does take away the natural chippiness effect of the milk paint!! So, do not do this if you want the milk paint to chip itself!!

2.  I think mixed up 1 cup of Miss Mustard Seed's milk paint in Kitchen Scale.  I applied two coats, allowing 1 hour drying time in between. 

3. I then took a damp rag and began distressing it.  I also used a sanding block very heavy handed to get the desired look I wanted around the edges and across the top.  I wanted to dry brush strokes to pop through...that was intentional.

4.  Finally, I waxed the entire vanity with CeCe Caldwell's Clear Wax, using my wax brush to really work it into the paint.

I used clear knobs to really compliment the colors in the vanity, versus using colored ones that would compete with them.

Up next...a blog on using chalk paint versus milk paint...both are GREAT, but very different! :)

Happy Painting ya'll!

Where to find the goods!

Per our latest Facebook requests, here are my go-to tips for finding the good "junk"....

1. My #1, all time BEST place for great finds is garage sales.  With garage sales, people want their stuff gone, so they put it in the yard and most of the time, mark it at a very reasonable price.  Many times, people just don't know what that piece of furniture is worth, it is just taking up space to them, so they are more willing to negotiate...just PLEASE always negotiate in a nice, polite manner and with a toothy smile :) Here in western OK, I check the Penny News, Weatherford Shopper, and the local paper for garage sale ads.  Take cash and come prepared to load items on your own!

2. Auctions:  I am a total auction junkie.  I feed off the competitiveness!!  I have found the best of the best of my stuff at auction.  You can check local newspapers for upcoming auctions or find an auctioneer company you like and get updates from their website.  Go early to inspect all the items up for sale and know BEFORE the auction starts what you are willing to give for those pieces.  It is really easy to get into a bidding war and get caught up in just winning and then you are left with a piece of furniture you really would have been fine leaving without and an empty wallet to go with it. Come prepared to load your own treasures and make sure you know the accepted payment methods before you attend and/or buy.

3. Goodwill....Oh how I used to LOVE Goodwill. Lately, not so much.  I mainly shop the Yukon or OKC Goodwills and I almost always leave with something I really like. However, this whole refurbishing thing has really caught on and their prices have SKY ROCKETED to almost an unfathomable ridiculousness.  Feel the drama in those words?? My last few trips, I have left empty handed just because of the prices.  AN EXCEPTION TO THIS RULE is if you find a piece that is EXACTLY what you've been looking for and you know this is THE piece for you...you'll redo it and love it forever and ever, amen! Then, you need to go for it because truly good built, last forever pieces do not come around often!!!  Also, get to know the employees. They can give you information on upcoming discounts, delivery days, etc. For example, the Yukon store changes merchandise around every Tuesday, so Wednesday is the best day to hit that store. Come prepared to load your own items as it is against store policy to help you load items..and they are serious...I had to load a desk alone 9 months pregnant!

Hope this helps and please feel free to let me know if you have any specific shopping questions! :)

Happy Hunting!

Vintage Upholstery Love

This was my favorite addition to one of my booth's this week. Due to the configuration of my space, I  had to slide this table over to the far side of my booth...just happened to end up next to this vintage settee I just had redone. I stepped back and it just hit me that I love these two pieces together! I seriously fought the urge to load them back up and take 'em home!

I found this settee at a yard sale and ya'll...it was UGLY. I mean UGLY! It's lines were beautiful though and it still had really good bones.  Here is what I recommend when you purchase a piece to reupholster.

1.  Know you are probably going to spend quite a bit of money in fabric and upholstery if you can not do this yourself.  You may want to take that into account when deciding on what to spend on the piece originally.

2.  Make sure it is solid.  Any repairs to the wood work, springs, etc. will only be additional costs, and may end up not being reparable at all.

3.   Here is my biggest tip...if you are going to tear it up anyway (reupholster), then tear into it and make sure it has no bugs, lice, etc. before you even load it up into your car! Once you get those little nasties, it is very hard to get rid of them. I tore into this piece, then once home, I left on a tarp in the garage still hesitant to take into my home. Yes, I have a huge fear of little creepy crawly things!

Once I had it home, I rubbed it down with furniture polish, added some black paint, and sealed the wood.  I have never done an upholstery project this large...the settee also came without cushions, so I knew I was in over my head on this one. I contacted my "go-to" upholstery guy and we played with fabrics, trim, etc. This is always my favorite part! Who doesn't love to play in a ton of fabric??? He did a beautiful job and if you'll notice, he takes the time to line all the patterns up vertically; from the top of the sofa, to the cushions, down the back, and even on the pillow.  All meet up at the exact same point. 

This is the picture he sent me for approval...yes, I did do the happy dance when I opened it! He did a beautiful job.  Yay Rudy!

This is the table that sits next to the settee in the first picture. I'm not a big fan of super long posts, so I will post a tutorial on this table later this week.  Until then, Happy Painting!

Endless possibilities....

If you've ever read any of my previous blogs, you know I am constantly saying "the possibilities are endless" and every time I start a new piece, I am reminded of this and try to push myself a bit further.  This small, antique chest of drawers was brought to me for some custom refurbishing. The customer needed it to match a white daybed with yellow, green and brown accents (flowers). It is very hard to tell in this picture, but the drawers on this chest have flowers etched into the trim, so I thought this piece was perfect for her room.  The only problem was it came to me a REALLY nasty greenish/brownish "not really sure what in the world" color!

I first began by sanding it lightly. It is solid wood, but the varnish was very slick and I wanted to bring out some of its natural flaws.Step 2, I wanted to incorporate all the accent colors in the "matching" bed,  yet I did not want to apply four coats of paint!  So I took acrylic paint (yes, acrylic paint...you could also use latex, chalk paint etc.) and applied brush strokes of a light yellow, mint green, moss green, and doeskin (a light tan).  I put a dab of each color onto a paper plate, took a foam brush and just applied in random strokes throughout the dresser, at times mixing the colors and blending them into one another. I applied heaviest to the corners and edges I knew I would want to distress and really have these colors "pop." Below is the result of step 2:

Step 3, was allowing the paint to dry (acrylic paint dries VERY quickly), and then I applied my first coat of white milk paint. I let that dry overnight, and I applied a second coat the next morning. Once that dried, I took a 220 sanding block and just began sanding.  I finished the piece in two coats of gloss polyurethane per the customer's request. Tip: In any place you want the acrylic paint colors to show, sand lightly. Where you want a true wear and the natural wood to pop through, sand with a heavier hand.  You need a good mix of both!  Again, I always use the liquid milk paint...I don't like mixing it as it never gets clump free for me!  Here is the finished side of the dresser:

I am so in love with the chipiness and I am super happy with how it finished out. The customer absolutely loved it! Love when an idea works out and I don't have to start over :) Happy Painting!

Embracing the Imperfections

From the moment I saw this table at an estate auction, I knew I had to have her. She was so feminine, her touches of the original green paint spying through the clumpy cabinet paint someone had so sadly put on her.  She was very delicate and yet so well preserved for her age.  Everyone else there apparently wanted her too as I had to put my game face on and embark in a bidding war.  I was determined she was going home with me and so she did.

I have let her sit in my garage for way too long while I have debated on how to paint her. Go back to that original green or go a bit edgier??  Also, I knew tackling that cabinet paint was not going to be fun.  As I was getting ready for Junk Hippy last week, this table started calling my name.  I stared at her for a long time before deciding her imperfections were what I loved most about her...so here is her refurbished journey.

First I sanded her down with my electric sander (except on the legs...I did those by hand since it is such an old table).  NEVER, EVER use cabinet paint on furniture. That is what caused her lumpy, bumpy surface.  I did like the crackle look of it though, so I sanded her down just enough to make it smooth, but not enough to remove all of the crackle. If you truly wanted to remove all of that crackle  visually, you would need to completely strip your piece; it will not disappear by sanding alone.  I also only sanded down to the first layer of color (the green) on 80% of the table.  I then took CeCe Caldwell's Young Kansas Wheat and just brushed it on in certain "high traffic" areas (sides, corners, etc) so that it was just lightly pop through when I started distressing.  Allowed dry time, then covered the entire table in a coat of CeCe's Santa Fe Turquoise.  Again, allowed dry time, then I painted her two final coats in CeCe's Vintage White.  I honestly probably could have just done one coat of the white, however, since it is a kitchen table and takes a lot of wear, I decided to do two coats.  I realize this is a lot of painting, but that is just the way it had to be for the look I wanted.  You could obviously make it so much simpler by not doing so many colors.

Then, when all the painting was complete, I started distressing her.  I lightly sanded with 220 grit sand paper on most of the table. I did use an electric sander on the corners.  Again, I like sanding by hand because I feel I have more control on how much is taken off.  The corners had the most crackle look, so I sanded them much heavier than the rest of the table.  You can see this in the image below:

I then applied CeCe's clear wax to seal the table, allowed that to dry overnight, and then buffed over the table again with a rag the next morning.  There are a few dark spots in these pictures, however, they are not actually part of the table (I don't want anyone thinking I used dark wax). 

Here she is all finished. 

I fully realize my design for this table is not for everyone...but honestly, I paint for me.  Of course, I want to sell each piece, and want to make something my customers will enjoy and want in their homes, however, I have to follow my heart on these pieces sometimes or I'll go crazy. As with any artist, I start with a blank canvas and create something beautiful from an image created from my heart.  That is also the reason I don't take on a lot of custom work...I want to be able to "do my thing" and create from my own ideas. That is why I love what I do...if I had to do each piece a certain way, I am afraid I'd stop loving refurbishing the way I do.    I am now thinking I may go a bit crazier on this table, maybe add a flower, chevron or something...or, I may just go more conservative and give her a top coat of green to go back to her original state...you never know!  Sometimes a project is never really complete for me...or maybe I just need to learn when to walk away :) 

Happy Visioning, Creating, and Painting! 

A dream is a wish...fairytale toy box

Growing up, I loved fairy tales.  My most favorite was Cinderella...as I grew older though, I forgot about this long lost love.  As a graduation gift, one very amazing woman wrote this quote inside my card, reminding me of my dreams.  When in doubt or confused on what to do, I often pull out that card (yes, I still keep it in my top drawer), and am reminded that I hope I always dare to dream. 

I came across this little beauty on a garage sale site and once I began talking to its owner, I knew I had to have it.  Her father had made it by hand years ago and had since passed away.  He had made numerous pieces and she said she just couldn't keep them all. Kind of made me sad in a way, but I was happy to have it and give it a new life.  Instantly, this conversation with its former owner, led my heart to this quote and I knew exactly what I was going to do with the toy box.

I am not going to go into a whole tutorial on this project as I usually do as it is pretty self explanatory as far as the painting and stenciling go. On the quote "a dream is a wish your heart makes", I simply printed it out off the computer and then used the projector to line the quote up to my desired location, and just painted it on with acrylic paint.  Easy, easy!   I then just distressed it (hence the lightness of the quote) and waxed it! Here is an up close view  of the front:

 

And here is a view of the top:

The top and sides are the exact same color, however, in this picture, it looks a bit more turquoise on the top thanks to my wonderful garage lighting. 

I am still debating on letting this one go (hence my reluctance to put a price on it)...it matches my girls room perfectly, and it honestly makes my heart happy each time I look at it!

That is what it is all about isn't it...loving what you do , loving what you create,  and daring to follow your heart???!!!

Happy Dreaming!

Just for my girls...vintage dresser re-do

As many of you know, we've been redoing our girl's room in preparation for our new bundle of joy. We needed a tall dresser and I have been on the search for months. I'd find one and think "Oh! This is the one", but then that feeling would pass and onto a booth it would go.  Then I ran across this one at a local roadside antique store and I knew it was perfect for what we needed...vintage  curves, classic lines, large drawers, and drawers that do not have pulls-they are made to simply pull open from the bottom of each drawer.  SOLD! Loaded it up and off we went.

The dresser started out a really dark stained color, and I really wanted that to show through, so I did not prime it.  I lightly sanded it with my electric sander, then I painted the body of the piece with CeCe Caldwell's Vintage White. On the drawers, the turquoise I normally use was a little too dark to match the girl's fabric, so I took a disposable quart-size paint bucket and mixed 2 cups of CeCe's Santa Fe Turquoise paint with 1/2 cup of water, then mixed together well inside the bucket.  It does become watery, but not so much so that you have runs, etc. That is the nice part about CeCe's being so thick to begin with.  I rolled this mix onto the drawers in two thin coats. I then sanded the body and drawers by hand so I could control the amount of distressing.  This dresser has some nice vintage designs, and I wanted to highlight those, not blend them, so I took the turquoise paint mixture and painted in the lines of the design on the top and sides of the dresser, then lightly hand sanded around those lines as well. Use your thumb or forefinger and a small piece of sand paper to get inside those delicate lines. I then waxed the entire piece with clear wax and buffed it out once the wax had time to cure.  Here she is...I love it and more importantly, so do the girls.

The funniest part is Kinsley (our oldest) says "Mom, why do you keep painting stuff then take all the paint off?"  I had to laugh out loud because I am sure that is confusing to her...it never occurred to me she might not understand what I do! I promised her the next one I do for her, I will not distress to which she replied "Ok, that would be great!" so I guess I will be doing another one down the road for my big girl :)

I know it seems I use a lot of turquoise and white, but that is what is "big" right now in my area and what sells best for me. Our girl's room is zebra/white/turquoise/light pink (yes, I did let them choose it....Lord help me), so this was the perfect piece to match their decor without going too "over the top." I wanted a piece that would grow with them and not ever go out of style as zebra, prints, etc. tend to do.  Here is another picture in better light.

To me, this is the best part of chalk paint...you can add water to soften colors, mix colors to create your own custom hue, or change the entire color by covering with wax, dark wax, etc. I have heard over and over "why pay so much for paint?" as people shake their heads and I just laugh and tell them "TRY IT ONCE and you'll know!" For someone like me who uses it all day, every day, it is worth the investment. 

I hope everyone has a great week holiday weekend and takes time to thank, hug, and remember a solider...they give all so we can post freely, speak freely, and live freely. God Bless!!

The Great Milk Paint Experience...

Well, I tried it! After reading so much about milk paint and how it finishes out so nice, I HAD to give it a go. I bought a package of white milk paint from WoodCraft (on May) in OKC. I will say that next time, I will probably order online from Homestead as WoodCraft was almost too much of a "man's man" place and they kept telling me I wanted something else...an almost $20 MORE something else. Other than that, I was excited to get started. So, here is the process I used from start to finish.

Step 1: Prepping your piece
Milk Paint will adhere to porous surfaces without sanding or priming, however, for less porous surfaces, experts recommend you use a milk paint bonding agent. You can normally buy this where ever you buy milk paint.

My step 1 was priming the piece I was painting. This table was a nasty, nasty Texas burnt orange color...and you know how us Oakies feel about Texas orange...so I primed it with a coat of Killz first to ensure that color did not come through. I did not invest in a bonding agent since the table I was working on was so scuffed up and I really wanted to keep that look, versus sanding it out and making it smooth.

Step 2: Mixing the Milk Paint
This was the un-fun part. Milk Paint comes in two varieties (or two that I know of): liquid or powder form. I chose to use the powder form for no other reason other than it was less expensive and I wanted to make sure I liked it before making a larger investment. With the powder milk paint, you mix equal parts of the powder with water. I knew I was going to use the full amount, so I mixed 1.5 cups (the entire package of powder) with 1.5 cups of water. You can mix this in any amount, in any container. I chose to use an old mason jar incase I didn't get to use it all at one time, it would be inside an air-tight container.



Now, here is the biggest down fall I found with this Milk Paint...it was HARD, and I mean HARD in all capitals and a few exclamation points (and a few unlady like words I must admit), to mix. A paint stick was not cutting it, a spoon did not cut it, so finally I robbed my utensil drawer of a whisk and went to town inside that mason jar. It honestly took a lot of whisking, but I did finally get it to a desirable consistency...or so I thought.

Step 3: Applying the milk paint
Milk paint can be applied with a brush, roller, or sprayer. Most professionals recommend using a sprayer to apply milk paint as it gives it the smoothest finish. Since I was just trying it out on one piece, I did not want to mess with the sprayer. I first tried brushing it on, really just playing with it to get a feel for its texture, etc. It is very thin and milky...so it showed every brush stroke and I quickly put the brush away. Next I tried the foam roller and this did give better coverage, however, after 2 coats, I could still see through the milk paint to the dark wood underneath. I also noticed as I rolled, that the paint was still clumpy. I mixed and mixed this paint, but it was still showing little clumps randomly. That was a little frustrating, but not a deal breaker.

Step 4: Top Coat
After 3 coats of milk paint, I just did not like how the dark wood was appearing, almost streaky, from underneath the paint. So I do what all us DIYers do, I decided to experiment and prayed for the best! :) I took 1/2 cup of CeCe Caldwell's Santa Fe turquoise paint and added it to 1/2 cup of the milk paint. I honestly have no idea if this is "ok" or if it is a little unknown "no-no" but I did it and I love how it turned out!! I applied one, thin, top coat of this. I let it cure about 6 hours (it did not take that long to dry, I just began working on other projects). You can see how thin the top coat is...now this is actually shown after I distressed it, but hopefully you can make out how light the turquoise is.



Step 5: Finishing
To finish out this piece, I took a 220 grit sanding block and really distressed the turquoise out. I was a bit more careful around the outsides of the dark wood spots...with milk paint, known for its ease and classic distressed look, I wanted each spot to look as though it was slowly worn off over time, pulling away from the worn spots. An example is shown below:



Once I was happy with the distressing, I applied my usual dark wax mix (CeCe Caldwell's clear wax tinted with Hershey brown) over the piece. I did NOT apply the clear wax by itself before or after this...mainly because it was such a small piece, and because I am comfortable with the dark wax (so not worried as to use too much or about streaking it).
Here is the finished product:



Overall, I am very happy with how the project turned out. I really wanted to do the whole piece in milk paint, but sometimes you just have to go with it and be creative as you go! As for milk paint, I am glad I tried it and I do have a dresser that I am ready to tackle next...but this time I am ordering my milk paint from Homestead, mainly because they have MANY, MANY more colors to choose from and because I am hoping their milk paint is easier to mix. Please leave any suggestions you have for milk paint!!! I would love to read about your experiences with it. Also, be on the look out for Ms. Mustard Seed's new line of milk paint...she is the queen of everything paint, and I am confident anything with her name on it will be great!

Stenciling...my "Ah Ha" Moment

For years, I have looked at people's beautiful stencil work and am so envious! I have tried and tried to stencil numerous things over the years and it has always ended in epic failure for me. Either it would be smudgy after I removed the stencil or it would be globby...I tried more paint, less paint, spray paint....taping stencil, spray adhesive on the stencil...read every article I could find on the subject. No improvement.

My first ah ha moment came after visiting one of my favorite blogs, The Handmade Home. Ashley had created a beautiful wall art piece using a stencil she had been given from a company. I headed to that company's website and WOW were the stencils awesome! The one I REALLY, REALLY wanted was $49.95...I just could not make myself fork over that kind of money when I was not even good at it (yes, I am thrifty...$49.95 is probably very reasonable...just not in my world)! However, it got me thinking that maybe I needed to invest in a better stencil instead of the small, cheapo, flimsy ones. So I headed to Hobby Lobby with my 40% off coupon in hand (you can also use the electronic one via your cell phone, iPad, etc while checking out) and found very large wall stencils ($16.99 before coupon). I really liked the Moroccan Theme stencil shown below:


It is thick and large enough to easily use on a table top. Here is the biggest Ah Ha! moment...I ACTUALLY READ THE INSTRUCTIONS and bought the re-positional spray adhesive it recommended in the instructions. Hobby Lobby carried it as well and I believe it was around $5. I already had some stencil paint on hand in the brand it recommended, so I decided to just give it another try with this stencil (Both items are shown below, along with a tub of stencil paint as just another option; it is a thick cream. I chose to use the bottled paint).



I lightly sprayed the back of the stencil with the adhesive spray and it was so nice to be able to pick it up and move it without any nasty residue! It really was very easy to reposition and yet it still stuck really well once I got it where I wanted it. Now here is where I veered from the instructions a bit. I had given up on stencils...I was done, right? So I gave my roller to my oldest daughter for her arts and crafts adventures. I wasn't going to buy another one until I knew I could nail this stencil thing. So, I just used a foam sponge I had in my bucket of supplies. I put the stencil paint on a paper plate, lightly dipped the sponge in the paint, dabbed it again on plate just to get any excess off, and then rubbed it across stencil lightly. I don't usually "dab" it on the stencil as I don't like that sponge painted look it sometimes leaves. So I basically just wiped it across the stencil with a light hand. The nice thing about stencil paint is that it dries pretty quick, so once I was done with one section, I just removed the stencil, moved it onto the next section and repeated the process until the table top was covered. Easy! Here is a picture of what it looked like right after I was done with the stencil.



I wanted a really distressed, worn look, so this white was too white and too "Hey, I just stenciled this piece!"
So I distressed it:
Covered it in CeCe's clear wax:

Then finished it off with a coat of CeCe's clear wax tinted with Hershey Brown:

Now, I must admit, I am not used to taking step by step pictures to share with others. I seriously did not even remember to turn the garage light on!! DUH! So, please understand you are looking at pictures taken in my dirty garage with the only light coming from the open garage door. None of this is rocket science, and most of you that are pros are probably thinking "Really? This is basics lady", but as I like to say, everyone starts somewhere, and this is my somewhere! I love working at something until I get it how I imagined it (expect wreaths and that is a whole other story)!!! As I say in all my tutorial tips, this is just what worked for me. There are thousands of ways to do this, thousands of techniques that work for others, and a million and one ways to achieve the look you want. Just imagine and play!


Here are a few quick tips:
1. You don't have to go out and buy stencil paint! Regular Latex or Chalk Paint will work just fine. However, keep in mind Latex paint is a bit runnier, so go easy with how much you put on your roller. Plus, it is going to be harder to get off of your stencil afterwards.

2. Use re-positional spray adhesive to adhere stencil to your surface. So much quicker than taping and sticks great!

3. Wash stencil immediately after use. Do not let the paint dry on it (Trust me on this one...learned why they tell you this in the instructions...the hard way).

4. If you are nervous or not sure what look you want, practice! This stencil came with a practice board and you can try it on that first, saving you some time and work if you don't like the finished look.

I am now headed to Hobby Lobby for a more difficult stencil to try. Eventually I hope to learn to free hand...maybe even master the harlequin pattern as my fellow painter and friend Allison has, but, until then, I am happy to stencil away! Hope everyone has a great week and Happy Stenciling!!