Farmhouse Desk

This old sturdy desk has been on my 'sprucin' up' list for quite some time. It's a piece that I cherish because it was given to me by an old family friend who is no longer with us. I could never part with it but she needed some fine tuning. When I was in my teenage years, I nothing short of carved (turns out permanent marker does just as much damage as a pocket knife) the names of all my 'sweethearts' all over the top. When I finally grew out of that stage (thank the Good Lord) I painted her white.

I got to work sanding the top piece to ditch all the white paint & years of true love markings.

I picked out an espresso stain - it said 'new' so I figured I had to give it a try. I usually use a walnut stain - which I will likely stick with in the future because only one coat of the espresso & it was still a bit darker than I desired. After the stain dried for an entire day, I sealed it with a layer of polyurethane clear coat. 

The bottom of the desk got another two layers of white paint. I debated sanding it all down & starting fresh, but aside from a few chips the existing paint really wasn't too bad. I would love to do something unique with the handles - thinking some rustic horse shoe pulls - but those are on standby until I commit to an idea I love.

Stay tuned for the 'after' ...

Turquoise & Gray Chair Re-do

This old wooden chair was in need of a little sprucing up!

 

 

 

 

 

I started with a coat of white primer (& in typical fashion didn't bother to take the existing seat off first)

 

 

 

Picked out this pretty fabric-

 



 

Added a layer of gray paint to match! & wah-lah! Super easy, quick project. I will probably even add another layer of gray paint. At first I thought I liked it a little shabby looking, but it looks a little unfinished to me.

 

 

 

 

Western Crib - After!

Earlier in the year I started working on this baby crib. It started out plain white and my end goal was to make it look western.

Since it didn't end up being real wood I couldn't sand and stain it like I had originally planned. I then thought I could prime it, do a light brown coat, layer that with a dark brown coat and roughly sand it down to make it look distressed. The problem with that was it just went right down to the first base white coat again which I really didn't like. I repainted it all back to dark brown and decided just to leave it with a finished, non-roughed-up look.

It didn't quite look western to me so I came up with an idea to add stars and rope to the ends. I bought rope from ACE Hardware and I used E600 to glue it on. After I did it I really wish I would have cut all the rope pieces shorter and made them so that it didn't swirl as much toward the center where the stars are. The glue took the paint right off even before it was dry so once it was down there really was no adjusting without having to redo the whole thing.

I found the stars at an antique shop in Bend called the Iron Horse. They were all rusted over but cleaned up great. Both of the stars had tiny rods on the back (similar to a thumb tack), so I drilled holes into the crib and added glue to make them stay.

I think this crib would look great with some pink bedding and I'm hoping it works out great for little Addyson Emily!

 

 

 

& here it is all set up with her absolutely adorable pink & cow print bedding!

 

 

Power Sanding

I love nothing more than a good power tool. They tend to make everything so much easier and save a lot of time. My latest project is this chair:

As you can see, I got a little over excited about my last tool (the paint sprayer) & didn't tape/cover the seat before I got to work. The spot where the back of the chair is got the most paint & needed the most sanding ... but it was also the most awkward part to sand. I will have to go back and do some by hand.

I used a 220 grain sandpaper which was just rough enough to strip the paint/previous stain but leave a smooth finish. I can't wait to apply the stain! I think I'm going to get all four chairs prepped before I start that process just so I can make them as uniform as possible.

Spray Painting (& not just out of a can!)

It's been almost a year since I bought this table & chairs off Craigslist with every intention to start the project long before now. However, last week I finally cashed in on a Christmas gift I had received - a gift card to Home Depot - & bought a new paint sprayer! (this is the coolest thing ever!)

I figured out quickly that you can't just pour in the paint & start spraying. There is a certain consistency the paint must be in order to actually come out of the sprayer and then form an even, non-speckled coat. Because the paint I bought had a latex base I just added a couple teaspoons of water & gave it a good stir. Had I any patience to actually read the instructions before I started, I would have figured this out a lot easier!

Also, had I any patience, I would have taped off the wood seat before getting started. Here are the "before" & "during" pictures. I need to add another coat of the ivory/cream color, sand the seat down & stain it. (And of course repeat all those steps on the other three chairs and the whole darn table! yikes! no wonder I didn't start this sooner!)

I'm a HUGE fan of the sprayer. After re-doing a crib, I quickly learned how much spray paint can add up! One bottle is about $4 - between the primer, first coat, & second coat I easily spent $50 on paint alone. A gallon of paint on the other hand is less than $20 & will easily be able to cover this entire table, all four chairs, & probably many more projects to come! I can't wait to post "after" pictures!

Western Crib - Before

My wonderful friends Elizabeth & Dan are expecting their first baby, a little girl! & what does every newborn need!? a crib! They bought this crib off of Craigslist and we decided we could re-do it to make it fit their unique western style. It's not quite finished yet but the picture above is after a coat of primer and the first coat of light brown. Originally we talked about sanding it down & staining it, but after I started to sand I discovered it was MDF which just wouldn't work. So, Plan B! I decided paint it a light brown followed by a dark brown & then rough it up with some sandpaper to give it a rustic look. I'm excited for it to be finished & hoping it turns out just how I have pictured in my mind!

Table for Four-ty Bucks!

I'm pretty impressed with my most recent purchase. I'm an avid Craigslist-er & always get excited about a good deal. Last week I found this dinning table & four chairs for $45! - I was surprised the lady I bought it from let me talk her down on the price to just $40! There are a few scratches & dings here and there, but for the most part it's a very sturdy solid table.

I will take better before pictures once I actually get to work! But this is a screenshot of the actual table:

Since it's a little hard to see, here is another picture of what it actually looks like:

(just with a little darker wood top)

My plan is to sand down the top of the table & re-stain it with a dark finish. Then paint the legs & the chairs an off-white/cream color. I might get half way done & realize it would have been easier to leave well enough alone! But I'm excited to get started on a project.

I envision the final product will look similar to this:

Wish me luck!

My Desk

Last summer I was in need of a desk. Something cute & simple. I am a big fan of buying old furniture that needs just a little bit of attention & spiffing it up. I found this old sofa table - very sturdy & only 20 bucks. This table in particular required nothing more than a couple cans of spray paint! (Sadly, I don't have before pictures!)

I accessorized my desk with my a file holder from Ikea, a little organizer for all my 'desky' stuff like paperclips, etc. (the white thing on the right - found this at Goodwill for 99 cents! what a steal!), & my favorite piggy bank.

I put favorite picture of Brad Pitt on a motorcycle in a cute black frame. I saw this while in Vegas at Planet Hollywood - I would die to have the huge one they have, but this small one will do for now. I also framed a picture of a gorgeous field in Central Oregon - something I miss! Lastly, I stuck my fav quote - 'you have the ability to create the life you want' - in a frame. I used a picture easel to add height to one of the pictures - it adds a little variety & interest.

I think it's essential to be surrounded by things you love. I wake up every morning (with my soft-as-can-be throw pictured here!) & enjoy looking at my desk! -- I have still yet to find the perfect chair & as much as I hate clutter I do need to devise some sort of storage system. But for now, this makes me happy.