Gilding

Four things I love: 

-gray

-metallic

-triangles

-pizza (bacon + jalapeño pizza all day, everyday). 

One of these loves was not incorporated into this side table (though if you think of a classy way to incorporate pizza into a piece please let me know ASAP!). I have wanted to try this ombre, metallic, triangle design (much like a Dandelion) on one of my pieces for a while and when I found this side table for $5 at a local thrift store I knew it would be the perfect guinea pig. She was totally solid, had beautiful lines, and while the green wasn't terrible the haphazard glaze job over the green was no bueno.

I painted the inside cubby a slightly lighter shade of gray to add a bit of depth, kept that fabulous handle, and created my own triangle sponge out of a sanding block. When I sponged on the first few triangles I had some serious doubts, but I decided to keep at it and I really love the way it came together. Say hello to Dani!

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Playing in the background:

• I was watching Drew Barrymore's, Ever After. Other than Anastasia, this may be the movie I can quote best. "A bird may love a fish, signore, but where will they live?!" Where, indeed...

Branching

Spring has officially sprung in The District! This means its time to bring out my fluorescently pale legs (shaving regularly), buying the SPF in bulk, Middle School tourists crowding the Metro, mowing the lawn, and no longer being able to use the cold as an excuse not to exercise. I'm beginning to realize Spring may not be my favorite season...

Give a warm welcome to Olive! Olive was a lucky find when my friend gave me first pickings before their upcoming estate sale. As you can see from the pictures below I had to strip the stain before painting. Unfortunately, I didn't figure this out until after my first coat of paint which promptly turned a brownish, yellow, green, blue. *Note to self: test out a small area before cockily painting an entire piece and having to strip all the hard work you've done.

One of my favorite furniture bloggers, Reeves at The Weathered Door, did an amazing video on stripping furniture if you need a quick tutorial! Check it out below.

Once I stripped the stain off I decided to put a protective coat over the wood in case there was any residual stain just waiting to yellow my paint job. I also wanted to ensure that I had a bit of chipping because why milk paint if you don't chip?! Olive is painted in Miss Mustard Seed's Milk Paint color, Mora. She is a gorgeous light blue with undertones of gray and green. 

Consider this my olive branch to Spring.

Playing in the Background:

• Jamestown Revival, Utah...  yes, still. Loving this album.
• Serenda Ryder, Harmony

Mapping

"Though she be but little, she is fierce." - Shakespeare

It is with great pleasure that I introduce you to Betty. The name Betty brings to mind a classic girl next door from the 60's who defies tradition to see the world à la Audrey Hepburn in Roman Holiday. I think we all have a little Betty in us. I know I certainly do. There are few things I love more than jet setting to a new destination. 

Though this shelf has a classic mid-century shape I wanted to do something a little unconventional and I'd been eyeing this Cavallini paper from Paper Source for quite a while. I taped off the bottom of the legs, gave her a couple coats of this fabulous mint green, and mod podged the pages and map on the back. Because the map was noticeably smaller than the backboard I simply grabbed a few pages from my favorite illustrated vintage dictionary to go around the edges as a border and ended up really digging the look. 

I love when hiccups turn into happy accidents.

I don't know why I worry so much when things don't work out like I'd originally planned.
I think the dictionary pages bordering the map are such an interesting contrast.

Is there anything cozier than a stack of vintage books?!

Playing in the background:

• Jamestown Revival, Utah
• Børns, Candy

Romancing

In honor of Valentine's Day looming around the corner I bring you, Ada. She feels like the furniture equivalent of a sweeping Southern Romance and what better Southern Romance than Ada Monroe and Inman's from Cold Mountain? I'm sure 99% (more like 100%) of people think that answer is unequivocally Gone with the Wind, but I would argue the merits of Cold Mountain over Gone with the Wind. 

I found this piece at a local thrift store and it was love at first sight (you can find us hanging out watching Cold Mountain together on Valentine's Day). I knew immediately that she would be green and she would be chippy. I used Old Fashioned Milk Paint in Tavern Green. The chipping didn't go quite as I had hoped, but the variations in pigment completely made up for that! To get that rustic look I was going for I just used a sanding block to wear through the paint in certain spots. I found this great striped, modern paper at Home Goods that I used to line the drawers. Its a perfect juxtaposition with the rustic, undone look of the exterior. 

I planned on a quick flip and sell, but love is a fickle thing and I'm thinking I may not be able to part with this Southern Belle...

I mean, look at the variations in color! Add that to my Swoon List.

Playing in the Background:

• The Lone Bellow's new album, Then Came the Morning. Listen on NPR here!
• Lindi Ortega

Hacking

I'm late to the game, but I'd seen a lot of these "Ikea Hacks" floating around Pinterest and the Blogosphere so I decided to try my hand at a simple redesign of one of their unfinished pieces in the Tarva collection. You simply buy an Ikea piece and customize it until it does not resemble something from Ikea. Easy enough, right?

In a perfect world I would tell you how incredibly easy this redesign was, but alas, we do not live in a perfect world and you should know that I was nearly defeated by this seemingly simple piece. It took me FOUR hours to assemble. FOUR! Not my proudest four hours. Not to mention its still not 100% solid, but it will do very nicely as my new side table.

I'd like to introduce you to, Mitchell. Sentimentally named for a couple of people who believe and invest in my dreams. Cue the warm fuzzies.

I've really been loving stained pieces over painted lately. I wanted to lean into that and channel my inner Restoration Hardware lover with this custom mix stain. Simply apply Minwax "Provincial" first then immediately follow that up with Rustoleum's "Weathered Gray" and wipe. You want just the faintest suggestion of gray to achieve this look so wipe quickly!

I'm in LOVE with these plates I found at Home Goods and the metallic polka dotted teapot gifted by The Gov.

To give the illusion of salvaged wood I used a hammer and other random objects focusing mainly on the edges and corners. Be warned! This wood is not particularly resilient to repeated hard blows so go easy on her. One of my drawers ended up with a huge split down the middle.

To finish off the look, I chose to use castors in lieu of the legs which came in the box and picked out some fabulous Boho Teal Knobs with the help of my Facebook Followers.

Playing in the Background:

• Taylor Swift's Red and 1989 .... she's my jam! 

Industrializing

The Baron might be my proudest transformation yet! His name was inspired by Industrialists of the 19th Century who were referred to as "Robber Barons," but we're not going to get into that because any more in depth and I'm gonna have to start making stuff up as we go...

If you follow me on facebook you saw me post about this piece that gave me the creeps, but I couldn't resist because it just had such potential or as I like to call it, "Good Bones." This was my first piece I tried hand painting on and it was a cinch! I printed off the numbers, used some tracer paper and we were in business. I warn you though, it is realllllly tedious. Weirdly enough, I thoroughly enjoyed the tedium. Don't know what that says about me and I'm not really willing to explore it!

From KidCreep Chic to Industrial Chic I give you The Baron!

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I used Wood Filler to smooth out the top which had some deep scratches.

For this piece I used Behr paint in Poppy Seed PPU15-20 

Inside that cabinet is what I call "Contained Whimsy"

 Playing in the background:

• Haim - Days Are Gone album