Thursday, November 6, 2014

A French Style Cupboard - lots of curves on this one!

french hand painted furniture by Lilyfield Life

I bought this cupboard from an old couple in Haberfield who were moving out of their large family home to downsize and live closer to their son. They had some gorgeous pieces including long church pews and a divine dining table that they were selling but I decided to only take the cupboard as I'm so limited on space while we renovate. I originally thought this would make a great bathroom vanity but it would prove too expensive cutting the stone for the top in that curved pattern and also it's too high for me although Phil thought it was a great height for him. I then was tempted to keep it just in case I need another piece of statement furniture for the house when it's build. In the end I decided to sell it as I'm a bit of a fancy furniture magnet it seems and i'm sure I'll come across many more stunning pieces before the house is finished being built!


The cupboard has a seriously beautiful shape and is solid as anything but the finish definitely needed updating: so mottled and golden and I knew that the shape and details would be enhanced by a more muted colour. I love the two tone look of a french washed grey and graphite top so I painted my first coat of pale grey then layered other taupe/greys over the top to get a great depth of colour. The top I painted ASCP Graphite.

french hand painted furniture by Lilyfield Life

french hand painted furniture by Lilyfield Life

I waxed, antique waxed and lightly distressed it to give a vintage french look. I struggled a little with the hardware as I didn't like the original bronze hardware and so I tried porcelain and crystal knobs and didn't like them either so in the end I just painted the bronze with graphite and if they buyer wants they can find their own handles. Sometimes it's not worth the fuss. I tend to over think and complicate things...

french hand painted furniture by Lilyfield Life

french hand painted furniture by Lilyfield Life

This piece has already been snapped up but I have lots more lovely pieces coming up.

Fiona xx



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