Plain and simple: painted vintage drawers

 

These vintage drawers are lovely and plain and I decided they didn't need any embellishment.  Just some nice neutral chalkpaint and they now suit any decor. 

The colour is a beautiful pale grey/taupe: so soft and neutral. I'm really crushing on it at the moment. 

 

Did you notice the fleur de lis ornaments? A recent vintage find and I love them. 

 

I have a few more chests of drawers up for sale next week. Lots of painting happening here again. 

Fiona xx

Upholstered bench seat - a tip for tricky trims

Good morning: I've been a little missing in action mainly because we are in the final throws of planning an epic 5 week trip in Italy (I'll share more about that soon). 

I thought I'd share a little cheater's trick I did on this bench I sold last year. The bench was very old and gorgeous - big soft upholstery that was in excellent condition but yellow fabric with a red/gold trim that was just dated and ugly. I can't find a before photos anywhere. 

I stripped the old fabric and recovered with this beautiful organic hemp that I buy locally at our farmers markets. Initially I couldn't work out how to finish it off because the way the upholstery previously was left an unfinished edge around the base and the legs. I decided to make a fringe like trim. I used some fabric I had on hand and sewed a big strip and then just glued the strip over the edge of the upholstery to cover up all the unsightliness.

Sometimes the glue gun is your best friend...

and doing something simply and getting the piece sold is better than stressing about the perfect way to do it.

Lots of painted console tables

Good morning! I am looking forward to a lovely quiet Easter. We are staying at home but having our very good friends over on Sunday for a roast lunch. I quite like not going away over Easter as it's so lovely and quiet in our suburb and the streets are fairly empty. Almost like we live in a little country town :)

(...maybe that's just me dreaming)

recent console tables 

Like most of you I'm currently juggling school holidays and work so I've been painting in the early in the mornings and late at night and just squeezing in work around the edges of doing stuff with the kids. I have had a big run on console tables lately.  the above consoles are all from the last couple of weeks.

I'm such a fan of console tables - Just a nice little piece of furniture you can pop against an empty wall and decorate with pretty pieces or a bunch of flowers. What's not to love about that?

Yesterday I took the kids for the morning to Balmoral and we had lunch sitting in the sunshine (calamari for the kids and I had a nice salad). The kids played  while I took Charlie for a walk. It's always nice to watch your kids interact with each other  from a distance - spy mummy :). The kids were doing things like pretending to be blind and the other one leading them around the deck of the ocean pool. Pretending to almost let the other one fall in. The exact sort of thing my sister and I did when we were kids. Such a gorgeous morning and we popped in to see my aunt who is recovery from surgery on the way home.

When we got home I finished painting these two consoles.  Both so pretty. The pale one would be also useful as a little writing desk. It's already sold and is heading to holiday home in Bowral. I love this piece and think it's very elegant.

and the before photo below - the front was in perfect condition but the top had some huge marks on it which meant it wasn't sale-able as is.

This black console is one I've painted before (not the exact one - the last one I painted ASCP Grpahite and this time I painted it black) While I am typing this post, someone has just commented SOLD on this piece on facebook so that's good  (well good for me anyway, not good if you are reading this and wanting to buy it). 

I also have a before and after photo of the white console table.  Such a difference that paint and effort make. I love making things beautiful and new again.

I am almost at the end of my run for console tables. I do have one more gorgeous one coming up soon. Here's the before photo.  I think this one is going to be gorgeous - something a little different also.

Anyway I'm taking the kids shopping and to the Batman Lego movie today. Sasha has grown so tall and none of her shirts fit her. They are all almost midriff tops which I hate so I'm very happy to spend some money on her. 

Enjoy your day

Fiona xx

love a secretaire ...or two

I love little secretaire desks. Such a nice piece of furniture and a cute way to hide away your paperwork mess. This tiny one is not the desk to write your grand novel at, but it would be great for a kids room or to pop in the corner of the lounge room to pay bills at. This piece was a big mess when I bought it and I have been slowly working on it for many weeks. 

The worst part of it was on the drop down front there was old brown felt that looked like sticky carpet from an old pub. I spent ages ripping it out as it was glued in  - I ended up using a heat gun making sure I didn't set the whole thing alight. I ended up screwing in a bit of painted ply over the top of where the felt had been. much more useful than a soft surface. I painted the ply in the same duck egg that the interior and drawers are.

This desk is very similar to one I did a few years ago although that one was missing the drop down front part. It still was a cute little cabinet.

I also finished a bigger secretaire desk. This one was in great condition and the interior timber is beautiful so I thought I would save myself the hassle of painting it and be able to sell it cheaper than when I paint it all.  I have painted both these pieces on the same Annie Sloan mix - a lovely limed white/pale grey.

Both desks sold immediately after listing them last night: one is heading to Bowral and another to the Central Coast. Nice to have my furniture snapped up so quickly. I am so grateful to my lovely customers and to have a thriving business doing what I absolutely love.

I am off this morning to pickup a huge load of amazing furniture I have sourced. I am so excited about some of the pieces. I will share with you tomorrow once it's unloaded and photographed.

Have a lovely day.

Fiona xx

Below are some more secretaire desks that I have previously painted.

Beautiful Mirrors

I love beautiful mirrors and have many (probably too many) at home. Here are some I painted and sold last week. I've been stretching my skills and adding a lot of patina to ornate pieces and making old world European finishes. I've been doing a lot of research into casein paints, gesso and achieving authentic looking patina. Having lots of fun with it.

These mirrors are all sold pending pickup but let me know if anything catches your eye and I'll send you the details.

I'm particularly thrilled with the mirror below. It was rather plain - just smooth timber and brown. I added the mouldings and then created a lot of texture in the paintwork and then did a few layers of glazes and waxes to achieve the look.

This beautiful mirror below is just perfect as it is. A bit OTT but who doesn't like a bit of bling in a room. It's huge and in just lovely condition.

My week below last week (and a pair of black beside tables). Such a nice soft palette. The bottom left queen anne bedside table is still available.

Fiona xx

DIY - 10 things you can paint Chalkboard

Chalkboards are so easy to make but seem to cost a fair bit in shops. The good thing about chalkboard paint (besides a fun finished result) is there is no priming, no topcoat and you can paint fairly haphazardly. Great for a quick project or if you are a furniture painting beginner.

For these projects you can either use Chalkboard Spray which is super easy or chalkboard paint in a can and brush on. I generally use waterbased chalkboard paint as it's quicker drying and less stinky than oil-based chalkboard paint. You can also use Annie Sloan Chalk Paint and milk paint (with no top coat) to make a chalkboard. 

1) Paint a filing cabinet: such a cute idea and makes a boring filing cabinet way more interesting. Here's one I painted a few years ago.

2) Paint a chest of drawers for kids: label the drawers with what's inside.

http://designdininganddiapers.com

or this beautiful one by Miss Mustard Seed

3) Paint a wall: Another one from Marian, Miss Mustard Seed. She has a great chalkboard wall in her kitchen that she regularly changes the design on. I loved this Christmas wreath.

Also Wendy, a local and talented artist in Glebe who sells beautiful cards and paintings on her website, has painted her dining room wall. She often draws french cafe themes on it. Just love it.

4) Paint a table: such a great idea for kids for an arts and craft table. Keep them entertained for hours. How cool is this one made from an old industrial spool. Fantastic upcycling.

5) Paint your pantry door - my friend, Leanne, did this in her kitchen and it's a great place for emergency numbers , to do lists and the shopping list. Everyone just writes on the door as they run out of food and she snaps a photo of the shopping list with her phone as she's heading out the door to the shops. 

6) Chalkboard painted Pots - terracotta is super easy to paint and this looks good even without chalk writing on it. Also a great way to identify your herbs. DIY details can be found here

7) A chalkboard whale - this whale from Stephanie of Brooklyn Limestone is my favourite chalkboard sign of all time and I'm sure you've probably seen it around on Pinterest and the like. I definitely want to make this sometime.  A guide to making this yourself is here.

8) Paint your fridge and turn it shabby chic - I actually think this is the most beautiful old fridge I've even seen and I am very tempted to do this to our old fridge in our laundry like this. Stay tuned.

9) Make chalkboard art: Everybody is always surprised when they realise that the painting above my fireplace is actually a chalkboard and chalk. it was a quick and easy project that took me about chalk a day to paint the frame and chalkboard and then 40 minutes one evening to do the actual drawing. Still fine and unsmudged four years later.

10) Paint a chalkboard - of course this should be top of my list. Grab an old (non-valuable) painting in a nice frame. You'll find heaps at Salvos or a thrift shop for less than $20. Paint over the painting with chalkboard paint and bob's your uncle.  Here are a few I've done in the past.

Do you love chalkboards? 

What's your best tip?

Fiona xx