Before & After: Beachy Cupboard

 

Sometimes I have things that just don't seem to find a home, even though I think the piece would be perfect for someone!  This cupboard was one of those pieces!

Now, I thought it was great in my space when I did a Halloween display - the cupboard held all sorts of little pumpkins, scarecrows, owls, etc.  with the red interior I thought it would work in a country home or boys room - but maybe it was just too 'sorcerer'! 

With the Twilight movies so popular you would have thought this would be a hot item! 

But noooo!  I had this item for too long so it was time to do a makeover!

Maybe it was the star - so i decided to take the star off to make the design more neutral. But the cupboard looked really plain so I went in search of something and found a seashell embellishment and decided to transform the cupboard into 'Beachy'

I painted the inside an aqua color that is so popular right now and painted the outside in Annie Sloan's Old White chalk paint.

I added the seashell to the outside -Voila!   I'll be bringing this beachy cupboard to my booth at our Annual Nicolaus Labor Day Parade!

It can hang on a wall or sit atop a table and It has so much to offer in terms of display space - perfect in a bathroom to hold little perfume jars or lotions - 

Or maybe in a bedroom to display a cherished collection!

I hope it finds a loving home!

I've linked up to http://snapcreativity.com/show-and-tell-linky-092612/

Before and After: Vintage Double Bed

This vintage bed was a cherished designer piece decades ago.  A friend's teenage children worked at a consignment store in the East Bay area and they grabbed it while at work one day.  It served it purposed well while my friend's daughter attended the University of Nevada-Reno but was surrendered to me when she graduated,

to see if I could give it new life and purpose.

 The rounded foot board gives it classic styling and the groove along the top of both the head board and foot board adds some extra detail. But the front was still pretty plain and I decided it needed some embellishment.

So I set out looking for the perfect piece that would fit the arch on both the head and foot boards.  This was no easy task since the curve of the headboard was a bit more gradual than the curve on the foot board.  After numerous trial and errors trying to find two identical pieces to fit, (and a small fortune!) I realized I was going to need to different pieces. 

The bed needed lots of sanding to get the old cracked varnish off, and then a couple coats of primer to make sure none of the stain that had been used previously would come through when I gave it a new coat of antique white.  The embellishments really added that extra flourish to make this bed a standout piece.

Sanding between coats of paint kept the paint nice and smooth.  Next I distressed it to accent the curved lines and the details, which is hard to see in this picture!  Finally, I sanded, primed, and painted the wood side rails.  This double bed is now ready for a new life in a new shabby chic, cottage, country or french themed room!

I moved it into my space at Melange and topped it with a new bed canopy from Pottery Barn to really draw attention to it!  I strung one of my "Princess" banners across the canopy to set the stage!  I absolutely love this bed!   It is so much fun to see the excitement something I have worked on so hard brings to our customers.  It is going to be hard to part with it but I love it when a customer loves something as much as I do.

I know it will be cherished once again.

 




I will be linking up to these parties so check them out!





Wow Us Wednesdays at Savvy Southern Style

Faded Charm Cottage White Wednesdays




Before and After: Pair of End Tables

 Summertime means cleaning out the shed time!  I can't remember where or when I discovered these end tables - they've been in the shed for years!  These two toned tables scream 'the seventies' but the cabriole legs and wavy edges say 'French Provincial'! They are perfect specimens for  'the shabby look'.

First step - sand off the old cracked varnish! Wow! Look at those water spots - what to do?  Sometimes the old stain or the water spots will work their way through the paint as it dries. So . . .

 

Time to spray on a layer of primer!

Two coats of paint, and then some sanding and these are properly shabbied!

I decided to paint the wire a french gray . . .

Now they're ready to move to Melange! 

This pair would look great with a couch or bed between them. 

At least they are out of the shed!

Quick Change: Red, White and Blue!

Welcome to my living room!  Well, its not exactly 'dressed' yet in this picture!  I was lucky enough to get new furniture this past year and I decided I would go with a neutral 'palette' that would make it easy to decorate for the holidays.  I LOVE to decorate for the holidays and when the boys were young, they loved coming home from school and seeing the house transformed.  Now that they are out of the house, I needed to find a way to decorate a little simpler, since I do not have so many hands to help anymore!

The neutral couch would be perfect for changing out pillows, the coffee table will get a runner and centerpiece, and the small shabby shelf above the couch, could hold some seasonal trinkets.  The shelf holds small, cherished photos of my grandparents all the time, but it has space for a few treasures!

  I found the vintage bicentennial tin plate with an eagle on it at a thrift store so I put it on the small gold easel.  The salt glazed pitcher and a deep red candle in a pewter candlestick add a bit of color and the metal star from Joann's Fabric Store balances the bright red of the candle. 

The coffee table vignette!  I first placed a neutral linen tablecloth I found at Homegoods, down the middle of the table.  Next came the vintage piecrust pedestal mirror - I found it that day with Margaret at the Sacramento Antique Fair.  I was so excited when I saw it because it was the nicest one I had seen in years, and in years - I had to have it for my collection. The deal was sealed when the kind lady came down $20 from her original asking price!  I added a vase, darling little crystal creamer, apothecary jar and a red vintage candy dish - to which I added (in order!) some flags and a baseball, penny candy sticks, red, white and blue poker chips, and a family favorite - Hershey's Kisses in the candy dish!

Fourth of July is enchanting for children . . .and adults!  It just brings out the child in all of us thus the reason I had to add some of my cherished collection of Boyd's Bears to my decor.  This red bear sits atop a vintage ammunitions box topped with a vintage lace hankie.  I painted the flag table years ago when three other neighbors and I all had toddlers at home.  We did country craft shows together and called ourselves 'Four Friends' - cherished memories!

Now for my quick change pillows!  I took a plain red and white striped pillow. . .

. . . and laid a large star-spangled cloth  napkin on an angle over the top of the pillow.  I folded the napkin back over the top of the pillow and safety pinned it to the back of the pillow, making sure the safety pins wouldn't show. By using safety pins, I can remove the napkin and change it out to a different one for a different season!  I needed to secure the napkin to the front of the pillow so something that will be pretty since it will show . . .

I dug into by jewelry box for some brooches!  I used a vintage sun brooch to pin down the point on the top of the pillow. Luckily, I had two sun brooches for my two pillows.  Star brooches, or even rhinestone brooches would work for the Fourth of July!  Done! You can adapt this method to any holiday.  The red and white striped pillows do triple duty for me - I can leave them as they are for a nautical look or for a candy cane Christmas! But the addition of a colorful napkin affixed with a vintage brooch and the pillows are only limited by your creativity!

Here's a close up of my other sun brooch!

Abracadabra! The quick change is complete!  A tall tin flower pitcher filled with red geraniums and white mums grounds the coffee table centerpiece.  I found the blue denim print pillow at The Tattered House, the fleur-de-lis pillow at Restoration Hardware and the red pillow with the shell accent at Homegoods.

 As empty nesters, my husband and I have lots of quiet times in the house.  The days of three boys running in and out the doors are gone for now and we can display mercury glass candlesticks on our fireplace hearth which we would never have done when they were all at home.  A photo and the teddy bear are reminders of those wild Fourth of July's when we saw sparklers and smoking snakes scar our patios. 

So from all of us, to all of you - have a Cherished Fourth!

Before and After: End Tables

Multiple tiered tables make great end tables, either bedside or next to a couch or chair.  This one, found at a thrift store, was sturdy and sound, though is had multiple scratches and the varnish was peeling off.  Nothing that a little elbow grease, sandpaper, and paint can't cure!

Now its all freshened up!

This end table has great lines and detailing - perfect for a shabby project!  However, it needed a little extra work as the drawer had swollen wherever it was stored so the drawer would not push in all the way.  I pulled out the drawer and sanded down the rails and sides of the drawer and it worked fine!  It was also missing one of the screws that held the drawer handle, and needed lots of sanding to get rid of surface scratches.  But after sanding, primer, paint and then some extra sanding to shabby it . . .

. . . it is now ready for a Victorian parlor, a country cottage, or a seaside bedroom!

This simple end table's top was badly scratched and the varnish was flaking off.  Again, lots of sanding, some tightening of the leg screws, and this table was ready for finishing.  I always wrangle with color choices in my head, but the simplicity of this table just reminded me of calm times sitting by the ocean.  Blue is a calming color so . . .

Now it's in my space at Melange- the centerpiece of my summer display! The vintage picnic basket is filled with some petit-point vintage dishes, there's a beachy striped runner, vintage flash cards, vintage hand embroidered linens, and of course some starfish!  If you look closely on the left, there is a mosaic cream colored vase that sits atop my handmade mosaic porthole mirror done in blue beach glass.  The paper parasol is perfect for keeping the summer sun of fair-skin types like myself, and I embellished that birdcage with seashells as well!  Ahhh, summer!!

Before and After: Chalkboard

After remodeling our kitchen, we were left with a whole bunch of cupboard doors.  The finish was well worn but they were still in good shape so I decided to try making one into a chalkboard.  I sanded it down, sprayed primer on it, taped off the raised frame, and painted the inside panel with three coats of chalkboard paint.  Since it is so close to summer, I thought the popular turquoise color paint would be best.  I painted on two coats, let them dry thoroughly and then sanded down the edges to give the chalkboard the shabby look. 

Now the cupboard door has been repurposed and is a fresh new chalkboard ready for a student headed off for college or to use for family messages in the kitchen!   This prototype came out pretty well so I will be refinishing the other old cupboard doors as well!   This one is now for sale at Melange!

Before and After: Birdcage

I found this beautiful birdcage sitting all by itself in a corner at a Hospice Thrift Store - it is quite large and had definitely been lived in by a fine feathered friend as some areas were covered with evidence!

The Evidence!

Birdcages are great for decorating and they sell like hotcakes at Melange, and I had never seen such a well crafted aviary as this before so it came home with me, despite it missing one of it's caster wheels.

  While cleaning and scrubbing it down I noticed a label on it I hadn't seen before in my haste to grab this before another customer!  

 The label said "Designer Aviaries" so I looked it up online - Turns out this the Medium Designer Oak Aviary made by Designer Aviaries out of Grants, New Mexico, original purchase price $698.00!!  They have been making beautiful aviaries since 1988!  I HAD HIT THE JACKPOT! Whoo Hooo!

Now I HAD to keep it and I had this empty corner in my living room that was longing for companionship but would it fit? 

 

I brought it into the house and put it in the corner and it just fit and filled in the corner nicely, but the oak wood just blended into my caramel colored walls so i decided to paint it white

All Painted!

This birdcage could easily house a bird, it was complete with perches and even a pull out tray to clean the cage but I am not wild about the idea of having to clean up after a bird, and I love the idea of having some live plants in my living room so I decided it was about to become the home to my pothos and a fern or two!

I found a gray embossed footed pot and repotted my pothos - it was just the right scale for the top of the cage

My repotted my fern in a light robin's egg blue pot and placed it inside the cage, then added a sweet footed robin's egg blue ceramic bowl with a bird perched on the lid and placed it near the cage on my hearth.

I placed the cage on the stand in the corner - now the crisp white cage stands out against the colored walls!  The extra shelf at the bottom is a great home for the extra couch pillows, and the plants love living in this corner where the sunlight streams in.  
 
The plants got a little more light when I took the cage off the stand and put it directly on the hearth - hmmmm . . .which way should I leave it?  I'll live with it a while!   So the birdcage came from a lonely little corner in a hospice store to a new corner in my home filled with living things -  now I have to decide - leave the cage on the stand or place it directly on the hearth?  Can you help? 

Which do you like better - post a comment below and/or scroll past comment section and cast your vote to help me decide - just check one choice or the other and then click vote!  We'll see what everyone thinks! One thing I do know is that bringing life back to discarded things is something I cherish!