Dust off your sweaters and wraps and hit the road...

It's that time of year again...I'm prepping the painting for the fall sale...October 12 & 13...invite your friends and make it a day.

Ahhhh, the crispness of blue and white

During the hunt for great furniture to paint for my barn sale, I responded to an ad for a traditional dark wood cabinet that I thought would be perfect for my master bathroom re-do. After going to the women's house to see it, she tells me she has a storage unit full of vintage furniture and would I be interested in looking at any of it? Hmmmm, let me think...well mayyyyyybeeeeee you could twist my arm. So on a cold rainy day last March, my husband and I go--we see--we conquer--and we drag home an entire truck load of furniture, including these two beauties.

Now, I'm not very good at remembering to take a "before" picture. I normally think of that step after I'm about half way done. These pieces were some of the very first I've painted with Annie Sloan Chalk Paint. Yes, I know. How could someone who paints over a hundred pieces of furniture a year not use it up 'till now. I don't know...maybe I didn't want to fall into all the hype. And to tell you the truth, there was nothing wrong with my trusty satin latex that I've been using for years.

Well, after my friend Nancy started carrying ASCP in her new store, Twigs and Twine last month, I decided to buy a can, or two. I was very lucky that day. The stockist was in the store setting up the display and I got to chat with her about all the tips and tricks!

Both of these pieces were painted with identical paint...Duck Egg Blue and Old Ochre, with a touch of silver highlights in the recessed trim areas (using a paint pen). The buffet has a coat of clear wax first, then dark wax applied strategically to the curvey trim areas. The secretary was only coated with clear wax.

One or both of these pieces can be yours...they'll be for sale at my June 15 & 16th barn sale. See the above tab "Next Barn Sale" for details, photos and vendor links.

The verdict on ASCP? It's very fun to paint with...and the best part...the quick dry time! Saves me a bundle of time considering I paint 40-50 pieces for each sale!

The silver highlights were accomplished using a paint pen. I couldn't fit the pen tip in the small spaces, so I dabbed the paint pen on cardboard, and used a tiny brush to get in the tight areas.

I a huge fan of light distressing.  I figure everyone has kids who might scratch or dent a piece...so why not start out that way!

This piece needed some attention. I had to re-build the bottom drawer and the two doors. The doors were completely removed and in pieces. Apparently when the previous owner was bringing it home, the doors flew open from the wind and were taken off! Thank goodness all the pieces were saved! The criss-cross sections behind the glass were missing however.

Duck Egg blue on inside, drawer fronts and drop leaf.

The trick to painting inside a desk? Spray paint! I used Heirloom White inside the desk...but you can't wax spray paint. The wax won't set up right and is sticky.

Turquoise Love Affair...

For months I've been meaning to show you my favorite piece of furniture that I've painted. For you new followers, that's what I do...paint vintage furniture. I hold a sale twice a year and sell it all to you! Many times when I drag a piece home from the curb, craigslist, auction or garage sale, I first "test" it out in my own house. I mean, really, would you want to buy a piece of furniture if it weren't tested first? Certainly not (I keep telling myself this). It makes for an ever changing, revolving door of fun pieces in my house, that's for sure.

I think this piece, however, will stay for good.

I bought it from a craigslist ad late last summer, with full intentions to sell at the October barn sale. But when I got it done--holy cow--I decided I had to bring it in!

Since I paint at least 80-100 pieces of furniture between my two barn sales, I have a pretty tried and true process for painting...and no, I don't use Annie Sloan Chalk Paint. I still have yet to purchase any! I know, I'm probably the only one who doesn't use it, but I'm a satin latex kind of girl.

Sadly, I don't have a photo of the china cabinet before I started, but it was very drab walnut stain, and was missing it's shelves. Here's the basics:

1) Give it a good cleaning to get old grime and dirt off. My favorite product is Arm and Hammer Super Washing Soda, which is in the cleaning supply or laundry aisle of the grocery store or WalMart. You won't believe how much dirt, old varnish and wax, and dirty build up will come off the surface. I've also used TSP to remove grime and at the same time "prep" the surface for painting.
2) Start sanding. Sanding preps the surface so paint will stick. I use an electric mouse sander at the start. Wipe all dust with a tack cloth, which you can pick up in the paint department for about $1.00. If you don't want to buy one, just be sure you get all sanding dust off. Wet wipes work good for this too.
3) To prime or not prime? It's rare for me to prime a piece of furniture. Mostly because I distress almost every piece and I don't like the white primer showing through the distressed areas. It's just a personal preference. Now, if you paint with Annie Sloan, priming isn't an issue...it's not needed, nor do you have to sand I'm told.
4) Begin painting...I always use latex satin and a foam brush. I paint with so many colors at one time that I don't want to be cleaning my paint brush all day long. So, I use a foam brush and then just wrap it in a plastic bag until my next coat. The more time you can wait in between coats, the better. At least half a day--over night is best. I always use at least two coats of paint, depending on what distressing technique I plan to use. But most jobs take two coats. If it's a table top surface or dresser top, I wet sand in between the coats of paint. Wet sanding gives a very sleek, smooth surface when you're done. If you take this route, be sure to use wet sand paper, not regular. It's black and much finer than the brown sand paper. Now is when you'd also paint any decorative trim, such as I did on the cabinet door and legs. After second coat is dry you're ready for your glaze and top coat.

5) This piece was glazed with a dark brown paint. I just pour glaze into a styro bowl and then drip some paint into it. I don't have exact measurements, but maybe about 2 parts glaze to 1 part paint. I dip a cotton rag into the glaze and dab/wipe it into the areas with crevices, grooves, trim, etc., then wipe off excess before it dries.

 I use to always finish with a satin latex polyurathane, usually Varathane brand. But now I almost always use finishing wax in clear or dark, again depending on the look I'm going for. For this cabinet, I chose dark BriWax. Always read the directions on the can, each wax is different. I have found that I don't wait as long as the can says before buffing. If the wax dries too long, it's difficult to buff it out shiny. Some wax should not come in contact with water for any period of time...so those waxes are not good for dining table tops. For my clear wax, I use Johnson's Finishing Wax.

I usually put on two coats of wax on the surfaces that will get more wear...like table tops, dresser tops, etc. Sides and legs usually get one coat.

6) Now you're ready for finishing touches like hardware. If don't already know, Hobby Lobby has the best selection of knobs and drawer pulls. They are frequently 2 for 1.

Here's the finished piece.
 

Then I started to fill her up...

 It's been moved three times already in my family room, and here's how it stands right now.

I'll let you know if I decide to sell this turquoise beauty. In the meantime, jot down my barn sale dates, June 15 & 16th. I'll have a boat load of other pieces for you to pick from! See you then.

Hop on over to:

Shabby Creek Cottage, Transformation Thursday

Miss Mustard Seed, Furniture Feature Friday