Curbside rescue | The Weekend Country Girl

Buffet Table With History

July 23, 2013

Karen Behr Paint with Primer, Coldspring, Curbside rescue, DIY Furniture, Painted Furniture, rescuing damaged furniture, Thrifting, using bright colors Behr Jungle Trail, real distressed wood, Reclaimed heart pine 15 Comments

The best time to shop for anything at a resale shop or an auction is when no one else is willing to be out shopping. If you want the best deals go when it is raining, early in the morning or, like we just did, when it is blazing hot. It was 102 on the truck thermometer and we were pooped after a day of shopping when I spied this table sitting outside a charity resale shop. It had just been delivered and heat waves were radiating off the black asphalt where it was sitting. The table was marked $60.00.

I walked around inside the store for a little while then asked the lady at the register what she would take for the table. To my surprise she said it was too hot and heavy to bring in so if we wanted it we could have it for $20.00. Sold.

I really only wanted the legs of the table, but both Hubby and I were surprised at the quality of the table as it was loaded. I knew immediately what I wanted to do with it. I ~~need~~ want a buffet table at the end of our breakfast room. I have been secretly jealous of my friend Robin’s green end table with a stained top so the color was obvious…well to me it was. We worked on getting the base and table top cut from the original table, but it was just so new and commercial looking. Yes, I am one of those people who like a room to look collected, not bought as a set. I feel the same about furniture. I want unique, original and character. Hubby and I sat in the Garagemahal looking at the piece when it came to my husband. Use the wood from my dad. the plank has been sitting in the hoard over a year. It is heart pine and full of character. I love that my dad saved it from a trash pile at the place where he worked for 30 years. According to my dad the wood was used as a drafting table in the shop of Gulf States Utilities. He said it was built in the 40’s and was already old when he started there in 1960. A quick measurement let us know that it would work. Yay! It needed a quick cut down to the sides to make it fit, a rub down with mineral spirits to clean it, and a coat of poly. Nothing else.It will live in our house proudly. I love wood with history.

The color is a little richer than Behr’s Happy Camper, because I needed it to match my fabric on the chairs in the breakfast area. I chose Behr’s Jungle Trail.

One coat of Bona Floor Poly on this was enough to bring out the shine but not make it too glossy.

I love those nail holes.

It is hard to photograph a green piece of furniture at Star Hill. I had to move it to the gravel road to allow it to show up.

Lots of work took place on this old wood. I love that my dad saved it from the trash pile and held on to it for more than 10 years before I got it. It looks amazing.

It was so well made that the two pieces of wood match perfectly. We thought it was one piece of wood until we got it cleaned up.

Curbside Headboard Into Garage Chalkboard

June 17, 2013

Karen Chalkboard DIY, Country Style, Curbside rescue, moving, Repurposed Furniture, Roadside Finds chalkboard DIY, oops paint, Repurposing furniture 3 Comments

The best time to go trolling for curbside finds is Saturday afternoon just before dark. The very best time to go hunting is the weekend of the huge neighborhood garage sale near our current city house. The garage sale occurs every spring and the finds over the year have helped furnish our lake house and have provided materials for projects in our city house. People tend to throw out items that do not sell. I love items that do not sell.

The most recent garage sale weekend we collected a dresser totally junk but the drawer fronts were solid wood and will be reused along with brass hardware, a pink chair- it now has a home with a teenaged young lady who loves thrift shopping, and this wooden twin headboard that wonder of all wonders- Hubby wanted to make into a project! Of course I let him run with it! He decided to make a chalkboard out of it. Wow. I know. I must be rubbing off on him after 32 years.

This was tricky. He cut the spindles so that they followed the curve of the wood, cut out a piece of hard board for the chalkboard and turned it over to me to paint. I painted the chalkboard four times, then painted the frame with a jar of 25 cent green paint from he Lowe’s clearance section.

Hubby connected the chalkboard to the frame with construction adhesive he. Had on hand and clamped it in place.

In our clean out to move I found 6 hooks that were wrapped in a sack. I hold on to hardware when I find it. I never pay more than a few cents for hardware and save it in a cabinet at the lake so I really have no idea where this came from or what project I bought it for. Whatever the circumstance, Hubby put three of the hooks, painted dark brown onto the bottom of the frame. This is going in his garage by the door so he and hang hats and write notes when he is trying to remember measurements.

I am so proud of his work!

I Was a Faker

May 14, 2013

Karen Curbside rescue, Decorating, Dresser, The City House Credenza, Decorating, finishing a project Leave a comment

Hello friends, my name is Karen and I was a big faker. I did not totally finish the credenza before I posted it. Remember, it was cold and rainy when I worked on it? I just got frustrated before the inside of the doors were painted and we put them back on unfinished, paint drips and all.

It looked finished unless the center doors were opened but it has been bugging me. I would have so embarrassed if someone would have opened the doors. We are about to start showing the house and I know that even though the credenza is not part of the sale, people are curious. ( I am when I see custom furniture!)

Sooo…

I bought a sample of Revival Mahogany because the quart is at Star Hill, sanded and painted the doors brown.

Next I used spray adhesive to adhere burlap to the painted doors. Then I glued a wide ribbon around the edge of the burlap and FINALLY I hammered in some left over nailhead trim into the corners.

Much better. Feel free to snoop when you come look at our house now!

The Junk Fairy End Table

March 24, 2013

Karen Curbside rescue, glazing, painting, Repurposed Furniture 1970's end table, Behr paint, Happy Camper Green, painted furniture 13 Comments

When we returned from seeing The Southern Belle, we were greeted at the front door by this beauty. The junk fairy apparently made a visit while we were gone!

I knew that this dude was worth saving, but we just don’t have a place for it. I know it sounds crazy but I do not sell anything I do. When you sell things someone else is your boss. Right now at this point in my life I have WAY ENOUGH BOSSES in my life. Sooo, I posted it on Facebook and asked my friends if they would like it. My friend Robin was first to reply and she wanted it green. We settled on Behr Happy Camper. I decided to stain the top even though it was in rough shape because I think it has a lot of character.

Yuck. What you are seeing is after sanding it all once.

Eventually it did sand out… well mostly it sanded out. This is what it looked like at 7:15 a.m. Saturday morning.

This is what it looked like at 8:00 a.m. One coat of paint on.

This is what our little green friend looked like Sunday morning after two more coats of paint, the top stained walnut, and a brown glaze applied. I will poly it this week then it gets to live at Robin’s house. I wanted to put the end table in front of the azaleas because I am bragging that we already have 70 degree weather here. Spring has sprung.

Dresser to Mudroom Bench

March 3, 2013

Karen Curbside rescue, DIY, DIY cushion, Dresser, home decorating, mudroom, recycled furniture, resale finds, Roadside Finds, Roadside Rescue, Style, The City House, tufted cushion dresser to mudroom bench, home entryway, Repurposing furniture 112 Comments

My mudroom bench started life as a dresser. I found it on the side of the road waiting for heavy trash pick up. It was a mess! The top was in pieces and two drawers were broken. In spite of the shape that the dresser was in, it was solid wood and had dove tailed drawers. It was late at night and we were headed home from visiting friends. I had to beg Hubby to stop, back up and get out to look at the dresser. He was less than impressed with this one.

Here it is with one of the working drawers out. The top has a split all the way down the length.

After staring at it a few weeks, I decided to turn it into a piece for our entryway that could serve as a sort of mudroom. A place to take off shoes, hang jackets and hats and hide junk…I mean Hubby’s treasures.

First, We removed the top two rows of drawers from the dresser and created a bench by adding a plywood top.

Next, we created a separate top piece from the two remaining solid drawer fronts. Because of the height, we had them open on hinges. We could not have used it if it were drawers. A sheet of beadboard paneling, 2X4’s, and a plywood box.

The mirror was a thrift store find. Hubby chopped the top off the mirror frame and routed the 2X4’s so that they matched the mirror. We reused the top in a later piece.

Then, Hubby created a board and batten over bead board back to connect the piece visually. The bead board and top are connected together, but they float over the bench. Sneaky huh? This allows easy installation and access to electrical without cutting holes in the wood. You never know where it will live next! All the hooks were installed last because I wasn’t sure what I wanted. In the end I went with plain hooks because they worked for the piece.

Finally, we painted, added crystal knobs and made a tufted cushion. I love the soft green color!

This is by far the most unique piece of furniture in our home and is a great conversation piece.

Here it what it looked like the morning that I wrote this blog. I did not do anything so that you can see how we really live.

This is the best shot I have taken of the bench. Now I wish I had removed Hubby’s hat, camera, and jacket!

Getting Close to Finishing the Yellow and Gray Bedroom

October 28, 2012

Karen Curbside rescue, Decorating, DIY Art, felt rosettes, hanging swag light, home decorating, yellow and gray bedroom Decorating, thrifty, yellow and gray Leave a comment

I am getting close to finishing the bedroom. I have been exhausted from my real work, so not much has been happening at the city house. I am still waiting for two pillows to arrive and I need a curtain rod for the sheer curtains going in the window but other than that all the elements are in the room.

Here is what I got done today.

Silhouette Birds for over the bed.

I used two frames that I have had since the Southern Belle moved to Savannah years ago. I wrapped some fabric left from the owl project around a piece of cardboard. A quick google search of royalty free silhouette birds landed several options.

Here are two of the birds I found.

I printed the birds on the computer printed then carefully cut them out. I used some spay adhesive to attache them to the fabric then put them in the frame. Easy. And best of all, free.

I have had some hob nail milk glass globes for a while. I got them for fifty cents each and have been looking for a project to use them on. I want the night stands to display some of the things I have collected for the room so I wanted hanging lights. Hubby found the parts for the hanging lamps by shopping hardware stores around us because Lowe’s and Home Depot did not have the hardware needed. He spent $2.50 on each light kit and then $13.00 on each swag kit.

I had to sand and spray the light kits black. They looked much better.

Hubby wired it together with the swag kit.

Swag Kit

I am not sure I love the light yet. I am not happy with how the lamps came out but I have a plan to fix them. I think the chain is too distracting on the busy wall. I have a plan, but I have to get Hubby to build what I need. Thank goodness he is such a good sport.

Reusing a Window

October 16, 2012

Karen Curbside rescue, reusing an old window 1 Comment

My friend, the social planner, found this window along with another where a house was being remodeled. She wanted to turn it in to a hang up rack for her soon to be started mud room. It had great old paint and the glass was not cracked.

Up at the Garagemahal we have tools, paint, Polyurethane and doodads a plenty. The social planner got busy covering the frame with poly. She even sealed the back with a few coats of poly to keep the peeling, and potentially lead based, paint in place.

After the polyurethane, I donated some of my clearance knobs to the window. They will be perfect in her rustic mud room.

I do have a surprise for her… I have asked Lorie of Lorie’s Glitz and Glamour to use her handy dandy machine to make a vinyl “Rocking F” for the glass.

Fixing the Schoolhouse Desk

September 4, 2012

Karen Curbside rescue, oak school desk 1 Comment

The broken desk is now reassembled. Hubby, who will not let me defile the desk with paint, is stripping the entire piece of all varnish.
I really am proud of all that he has done.