I bought this piece of Ethan Allen cabinetry at a resale shop years ago. It would have been part of an entertainment center. It hung out in storage then had legs added and moved into my principal office as a printer cabinet after it was painted a vivid turquoise. It served me well until I moved to another position where I couldn’t bring my furniture.
It was moved with us and ironically ended up stored in almost the same spot where it now is in the guest house for years.
When we got all the furniture out I thought it would work with the color scheme but the two 1950’s chair cushions were too much for the space.
Of course the solution was to change the color. The only color I could see it as was red. I also wanted some of the turquoise to come through because even though it is bright, I like it. Believe it or not there is a bit of a paint shortage in our area. Apparently it is the time of the year that students paint their parking space and red was hard to find. It took three stores. I would have loved that… back in the day’
I brushed a few areas with paint thinner, painted the cabinet classic red, then sanded over places to let it look a little distressed.
It is amazing how it changed the look. Of the piece.
Not sure the folks at Ethan Allen would approve but we like it. We have installed a television so the cabinet is going to hold dvds etc.
The paint thinner made the wrinkles you see in the corner.
Still plugging along on the exterior but soon there will be paint.
If you know us, you know that we do as much work as we can on our projects unless we don’t have the strength or skills to do the work. We definitely did not not have the skill or experience to refinish our tub and sink so we hired it out. This post is not knocking someone who refinished their own tub or sink. If you were able to successfully do it I applaud you. I just know our limits. Together Mr. Math and I can do basic construction, plumbing, electrical, tile, and paint but haven’t had experience with bathtub refinishing.
We have hung on to the old farm sink since March of 2015. I paid a whole $2.00 for the sink and moved it with us here to Providence Acres. I loved it at first sight and would have been so disappointed if I messed it up trying to DIY refinish it.
It looked rough when we got it but the dark stain was just a moldy hard water spot.
The sink looked much better once I used CLR and toilet bowl cleaner to clear it up but it still wasn’t good enough to use as a kitchen sink.
Once it was cleaned there were rust stains and chips I hadn’t seen before.
The 5 1/2 foot long claw foot tub that we bought on Facebook marketplace for $200.00 was painted lime green on the base when we picked it up. I thought the porcelain looked to be in good shape but once the professional got started on it, I could see the pits and dings all over it.
A pro has access to the chemicals I don’t have and knows how to use them safely. Jesus came with exhaust fans, respirator mask, and a truck load of chemicals. I think his vehicle should have a hazmat warning sticker on it.
Muriatic acid, epoxy bonding agents, super thick oil based primer, and two part epoxy all smelled bad and took gloves and a mask along with a special fine mist sprayer, sander and porcelain bondo meant I would have never been able to have done this job as well as someone who does this for a living.
Sanding
Cleaning
The dark gray is bondo filling in the pitted bottom of the tub.
It looked like chemistry class.
Prep for spraying
Spraying primer
Jesus showed up at 11:00 with a helper and worked non stop until after 5:00 and then returned the following week to buff out some rough spots after the enamel had cured. We are just thrilled with how both turned out. So clean and shiny!
The finished project is beautiful.
I can’t wait to get the bathroom tiled, septic in and everything installed. We are getting closer.
If you are too busy to read my wordy post today I put a quick DIY with photos at the bottom of the page.
My brother in law and sister in law built a home recently in Durango, Colorado.
In case you are counting, this is home number four for them. We stayed at their vacation home in Costa Rica over spring break,
they have a beautiful, huge hilltop home in Austin that is currently for sale,
and are building a new home in one of my favorite small cities near our home in Montgomery, Texas.
Their plan is to live in Durango half the year and in Montgomery the other half. They rent out the Costa Rica home most of the year but visit frequently. It is a tough life, but someone has to do it.
When they moved into the home in Durango three weeks ago, they literally moved up to the 2600 sq ft home with what fit in a UHaul and their car. We arrived for a visit to find that they didn’t have things like mixing bowls, or an egg turner, or spoon rest. They have been so busy getting settled in that cooking wasn’t high on the list. They were also a little short on furniture. They had purchased or brought beds, two couches, chairs, barstools, a dining table an outdoor bench, and a bookcase. I was proud that they had been shopping at local resale and thrift shops for items and had purchased a few accessories at the shops. I think I may be wearing them down… a little bit.
What they did not have were end tables and coffee tables in their main room or the upstairs den. We set out shopping for stuff our first day there. They took us to the shops that they like. I liked the stores, too. They were unique and interesting pieces, but wowser, the tables were very expensive. Like $900 to $1200 per table expensive. I would much rather spend that money on supplies and thrift store furniture and a whole lot more.
When I saw a little $20.00 solid pine toy chest that had several of the most unfortunate paint jobs, I knew it would work as a coffee table with some love. It was painted with a really thin blotchy black color. Someone along the way had painted it white, and there was also an attempt at painting flowers on the chest with red streaks.
The steps are simple:
Strip down to smooth, but not bare wood. Wipe it all down and get clean. I used Lysol wipes.
This had to happen so I could knock down the thick ridges from the painted flowers. I used Citristrip on the whole thing to knock off the black layer and then focused on the flowers. (As usual, I forgot a before picture.) Here it is with the first layer off:
Spray paint the whole chest. I sprayed the chest twice, letting it dry completely between coats. The paint color was Rustoeum Seaside.
This is a project I did on the fly with very limited supplies or space. All the spray paint work was done across the street in a vacant lot because the valley where the house is located was windy and the thought of getting turquoise paint on the car or house was scary.
Not a bad view while I worked. I understand why they have moved to Durango.
Sand away at the paint, following the wood-grain. You will know the paint you are sanding is dry if what you are sanding off looks like chalk dust. I hand sanded using this awesome sanding block with a handle. (You can see the sander in the box to the left of the chest.)
In some places go all the way to bare wood and in others go down through paint to the colors below.
Once I was pleased with the amount of sanding, I stopped. There is no magic formula.
Once I wiped it all down again I rubbed in glaze mixed with dark brown latex paint. The gaze to paint ratio was about three parts glaze to one part paint.
I used a dampish cotton cloth to literally rub it in. It did not take very much at all with each coat. It took two coats for me to be happy with the look.
I rubbed it down with paste wax when I was finished to give it a luster.
Here it is finished. I really like the look. All in all it cost about $20.00 in supplies which were all bought at a pretty small Walmart so they are readily available.
When we moved into our burb house, I did not plan on painting the walls right away, except the front guest room. Here is how the room looked when we purchased the house.
I am not going to talk about the paint job in the front bedroom except to say it was not my style and the color scheme wouldn’t work. I know that the former owner worked really hard on the faux painting.
As soon as we settled in I started looking for inspiration. Here are some of the inspiration pictures I found. I hope that clicking on them allows you to go site I found it at.
I wanted the bedroom to be cheery but restful.
Here is what we have finished to date:
Walls painted. I love the light blue walls. They almost feel like a spa.
Empty frames painted. I found the frames at a resale shop. I spent $4.00 total on all the frames you see on this wall. The paint on the frames is all left overs from other projects. The white plates were 10 cents each at the resale shop. I glued metal soda can tabs to the back of the plates with E6000. I love that stuff.
My bedding arrived. I am crazy about this yellowish paisley print. Target. Over budget. $90.00.
The throw pillows on the bed are all outdoor pillows that were on clearance at Home Depot, Lowes, and Marshall’s.
Curtains hung. Hubby and I went shopping at Ikea recently. I was thrilled to find off the shelf curtains that were 110 inches long for $34.00 a pair.
The herringbone art project done.
I will be writing a DIY on this project. It was a fun evening project that cost less than $10.00 even factoring in the cost of the green tape. ( I have plenty of tape to do several more projects.)$2.00 for the frame and the print that I painted over, Frog tape was $6.00 and I had to get one can of flat white spray paint for the frame. (I need to spray the frame again.) I had the other paint on hand.
The green lamp is in place. I think it is the best $2.00 I have spent in this room.
New art work. Target. Over budget. $20.00
New lamp from Target. $23.00. I know, I know but the colors in the shade go perfectly with the color scheme. Over budget.
I am not a huge fan of the bed frame as is and it will get painted and the posts are going to get trimmed down. I found this funky curio cabinet at a garage sale for a dollar. Here is the before.
Dirt Dobber nests and spiders were included for free. A quick wash down, spray painted the frame and painted the back that amazing Laguna color I love. I am not sure how long it will stay but I think it is a fun piece for now. For a buck investment, It will not kill me to let it go down the road.
I was able to incorporate the old dresser that once belonged to my grandparents, saved by my husband and completely restored.
We have ceiling fans in our bedrooms thanks to a friend of Baby Boy and Sweet Amanda. Don’t judge us for the fans. I think they look ok, It is going to be over a 100 again today here in the burbs. In South East Texas it is miserable without air moving.
