Before and After: 1924 Victrola

My latest before and after project was salvaging this old, dilapidated Victrola.  It was really in rough shape – deep cracks, missing a door, broken hinges. But, the label on the bottom said it was made in 1924, so I could not resist trying to salvage it!

Step one was cleaning the entire piece (it had many, many years of “I’ve been sitting in a garage” grime).

My good carpenter friend helped make a new right door and found a vintage hinge online that would fit.  Once the new door was in place, I realized that I wouldn’t be able to just sand a restain it – the cracks on the body of the piece were too deep, and I wouldn’t be able to easily color match a new door.  So, I opted for paint and moved forward with priming the piece. I chose a gorgeous gray paint and accented with bronze metallic paint (from Martha Stewart’s line at Home Depot). Added new hardware, reconnected the crank, and voila! A gorgeous record cabinet!  Plus, as a bonus, the turntable actually still works. I imagine some industrious person could find a new needle and actually make it play.  Currently, I am selling this piece for $375. More information at www.facebook.com/encorefurnishingsnashville.

 

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How to Antique a Brass Lamp

I recently acquired an antique brass lamp, and it is in great condition and a beautiful shape. But, I wasn’t really feeling the brass finish. A little too brassy, pun intented (feel free to roll your eyes). But, in only an hour, I was able to give the lamp a great, oil-rubbed bronze look that I LOVE.  Here’s how:

Step 1: Gather your supplies. For this project I used Minwax Color Express in Walnut. This is a great, easy-to-use stain that adheres to all kinds of surfaces. I used a small plate as a palette and applied the stain using a small paintbrush.  I then used a stencil brush to get the faux-antiqued look.

Step 2: Messily apply one coat of the stain with a brush. It doesn’t have to be perfect because we are going to use the stencil brush to get the finish we want.  I did this step and the next step one section at a time so that the stain wouldn’t dry before I had a chance to use the stencil brush.

Step 3:  Using the stiff stencil brush, pat the stain to remove brush strokes and get that antiqued look. This step felt to me like I was a pointillist artist going to town on a canvas. The nice thing about this step is that you can’t really mess it up – if you accidentally rub off some stain or get a thumb print, just dot over that section again with the stencil brush.

Step 4: Let it dry and you’re done! Super easy project. This lamp took less than an hour to complete. You can use the same process for antiquing cabinet hardware or even an old mirror.

I’m selling this lamp on Etsy – Go check it out!

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#Retro

Before and After: Shabby Chic Chairs

Found these LOP (lots-o-potential) chairs at a yard sale recently, and I was so glad to have the long weekend to fix them up!

The first step was to clean the spider webs that had infiltrated the chairs, then I did a quick vacuum and OxyClean of the upholstery.  It was actually in great shape, it just had a couple of small stains that came out quite easily.

I then sanded down the varnish and prepped the chairs for painting by taping off the upholstery sections. I don’t always use painter’s tape, but when it comes to upholstery, I take no chances. An ill-timed sneeze could ruin everything.

I then painted the chairs using Annie Sloan’s Old White – two coats. I only did one coat on the cane side panels because I sort of loved the shabby chic look that gave. After the paint had dried, I sanded corners and edges for an even more cottage-shabby look, sealed the paint with clear wax and that was it!! So thrilled with how they turned out:

To purchase these or see more of my pieces – visit www.facebook.com/encorefurnishingsnashville!

Before and After: French Provinical Side table

Before…plain side table – gorgeous shape.

Found this great little side table on Craigslist in truly perfect condition…solid wood, sturdy. I love the shape of the piece, but I was not a huge fan of the faux leather top and honey oak color.

Before

 

But, I had some Annie Sloan chalk paint left over from an older project – a can of French Linen and a can of Graphite…

Ta-da! Two tone table.

I kept the two-tone top, used graphite for the center section. Please ignore the pug.

I also used the Graphite to fill in the grooves and highlight the details.

This piece, along with some of my other work is available via my Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/encorefurnishings

New pieces!

I found a few great new pieces for refinishing this weekend:

Isn’t this dresser gorgeous?  It needs a bit of work  – there are a few places where the veneer is chipped. But, a bit of wood filler and a fresh coat of paint should do the trick…now I just have to decide on the color!

Found these beauties at a yard sale – the cane is in perfect shape! I think I may paint them white? Any thoughts? Pink and white chairs would look very cute. Or perhaps a light grey…too many choices!

Before and After: Vintage Mint Chairs

After some strategic yard-sale-ing last weekend, I found myself in possession of three vintage farm chairs. They were each in fairly good shape, just in need of some glued joints and a coat of paint. I have always wanted a mismatched chair set painted all in one color, and this was my chance! I chose a very pale mint green for the chairs, and I think they turned out beautifully!  Here is a step-by-step how-to on painting these vintage chairs:

First chair, before.

Second chair, before.

 

Third chair, half-primed.

Step 1: Assess the structure of each chair and glue joints with wood glue when needed. Each chair needed a little bit of glue on the legs, and the second chair needed some wood-filler on the seat. You could also glue any gaps together and clamp the entire chair, but I decided to go the wood filler route since it would be faster, and I am impatient.

Fill in gaps with wood filler.

Step 2: Sand and prime. I always do a light sanding before and after primer. My favorite primer to use is Glidden Gripper because a) you can get it at the Home Depot around the corner from my house and 2) it seems to stick to everything. And when I say everything, I really do mean everything. Case in point: I primed these chairs a few DAYS ago, and just YESTERDAY when I went to get my hair cut, my stylist starts looking through my hair and asks “Have you been painting?” because there was STILL PRIMER STUCK IN MY HAIR. Days later! After multiple showers and hair-washes. I promise I am hygienic. Gripper just sticks. to. everything. forever.

Step 3: Paint!  I painted with a latex mint paint (also Glidden, also from Home Depot). I had the color mixed specially from a sample I brought in. Two coats should do the trick, if you have primed.

First chair drying.

 

Two chairs drying. And a pug butt.

Voila! Three mint chairs!

Would love to know your thoughts! And, I’m now in the market for a fourth chair to paint to complete this set…send me any leads you can find!

Front Porch Love

The front porch is one of those Southern institutions that transcends time and era and age. If you were to put one hundred southerners in a room together and ask them to find one thing to agree upon, that thing would be the glory and beauty of sitting on a front porch at dusk.

This weekend was one of those perfect-weather weekends for sitting on the porch. Saturday was sunny, but not too hot with a light, gentle wind. This morning was rainy in that perfect-for-coffee-on-the-porch-watching-the-storm kind of way. These two days have really made me appreciate my front porch. It’s a wrap-around, victorian porch. Not too big, but just right for me and the pugs. I recently did a bit of work on the porch – replaced the rotting floorboard with composite planks and added a railing and gates.

View from the corner of the porch….Target table and loveseat, vintage flower side table.

 

The front of the porch.

The pals standing guard.

Side of the porch…complete with two old chairs I updated with some bright yellow paint and a vintage singer sewing machine table.

My beautiful sweet friend Jessica sitting with Nora.

My roommate Jack and sweet Jessica. Totes in love.

Nora, saying “Adios!”

New Etsy Shop items!

Well, my pitiful excuse for an Etsy shop got a couple of new additions today!

Look at these beauties:

Set of 5 vintage wine glasses for $25!

And I almost hate to part with this gorgeous jewelry box:

$30 on Etsy!

 

To see more photos, visit my shop!