Using knobs/hardware as inspiration for painted details

Hello guys and gals…

I am presenting this little black and cream dresser for your viewing pleasure today.

When I found this little beauty is was pretty much a wreck. It looks good at first glance and then…

you see veneer issues….

 and some ungodly wax that had been spilled all down the front of the drawers.

So because I knew I wanted to paint the surround black I knew I had to fill in the veneer really well and super smooth. 

Black shows every imperfection!

For that I use Bondo, an automotive dent repair epoxy. It sets up super fast so you can sand in 5 minutes! and I like the finish for veneer issues better than wood filler. 

The wax was another story. I had to scrape, then sand and then scrape again to make sure it was all removed. Then it was all about the painting.

I did not originally have that little medallion painted anything but cream and it was bothering me. It looked like an afterthought. But I needed new knobs for it so I headed to Hobby Lobby to scout out some inspiration hardware.

This is what I came up with.  You can layer your hardware! This set up is actually a backplate and a single knob. I knew the single knob wouldn't be visually hefty enough for the dresser. But I wanted that teal! So I kept looking and that's when I came upon the backplate and knew that was the answer.

 Once I got home I then realized how much of a genius I really was once I saw that I could use the motif from the knob to make a stencil for the medallion. Genius sometimes comes in fits and starts.

Luckily I even had a little teal architectural sculpture to add to the staging!

So if your painted piece is lacking something and you are not sure what, look to hardware as inspiration. Try layering hardware or just taking cues from the design. You never know when lightening might strike!

Always being renewed,

Please see the link party page to see where I link arms with those blissfully beautiful bloggers that host every week. So gracious they are along with these other sweet ladies!
       

 

     

My New favorite RED

I know it has been a while, I seem to be saying that more and more lately. Having a shop has definitely taken it's toll in the time department. I think I have things a bit more settled and in a little more of a routine so I can get back to showing some fun projects. One such projects is this bed! I had picked it up during a thrift shopping spree about a year ago for $50! 

The finials caught my eye from across the store and I ran to get it before anyone else could. They didn't even have the footboard out yet that is how fast I snatched it up!

But it had these little birds on it that I didn't love and the bed was in fantastic shape so it came home with me and then sat in my basement. Once I got the shop, I figured I would try to sell it as is and it sold the first day! The gentleman who purchased it, Patrick, did not like the birds either! He wanted me to paint the bed somehow so the birds were covered but keep some of the wood and He wanted it red.

I love a person who is not afraid of color!

Those little finials reminded me of pagodas so I went searching for a great Chinese red.

I love this red! It is called Licorice Stick by Behr. It is a gorgeous deep but vibrant red and because I used the Marquee line of paints it went on so smooth and even it only took me two coats. I know Marquee says one coat coverage but I prefer two for durability.

It made the wood pop right out of its grain! And on top of it, the top piece with the birds really looks like a pagoda or the Emperor's City which I hadn't really noticed before because all of the wood was running together. This is one of those times when I think paint enhanced the lines of the piece but because we didn't paint the whole thing, the wood still was able to shine.

I picked strategic places to paint so the whole bed and design looked cohesive.

Patrick asked me to add some gold to the bed in places as well so I covered the red lightly with a coat of gold glaze and then added just the gold to some other details to further highlight the beds cool features

You can see the gold on the little triangle below the finial. 

 I loved how the bed turned out and Patrick sent me some photos of it all set up in his guest bedroom! 

Patrick liked the bed so much he asked me to make him some slipcovers for his living room chairs AND his dining room chairs.

Stop back to see the chair transformation and to see some new things added to the shop!

Always being renewed,

Please see the link party page to see where I link arms with those blissfully beautiful bloggers that host every week. So gracious they are along with these other sweet ladies!