China cabinet for the REAL House of Babs!

We lost all our dining room furniture in Sandy.  DRAG!  But there is always a bright side.  I knew exactly what I wanted for a new china cabinet.  But new was $1,800.00 and was too big.  So the hunt began.  I found this cabinet for $250.  I love it!  The new DR will be painted gray with white trim.  It will have very dark wood floors and furniture in black and white.  This will all tie in with the black and white kitchen.

I painted the cabinet with Annie Sloane Chalk Paint in Old White.  (This is where you hear the record scratching sound and every man reading this clutches his chest and has a heart attack that I would paint dark wood white.....but wait.....let's get real.  In my wildest dreams does any man other than my awesome Larry read this???  Ha ha ha.)

Moving on.  I had to do a base coat of Zinnser shellac-based primer because Mahogany bleeds and bleeds and bleeds right through paint.  When I was finished, I sprayed the handles with rubbed bronze spray paint and then I had the perfect sized, beautiful cabinet of my dreams.  Me likey!!

I know.  It was beautiful already, but I'm a modern gal and old Mahogany just doesn't fly with me.  Way too old fashioned. 

 

Way more my style.  Isn't is pretty????  So in love.

Little Blue Table

My friend Louise sent me a pic of a Ballard's writing desk in this awesome royal blue.  I had to paint something just like it.  I had a small side/end table that was perfect for this color.  It's Annie Sloan's Napoleonic Blue, but in honor of my muse Louise, I'm calling it Louasis Blue.  Louise's backyard is termed, "Louasis".  Don't you just love that?

Malynda's "Green with Envy" side tables and lamps

My very first custom job!  Malynda is such a dynamic gal and was awesome to work for.  She has no fear and made this job sooooo fun!  I painted her end tables in a mix of Antibes Green with a couple of teaspoons of Graphite and Napoleonic Blue.  Then I added gold leaf wax to the details and poly'd the whole thing.  The lamps came out amazing too!  I tried gold spray paint, but it was just.....yuck.  So I grabbed the leaf wax and went to town.  They are so beautiful.  She bought her tables on Ebay.  The lamps were her mothers.  Now?  They have a totally new personality and a new exciting life in Malynda's beach house!!  The fabric shown is Malynda's upholstered headboard.  It is fabulous in Pucci!

Before:

 One done, one to go!

 Damn.  I wish I took a before photo of this lamp.

 Ready to shine in Malynda's beach house. 

Hello Florence!

ASCP Florence is a color that just wasn't in my vernacular.  I know of many talented ladies who say that everything they paint in Florence flies right out the door.  Once I opened the can.....I knew why.  It is really beautiful!  Here is an antique Pembroke table that I painted in Florence.  I waxed it with clear and Bab's dark wax (clear wax with a teeny bit of dark wax in it).  I love it!!!

This is a color I will be using a lot more.  What a surprise!

Courage!

"What makes the flag on the mast to wave?  Courage!"  So said the Cowardly Lion.  I have finally got my courage up.  I have decided that I am NOT going to pay $600 plus per chair for my two French provincial chairs to be recovered.  I am going to do it myself.  I think I can.  I think I can.  I think I can.  No.  I KNOW I can.  And I'm gonna!

I watched a few "how to" videos.  It's fairly simple really.  I've recovered the seats of chairs before which is so easy a child could do it.  This is just a little more detailed.  That is what I must remember!  The key to this project is an electric staple gun.  After that, the sky's the limit. 

So here are my super-disgusting, dirty chairs that I got for $50 from the very nicest, dirty people I've ever met.  I swear to God I was itchin' and scratchin' and imagining things crawling on me the whole way home.  When I did arrive home, I threw the chairs in the garage and immediately took another shower.  Eeeeew!  Let me add bleach, gloves, scrub brush and HOT water to my supply list for these chairs....  I was going to mention a haz-mat suit, but that just would have taken it a bit too far.  Sometimes I just need to go there. 

 Wow.  I have a lot more stuff than I thought....where are those chairs????

 There they are!  Under the seltzer and ginger beer!  The really nice dirty lady kept telling me she "paid $700 dollahs for them in 1970.  They are very good chairs you know, they have the cross bar on the bottom and they are not cut velvet, it's printed!"  Hmm...  don't really give a shit about the meeper infested fabric, but okay.  Can I just pay you and be on my way before I come down with typhoid???  I know, I'm so mean.  But seriously?  These cutie pies hadn't showered in weeks. 

 

 The chairs are really, really nice and very well made.  They just need some attention (sand blasting) - Annie Sloan Chalk Paint, wax and some silver gilding wax.  After that, great fabric!  Then they need to sit on either side of my new fireplace!!  Oh, just the thought of it makes me happy.  And if I can pull this off, I will just feel soooo good.  It will be a new skill and I will have saved tons of dough doing it.  Everytime I look at them, I will feel proud and happy....in hell.  Have a nice day.  :)

Painted Antique Dresser

All done.  It came out very nice!

 

Available on Etsy and Craigslist - $325

The Tessa Dresser

I've been wanting to do a girl's dresser.  I decided to keep it fairly simple for now.  Except for the Mambo Pink handles!!  Couldn't resist.  What little girl wouldn't want this French fleur de lis dresser?  It's made by Bassett and was not so attractive when I brought her home.  I only have a before photo of the drawer:

Good bones, bad color.  Out came the Old White and some Krylon Mambo Pink for the handles.....and here we have The Tessa Dresser.  Named for my amazing, beautiful, sweet little great niece.

Me likey.