Oooh La La!

I'm sharing a project I completed a couple of weeks ago.

I was inspired to paint this piece after seeing a post from Libby at Light of the Home.  She had a similar piece and we had the same idea - it looked too old fashioned for our tastes.  I loved the finished look of Libby's buffet so much that I got straight to work on my piece.  I say "piece" because I still don't know what the heck it is!

I trashed picked this a couple of years ago (you can read about that here),

and don't know what it was used for, and it now serves as a focal point in my Living Room.

Libby used A.S.C.P. in Louis Blue for her buffet.  I chose Paris Grey, since that's what I already had.
The walls in my LR are a pale yellow with blue accents throughout the room.

I added Old White on the drawer fronts and on some of the detail.

I'm certainly no expert, but I'm gonna share a couple tips here that some of you may find helpful.  These are just some things I learned through trial and error.

First, when distressing a piece using sandpaper, rather than randomly sanding all over, I only sand in corners, edges and over raised details.  In other words, I don't sand over the broad spaces, like the side or front panels.  I've found that it looks too forcefully distressed when I do this and I can better achieve a worn look by going over those spaces with stain.

And that leads to my second tip.  After experimenting with brown wax,  I've discovered that it's not nearly as forgiving as stain.  Brown wax dries way too quickly and is very hard to tone down, even by applying a clear wax.  I usually use Minwax Dark Walnut for all of my staining and it is so easy to work with.  After letting the paint dry completely, I apply the stain with a sponge brush and wipe off with a dry cloth.  If it looks too dark, the clear wax will tone it down quite a bit.

I've also learned that the longer I let the stain dry, the less will come off during the waxing process.  If you wax right away, you will remove most of the stain.  So it just depends on what look you are going for.  The great news is, everything is fixable!

I added crystal knobs from Hobby Lobby.

I love how it turned out.  There is so much detail on this beautiful piece.  I love how the stain works its way into the crevices.  So pretty!

I also scored this new rug for $40 on Craig's List.  The previous rug had too much yellow and a hint of orange in it.  This one coordinates perfectly with my new Frenchy painted piece.

It was still rolled up and in the plastic!  It looks spotty in the pic, but it's brand-spankin' new!!

I also replaced the pillows on the sofa.

Got them at Tuesday Morning for $12.

I'll be moving the coffee table from the family room in here in the next few days.

Here's a sneak peak at my latest project.

Hope you are having a fabulicious week!
xoxo,
Kim