fun with a table

I told y'all I have a ton of projects to catch up on & I meant it!  I think I might be posting every day this week to get caught up.  This one was a stretch for me (I think there is a BIG difference between being artistic and being creative… I am NOT artistic, but I am creative.  I think to pull off a top like this, you need to be artistic.  Which, might I remind you, I am not.)  But it was fun to try something new, even if it is sweltering hot outside.

This table was a goodwill find and I'm not even going to tell you what I paid for it, because it is almost embarrassing.  They practically gave it to me.  That may have had something to do with the awful table-top these gorgeous legs once held.  At some point (I'm guessing 70's?) someone took the original top (which must have been amazing) and replaced it with this formica beauty.

First thing I did was carry it to the curb.  And someone (not the garbage man!) picked it up, which made me happy.  You know what they say about one man's trash being another's treasure!

Here are the legs...

Here is my husband trying to figure out the best way to attach the base to it's new top.  I painted the base in a creamy off-white (not sure the color, maybe matched heirloom white?  the top of the can is so covered in paint, I don't know anymore!), then added the stained & stenciled top.

Although I am happy with the result, I'm still undecided about the stenciled top.  What do you think?  I sanded through it several times & also put a coat of stain over the paint (Martha Stewart's aegean is the color of the stencil).  The jury is still out for me.  Its certainly different from anything I've ever done, but I think I need to stick to the stuff I know :)

thanks for coming to A Few Good Pieces!
kathie

antique vanity

Whew!  I am exhausted from all of the excitement surrounding the chalk paint giveaway!  But I have lots of pieces to catch up on, so back to the daily grind.

This gorgeous piece was given to me (yes, I said GIVEN!) by a family I have known for years & years.  I watched their children grow up, they were by 'bosses' when I lifeguarded at the neighborhood pool, they were references for me when I got my first job… I love this family!

Mrs. C contacted me when she was having a garage sale recently and gave me first dibs on what she had.  I loved this piece but when I tried to buy it she offered me a deal instead.  In exchange for refinishing her breakfast room table & chairs, she would give me this piece & some others.  Yes, please!

Here she is before.  I don't normally name my pieces, but I'm calling this the "Katie" vanity, after the C's daughter who had this in her room for years.

Pre-broken-arm, I might have totally refinished this piece.  Sadly, that is out of the cards for me now.  I just don't have the strength in my right arm to do the heavy-duty work like that anymore.

So I painted her in Annie Sloan's Old White, distressed, used clear wax and then a teensy bit of dark wax.

I did strip & restain the top.  It had some damage (see below) but the dark walnut stain all but covered it up.

"Katie" was also missing one of her gorgeous pulls.  I went to Eugenia's (see post about Eugenia's here) and although they didn't have an exact match, I found two antique pulls that I felt like 'went' with the piece for the top two drawers.

Top after stripping & sanding:

You can see some of the damage that I couldn't remove in this picture:

And after just one coat of wood conditioner & dark walnut stain:

You can see here that the original stain is still slightly visible, but you have to be looking for it.

Here she is in progress, missing her top two pulls (I had the one in my purse to try to match it).

And after:

Here are the 'new' antique pulls I selected.  Since I couldn't get an exact match, I went away from the original since I didn't want it to look like I tried to match them & failed :)

I knew I wouldn't sell this piece  but if you remember, I have two boys (not exactly boy-appropriate!)… so my sister walked in, took one look, and asked if she could have it for my niece.  Yes, you can!

So I'll get to admire it for years to come :)  And, Mrs. C, if you decide you want it back, it is yours!!

thanks!
kathie

inking to these great parties:

Restore Interiors Restored It Wednesday

Miss Mustard Seed's Furniture Feature Friday

My repurposed Life's Catch as Catch Can

Primitive & Proper's Piece of Work Wednesdays

DIY by Design's Swing into Spring

The WINNERS & A SURPRISE from Virginia!

Hi everyone!

I'm so glad the time is here to announce the winners, because I can hardly stand it anymore!

But first, I have something awesome to share… Virginia Weathersby from the Southern Institute of Faux Finishing has just completed a fantastic video tutorial on Chalk Paint.  The video is perfect ~ it touches on all the ways you can make chalk paint 'yours' through mixing of colors, waxing techniques and distressing.

And here it is!!!

I am SO excited to share this with you!!!  Take a moment and watch it ~ I've watched it three times already :)  I've yet to try the gilding wax (but you can bet I'm going to) and I also haven't gotten very experimental in my color mixing.  It is so fun to see all of the possibilities!  The music is also fun and of course I love listening to Virginia's beautiful southern accent.

So now, without further ado, I want to announce the winners of the Chalk Paint Giveaway.  Do you remember what the winners will get?  Here is a reminder:

         *2 cans of chalk paint (your color choice)

         *2 cans of wax, one clear & one dark

         *2 wax brushes, one for your clear & one for your dark

         *All of this SHIPPED to your home

Virginia added to my original giveaway in a HUGE way… She included an additional wax & wax brush for the first winner, and also offered to double the offer to TWO winners.  We love you, Virginia!!

Winner, Winner, Chicken Dinner (do they say that everywhere, or just here in the south?!)

I asked my kiddos to pick a number between 1 & 477…

My 7 year old chose:

Number 45 which is SANDY from Paint Me White in Australia!!!  (Virginia had offered to cover shipping but I think I'll tell her I'll split it with her for this one!)

My 8 year old chose:

Number 360 which is KIM from A Brush of Whimsy in Idaho!!!

YAY!!  Congratulations, to our proud new chalk paint owners & future chalk paint addicts!

Will you girls email me (kathiechipman @ yahoo.com) and share the following with me:

*have you ever used chalk paint?  (sandy, I know from our comments/correspondence that you haven't since it isn't available in Australia ~ which makes it extra special for you to be a winner!)
*what colors would you like to choose (choose 2!)
*your address
*also, I think it would be fun if y'all would send me pictures of your first chalk paint projects so I can share them here.  Deal??

Phew ~ the suspense has been killing me!  I am so thrilled for both Kim & Sandy, and so grateful to Virginia and The Southern Institute of Faux Finishing!

Love to all!!
kathie

DOUBLE the Give-Away!!!!!

Y'all, I can hardly sit still, I am SO excited about this!!!!

I got a call this morning from Virginia Weathersby at The Southern Institute for Faux Finishing.  I get all of my chalk paint & supplies from them, and had planned to get the giveaway items from them as well.  They have great availability as well as exceptional customer service.  Their only flaw?  They are too far away from me :)  Located in Mississippi, they have a store that offers not only custom work, but also supplies and classes… amazing!

Well, Virginia offered to SWEETEN the DEAL for the giveaway!

First, friends, she offered to add an additional wax & a brush to the deal, so that the winner can have both a clear wax and a dark wax!!

Then, she offered to DOUBLE the offer.  So we will have TWO winners!!  Each winner will receive:

         *2 cans of chalk paint (your color choice)
         *2 cans of wax, one clear & one dark
         *2 wax brushes, one for your clear & one for your dark
         *All of this SHIPPED to your home

Can you see why I can't sit still???  TWO of you are going to win this fabulous prize & get your chance to either expand your chalk paint experience or start a whole new experience with this fabulous paint (for those of you yet to try it)!!!

The only catch is that we are putting the Giveaway off until tomorrow, because Virginia has something super-duper-fabulous to share first and she is going to share it HERE!

So stay tuned, friends… tomorrow Virginia will be sharing something awesome, and we will be picking not one but TWO winners of the chalk paint package.

YAY!!!!

Make sure you're a follower of the blog ~ that is all you need to do to enter the giveaway.

We'll draw at 7pm tomorrow night (Tuesday, June 28, 7pm EST).   I CANNOT WAIT!!!  In the meantime, go check out The Southern Institute of Faux Finishing to see their amazing work & ponder which color you would choose if you win.

thanks!!
kathie

TODAY is the day ~ Giveaway!!

Good morning, friends!

Today is the day that we will draw a name for the Chalk Paint Giveaway!!

The big event will be at 7pm EST tonight, and I'll post the winner as soon as I have one.

I'm pasting below the information regarding the giveaway.  Here goes:

Since all we can talk about these days is chalk paint, I thought I'd give away:

2 cans of Annie Sloan chalk paint

1 can of Annie Sloan soft wax

1 wax brush by Annie Sloan

(About $100 value)

I'll get it all from my favorite chalk paint source, The Southern Institute of Faux Finishing, and I will pay for it to be shipped to your home!

OR… if you win the giveaway & you're not interested in chalk paint, I'll just give you the cash!  So a win-win for everyone (I know lots of my followers are personal friends, who don't share my furniture/paint obsession).

All you have to do to enter the giveaway is be a follower of the blog ~ that is it!  You don't even have to leave a comment :)  I LOVE chalk paint, and I want everyone to have the opportunity to experience it too.  But I know its costly, so this is my chalk-paint-peace-offering-give-away!!!

Fun, fun, fun :)  I should do giveaways more often, I am loving this!

kathie

highlands ~ furniture galore

This is how we started our weekend in Highlands, celebrating our 10th anniversary.  Bliss!  We went to On The Veranda for dinner & this was our view.  Complimentary champagne too.

I loved these cow paintings in a local gallery ~ they made me think of Miss Mustard Seed.

In one local shop, they had furniture galore.  They had a number of the same pieces, finished in different colors, but with the same hardware.  I figure they must have an unfinished furniture source and they finish pieces custom?  Look at them & tell me what you think.

Side note:  I love this, with the dark wood backing & white sides.

I really wanted this piece with the galvanized bins.  But it was $275.  I wasn't even sad about not buying it, just curious as to where I could find something similar to finish myself!  Ever seen anything like it?

I was in LOVE with this lamp… but again, for $300, didn't even consider for a minute buying it.  Anyone know where I can get a wood piece like this to make into a lamp?

I also thought this lamp & these signs were cute:

(my niece is TERRIFIED of the flying monkeys!)

Super cute boutique with these fun tee's:

Views (from my iphone):

Notice the people playing croquet in all white.  We had a good giggle over that!

Now for some pictures with my 'real' camera.  My boys made me promise to include their precious snail…

Where there are mama ducks, there are…

baby ducks!  are they not the cutest??

We found a great sliding rock, outside of cashiers.  I thought we would never get the kids out of there.

Lunch in cashiers (YUM)…

At the top of the mountain above my in-law's home, the view is stunning.  This is why my husband refers to places like this as "God's country".

After an amazing weekend away, we are fully refreshed & ready for the next 10 years of marriage.  And then ten more after that… you get the gist :)

Hope you all had a great weekend!!
kathie