An Old Door Made New Through Decoupage

A little over a year ago, while browsing through an antique store with a friend, we came across a really fun decorative piece. It was a very old door, hand painted in a whimsical floral motif and heavily distressed for an aged look. We talked about where it could be used at home. Turned on it's side, it would make a beautiful headboard . . . it would also be a great way to change out a plain old pantry door . . . or, in the right space, (like the narrow wall in my dining room) it would look great just hung on the wall. But the price . . . not in my budget! I returned to the store again later when I saw a 30% OFF SALE sign outside but this particular piece was not discounted. I went back once again, this time taking my husband along (have I told you he likes to shop? What a lucky girl I am!) I wanted him along for moral support as I tried to make a deal with the shop owner (something I really do not like to do). I also secretly hoped that if she said, "No", hubby would say something like, "Oh dear, sweet wife of mine, I know how much you have your heart set on that door. Let me buy it as a gift for you". Alas, it didn't play out that way.

That very night my brain starting churning out a plan to have a door just like the one I'd grown to love. I don't know about you, but my best ideas come to me in bed. Early in the morning I was on the computer, searching for old doors. When my husband arose, we were off to a salvage store in Seattle to pick up the door I found online (the one shown above). But . . . how was I going to make my door look like the one in the antique store? I paint furniture, I paint walls, but I don't paint "things" like flowers, or kitties, or people! The other part of my bedtime musings had given me the answer. DECOUPAGE of course!

I had fabric on hand (a runner from World Market would now be repurposed!) so the only other stop we had to make was at the craft store to buy some Mod Podge.

After painting my door with several layers of different colored paint, I used my sanding sponge to distress it just like the one in the antique store. I was then ready to apply my flowers. This part is so simple that I feel silly writing about it but, for anyone who doesn't know how to use Mod Podge, this is what I did: I carefully cut out the flowers I wanted to use and laid them out on the door in the pattern I liked. Then I removed them, painted a coat of Mod Podge where each flower would go (just like glue) and laid the flowers back down. I then proceeded to paint several coats of Mod Podge over the top of the fabric, allowing it to dry about an hour between each coat. Afterwards, I applied a dark wax (Annie Sloan) over the top of the entire door and buffed it when it was dry.

And this is the end result. You can see the different colors of paint showing through where it has been distressed and the bright colors have been toned down by the dark wax. Personally, I like it just as much as the door in the antique store which, by the way, is still there. I stopped in two days ago, drawn in by a 30-50% OFF SALE sign on the roadway. The door in the antique store is still beyond my budget and still not discounted!

Don't you love the old door hardware with the fleur de lis?

The salvaged door cost $20, the old hardware another $20, the paint and fabric, I had on hand, and the Mod Podge Satin, less than $5.00.

I'm pretty happy with my door art and I now have a few more ideas for doors running through my head. So many ideas . . . so little time!

3 Homemade Chalk Paint Recipes Reviewed

As I've said before, Annie Sloan Chalk Paint has changed my world and I love, love, love it! However, in the interest of saving money (and I'm always looking for ways to save money) I decided to try a few of the homemade chalk paint recipes I found online. The first ingredient of each of these recipes is latex paint, in the color of your choice. One recipe specified the use of flat latex paint, another said it could be any type of latex paint. Hmmm . . . maybe one of those old cans of leftover paint sitting in the corner of your garage? Come along with me as I share my experience with you.

The first recipe came from a wonderful blog called Elizabeth & Co.

This blog has so many great ideas for creating a warm and inviting home. I hope you'll take the time to go there . . . after finishing up here of course!

So, here we go. I mixed the Plaster of Paris with a bit of water first to create a smooth, liquidy paste without lumps. I added FLAT latex paint and mixed thoroughly. I then added a little more water so it was about the consistency of Annie Sloan Chalk Paint (ASCP).

My experience: The paint covered well, maybe even a little better than ASCP. I added a second coat within an hour. It is nice that it dries so quickly. When completely dry this recipe has a grittier feel than ASCP. I found that I needed to lightly sand the whole piece prior to adding the clear wax, but this may be just fine with you if you are planning on distressing your piece anyway. Another downside, was that the Plaster of Paris lightened my original paint color a little. I wished I had gone just a shade darker. After waxing, the end result was a smooth finish, but still not quite as smooth as ASCP.

Cost: This is the good part. The Valspar paint sample I purchased from Lowe's was $2.94 and the four pound container of Dap Plaster of Paris (which will last forever!) was $6.48. This made enough paint to cover a medium sized piece of furniture with two coats of paint.

Recipe #2 comes from LizMarie. This is another blog I am in love with. LizMarie covers of wide spectrum of DIY projects and hosts a great linky party!

This recipe didn't actually mention adding water but the unsanded grout and paint mixture was a little thick so I ended up adding a bit of water to bring it to the right consistency. I think the next time I'll mix the grout with some cool water before adding the paint, just like I did with recipe #1.

My experience: This paint covered well, even a little better than Recipe #1. It dried a little gritty but not as rough as Recipe #1. I did sand it before adding soft wax as I wanted this piece to be heavily distressed. When I sanded, I noticed several white specks appeared on the piece, showing through the blue. Though I mixed the paint and grout well, maybe an electric mixer would have alleviated this problem. All I had to do was dry brush some of my paint over these spots. No big deal. The unsanded grout didn't seem to lighten the color of the paint. It took the wax well and polished up beautifully. Overall - I love the piece I created but, maybe if I wasn't planning on heavy sanding, ASCP would've been my choice.

Cost: $2.94 for the color sample, $11.78 for ten pounds of unsanded grout. Again, this will last me next to forever!

Recipe #3 comes from another one of my favorites sites, No Minimalist Here. Sherry, the author of this blog, is a true artist when it comes to painting furniture. She is an inspiration to me.

The great thing about THIS recipe is that Calcium Carbonate is CHALK! The bad news, for me, was that it was nowhere to be found in the city where I live. I tried health food stores, compounding pharmacies, vitamin stores . . . all to no avail. Many places carry Calcium Carbonate pills, but not in powder form. Not to worry though. While I was driving around the city I decided to search out this elusive ingredient on my iPhone, found and ordered it on Amazon.com, and two days later there it was on my doorstep. I knew my iPhone would eventually be put to better use than just phone calls and texting! Thank you dear hubby, for insisting that I needed one.

My experience: Again, this recipe didn't actually call for water but this time I decided to add a little to the Calcium Carbonate to make sure it was smooth before adding to the paint. It covered pretty well. I've decided that coverage depends upon the thickness of the paint, not the "chalk" added to the paint and I just prefer two coats, even with ASCP. When dry, the surface of my piece was smooth, like ASCP. It distressed easily with a sanding sponge. I did notice just a few white specks, not as many as with Recipe #2 but this was an easy fix. The color remained true to my color chip, the wax went on nicely and the finish has a soft and beautiful glow. Recipe #3 is the winner of the three!

Cost: $2.94 for the color sample, $5.19 (plus shipping) for 12 ounces of Now Foods Calcium Carbonate Powder. Next time I will order in bulk. Five pounds costs only $10.75 and would again, probably last forever!

So, how does the best of the homemade chalk paint recipes compare to Annie Sloan? Well, ASCP is still my favorite. I am going to tackle painting my kitchen cabinets this summer and I will definitely be using ASCP because of it's great colors (Old White is my color of choice) and reliability. For some of the pieces of furniture I've collected (now stacking up in my garage) I'm looking forward to having some fun experimenting with the many colors available at my Lowe's, mixed with Calcium Carbonate.

Oh by the way, one other plus to having Calcium Carbonate powder around the house, one level teaspoon per day, added to orange or tomato juice "provides the highest concentrations of elemental calcium, making it an optimal formulation for supporting healthy bones and teeth"! LOL!

Let me know about your chalk paint experiences (I'd love to see pictures) and please don't forget to visit the blogs I've linked to above. You'll be glad you did.

Life to the full to you.

A Chalk Painted What???

I recently visited a wonderful antiques, collectibles, and gifts store named Wisteria Cottage. It's wares spread through two cottages and spill out onto the grounds of this beautiful park like property. A few days later I received a call saying that I had won a $25 gift certificate. I could hardly wait to go back and choose my prize but alas, the store is only open one weekend per month. (In the future I will blog on some of my favorite places to shop, including Wisteria Cottage, but for now you can look them up at http://wisteria-cottage.blogspot.com/).

So, with gift certificate held tightly in hand I drug my husband shopping last weekend and what treasure do you think I chose? I could hold a contest but I'm sure you would never guess!

After looking at yard art, rustic items, fine antiques, Americana . . . I couldn't get past the old ironing board that the owner, Sharon, pulled from a back room. It was just like the one my own mama used when I was a child. What is so compelling about an old ironing board? All I can say is that it made my heart happy. Every week my mother had her ironing day. She would stand at that board lovingly tending to her family's clothing while singing old Gospel songs along with the radio.

Just looking at this old board I could almost smell the crisp linens pulled off the clothesline in our backyard and in my imaginings, I breathed into my lungs the starch-scented steam rising off the top of the board. I could hear the radio announcer say, "This is the Walk Through the Bible Radio Program, with Dr. J. Vernon McGee", and the music begin to play, "How Firm a Foundation . . ."

Needless to say, that ironing board came home with me that day. So now, how do I justify money spent (even gift card money) on an old ironing board? I believe it has GREAT potential! Here are just a few ideas:

How do you like it as a library table? I think it is stunning as a display piece for some treasured antique books and my mama's little night light. She bought this lamp in an antique store when I was a child and painted it white. She was a painter too!

Or how about using an old ironing board next to a dining table as a buffet or sideboard?

Sure, dishes can get heavy but probably no heavier than the pressure of my mama's strong arm on the iron as she pressed out the wrinkles in my dad's cotton shirts. And if she was feeling a little angry . . . I'm sure she vented her anger by pressing even harder!

Lastly, here is my ironing board turned plant display stand, under the eaves of my porch. I think it is quite lovely!

As you can see, I painted my ironing board turquoise, the very color that came to mind when I saw it standing there with it's red metal crossbars. The legs I've painted a crisp white.

(This was my second experiment with homemade chalk paint - Recipe #2 of 3. I will be sharing all three recipes, with pros and cons, in an upcoming blog, so stay tuned!)

So, now that I've shown you the great value of owning an old ironing board what will I do with mine? As I said, I knew it would be turquoise. I also knew it would hang on my laundry room wall as the inspiration piece for my laundry room re-do (a far, far in the future project!).

Let me assure you that this ironing board will NOT be staying on the wall! Though I rarely iron anything at all, I have decided to junk my old tabletop, half-sized, pressboard ironing board (maybe one of my girls will want it) and I will use the real thing! I think I may just learn to enjoy time spent ironing. Anyone know where I can find a radio station that plays old Gospel music?

What about you? What things have you seen the hidden potential in and what ways have you given old old item a new purpose? I'd love to hear your restoration story :)

Not Your Grandma's House (and My First Post!)

My style is a bit confusing, even to me, as I'm drawn to so many different things. I guess I would have to classify the decor in my home as Traditional/Whimsical, if that can be called a style. Our cottage, on the other hand, is beachy all the way, and I love it! I do appreciate antiques and I have a few treasured pieces passed down to me from my mother. However, I really don't want my house to look like "Grandma's house", so I do my best to mix the old with the new.

I posted earlier, in "What in the World is Chalk Paint?", a close-up of the armoire that I painted with Annie Sloan Chalk Paint. Here are a few more pics, one before, when the piece was dark cherry . . .

 . . .and several after, showing more details of the piece.  The outside of the cabinet is a cocoction of two Annie Sloan Chalk Paint colors, Arles and Antibes and the interior I painted with the color Duck Egg.

This is a close-up of the detail. Distressed and antiqued with Chateau Gray.

 

Here are a couple of peeks inside my cabinet so you can see the interior color, Duck Egg.

and this is a close-up of the door pull, showing how nicely chalk paint works on all surfaces, including metal (although I'm still toying with what color I will finally end up with on the hardware).







One more picture will show you more detailing at the bottom of the cabinet. I am in love with this piece of furniture.

Adding color to old wood furniture, especially colors that are currently in style, really updates your room, making it feel less like Grandma's house.

Here are two treasured chairs that belonged to my mom. I really couldn't bring myself to add paint to this beautiful carved wood, but they were covered in pink velvet . . . and that really didn't suit my style.

The update I did here was to have the chairs reupholstered in a modern yet traditional feeling print fabric. I am so happy with the end result. (Notice the touch of chalk paint on the pillow's flowers, to match the china cabinet!).

In addition, I've brought a bit of a modern feel to this little sitting area with a trendy mirrored cabinet and a lamp with a modern lampshade. The creamy shag rug pulls it all together.






Finally, my dining room. I found an old mahogany table on Craigslist that was was covered in gold paint and dirt. I used layers of different colors (Old White, Duck Egg Blue and Arles) for the legs and Chateau gray for the top.

The table came with four chairs but I wanted less wood for a softer feel. I purchased upholstered chairs from Pier 1 Imports and slipcovers from Bed, Bath and Beyond. This is the end result.

Can you see how easy it is to update a room, no matter what your style, by adding some of the new trends in color and a few modern decorator pieces? I'd love to hear your ideas for giving new life to old surroundings. It is so much fun making Old Things New!

Blessings to you,
Patti





Linking up with:

EmbracingChange
BlissRanch

How Free Are You?

This blog is not intended to be "preachy". I really want to share with you my ideas for transforming things around the home. On this day of freedom though, please allow me the opportunity to share by biggest passion, that of seeing people's lives transformed.

I didn't really plan on blogging today, however, two things compelled me to do so. First off, yesterday was my husband Kelly's 60th birthday. Since my blog is Old Things New I couldn't help but think of the connection. As Freedom Session Directors by night (as my profile info says) we are all about seeing lives transformed or made new. While 60 isn't exactly old, Kelly is definitely inching his way up there! But while he may be growing older on the outside, he continues to become a better person inside as he is daily being transformed by the renewing of his mind through God's Word (Rom 12:1-2).

The other thing that compelled me to write was the very fact that it is Independence Day. We often equate Independence with freedom. As Americans, we supposedly live in "the land of the free and the brave", right? Then why are so many people walking around in chains? I see it all the time. Even in church. No . . . Dare I be brave enough to say it? Especially in church. As Christ followers, many of us feel the need to put on a costume, appearing to be perfect on the outside, so no one will know what failures we are on the inside. Many people live in self-imposed prisons. They walk around believing the labels they've been given, or have given themselves. Some wear their labels like a badge of courage, "I am a victim". Others carry around shame, guilt, unforgiveness, anger . . .

Scripture says, "IF the Son has set you free, you will be free indeed" (John 8:36, NIV). See the big "IF" there? Hmmmm . . . that sounds conditional to me! How does one become free? The answer is Jesus. Scripture also says that, "It is for freedom Christ has set us free" (Gal. 5:1). He wants to make a trade with us, our "junk" for His freedom. Sounds like a pretty good trade to me. You might want to take Him up on it.

Thanks for allowing me the opportunity to share my heart this Independence Day.

A Touch of Patriotic Fervor

America's Independence Day, the Fourth of July, is just a few days away and we have been busy preparing for our annual BBQ/potluck on Pattison lake. The weather in the Pacific Northwest persists in being mostly dreary, sometimes drizzly, with a few bursts of sun thrown in to give us hope that summer will soon be here. My friend Emily assures me that summer will arrive on the 5th of July! We are blessed though, not to be experiencing the wildfires, extreme heat or the disastrous storms that much of our country has been struck with these past couple of weeks. Everything is very green here.

I've been looking back at pictures from the morning after July 4th, 2011 and remembering the glorious weather we had that day. This is a rare thing but, if my smart phone is to be trusted, we are in for sun and 70 degrees on Wednesday!

So . . . I was browsing The Pottery Barn catalog recently and fell in love with a rustic American flag wall hanging. I really wanted it but I didn't want to pay the price. This is where my brain starts working . . . trying to figure out how I can recreate what others have already come up with.

I remembered some old pieces of plywood stacked along the side of the garage . . . pieces I wanted to haul to the dump . . . rescued by the protestations of my husband! You were right, honey, you are (almost) always right. They were pretty weather worn but this turned out to be even better for my project.



So . . . with some paint I had on hand, my peeling plywood, some old rope and a little hardware, I set out to create my very own American flag.

I aged and protected it with a little dark wax and scuffed it up with a sandpaper block. I have it hanging in a covered picnic area down by our beach. Though you can't tell by the picture it is quite large, 3 feet wide. The most time consuming part was penciling in the stars and trying to get them (kind of) equally spaced.

I love The Pottery Barn catalog for all of the great decorating ideas I can copy. Whenever a new catalog comes in the mail I set it aside so that I can take the time to look through it with a nice cup of coffee or tea. What are your favorite catalogs to browse through for new ideas? I'd love to know.

To my fellow Americans, have a happy and safe Fourth of July. To my friends in other countries, be blessed and take some time to kick back and enjoy the long hot lazy days of summer.