Dresser ReDo & (more) Stair Progress

Hey everyone!


Tonight I wanted to share a dresser I refinished a couple weeks ago.
I purchased it at a private estate sale where it had been used in a bathroom.

BEFORE

The old finish started coming off really easily so I knew I wanted to re stain the top.

Once the entire top was down to the bare wood I applied a pre-stain wood conditioner. I know not everyone does this, but I've found the stain comes out much more even.

I used ebony stain and a grayish blue for the bottom.

Initially I had purchased new knobs for the drawers but I didn't like how they looked on this particular dresser so I reused the original wood ones (I just painted them black and distressed them)


Here is how it looked the night before I brought it to "the flea"

AFTER

I put a special "take today" price on it and put it out on the sidewalk of "the flea" so it never made it into the building (yay!)
I later found out it was purchased by a local hair salon - how cool! I'm so glad it worked for them :)


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On a different note - I refinished an old TV stand into a bench/shoe holder for our garage as apart of my "stair re-do."

I painted it grey and made a cushion covered in black and white chevron fabric for a seat. There is plenty of room for shoes and I love the drawer at the bottom for storing our dog's leash and reusable grocery bags. (sorry I don't have a "before"!)

Thanks for reading! (please "follow" the blog for more projects!)

~Kim

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Bench Before & After

Since I haven't completed (or started any new) projects today, I thought I'd share a piece of furniture I did earlier in the year.

I picked up this bench at my favorite, hole-in-the-wall thrift store. Here is the picture I took on my phone, in the store.

BEFORE

The challenge with this bench was the cushions weren't removable.
So, after I painted the wood grey, I removed the trim and put canvas fabric right over the cushions.
I then stapled it on and put a new, jute rope trim over the staples.
I finished the bench by lightly distressing it and putting a protective coat of wax over it.

Here is how it turned out:

I couldn't be happier with the finished product! I haven't come across anymore benches yet, but I'd really like to do another one!





This weekend I hope to finish my stair re-do as well as finish a table that my husband has been recruited to help me with. It was an out-dated tile top, kitchen table. So far I've removed all the tile, and laid out the new material that's being used to replace it.

Check back soon to see the before and after.. if I can pull it off that is ;)


Thanks for stopping by!

~Kim

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Stair & Dining Room Progress

Yesterday I talked about my stair re-do so today I wanted to share where I'm at with it.

I painted the top of the stairs with the same grey paint as we did the concrete floors.

 It's kind of an experiment since the paint is for garage floors and concrete, but I wanted an exact match, and since it is a high traffic area, I am hoping it will be easier to clean.

The green is an acrylic paint that I had on hand. I also re-painted the white trim.

I'm happy with the improvements already and am not even half way done.

Next up:

-Refinish and hang banister

-Paint the gold light fixture

-Paint the gold brackets that hold up the railing

-Put a fresh coat of paint on the walls

-Add some kind of shoe storage

-Add door mat/small rug

...and maybe a couple other surprises ;)

Here's a side by side comparison of the progress I've made so far:

Has anyone else painted their stairs? If so, what kind of paint did you use and how did it hold up over time?

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I also worked on our Dining Room today since I've been inspired to add more color after my

HiFi Stereo Re Do

I used the same color on the giant window as I did on the old stereo.

 It may be bright for many people's taste, but I've learned to pick colors I like ,not what everyone else might or might not be doing.

I'm the one that has to look at it everyday, after all :)

Like the stairs, I am happy with the progress but have some more changes to make.

For example, I like the rug but I don't love it. I'm not too sure what I'd replace it with though, so no rush on that. Maybe I'll know when I see it.

The big thing I want to change in the Dining Room though is the floor.

 I desperately want hardwood floors, but they're just not in the budget right now ;)

Here is a break down of some the decor; which was all purchased on a tight budget over the last several years.

The table was given to us by a family friend that had purchased a new one. It had an oak finish so I re stained the top and painted the bottom and lightly distressed it. So if you factor in the cost of supplies (even though I had them all on hand) it probably cost $15!

The chairs are from Pier1 and were purchased by my mother in law when my husband and I got our first apartment together about 5 years ago.

The chair pads are from IKEA. I think they were $4.99 each The chandelier was $49.99 from IKEA too.

The Rug is from Target a few years ago, I can't remember the exact price but it was in the $60-$80 range. I also got the curtains there.

The table runner is just burlap I purchased and cut to fit the length of the table. FYI I usually have at least one in my booth at "The Flea" for sale.

The vintage basket on the table is a thrift store find, purchased for a couple bucks.

I got the 16 pane window from another vendor at the classy flea, who let me have it for only $25!





Happy Wednesday!

~Kim

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Stairs with Style

This past weekend my husband and I started the much needed project of cleaning out and organizing our garage.
After we got it cleaned out we started painting the concrete floor..and if you paint the floors..I'll want to paint the garage stairs. And if I paint the garage stairs, I'll want to paint the walls. And if I paint the walls, I'll probably want to re-finish the banister.. get where I'm going here? ;)

Here are the stairs after the garage floor got painted but BEFORE I started on the stair well..

Gross, I know. I can not believe we haven't started this project sooner. We bought our house a year ago and have only made a small dent in the mound of projects we want to tackle.

Here are some inspiration photos I pulled from pinterest:

via pinterest

These stairs remind me of a number dresser I did a while back and I like the muted yellow.

via pinterest


I like the idea of just painting the center of the stairs in this picture.

via pinterest

These stairs are painted a shade of green that I use on a lot on furniture and it's a color that my husband likes a lot.



Check back tomorrow to see what progress I've made :)

~Kim

Craigslist Buffet

I don't purchase furntiure off of craigslist too often, but I have gotten lucky a few times.

 My very first craigslist purchase was this solid wood buffet that I got from a nice, young family that had just moved to the area.

BEFORE

They told me they bought it from a used furniture store when they lived in Michigan; so this piece has had many lives.

Because the top had so much wear to it already, it was the perfect canidate for re-staining. I chose an ivory colored paint for the bottom and painted the original hardware.

Here is how it came out:

AFTER

A different nice, young family bought this to use in their nursery with a changing table on top. I loved that idea!

Thanks for stopping by!

~Kim

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White Wooden Shelf

Hello!

A couple weeks ago I purchased an unique wooden shelf from another dealer at "The Flea."

It's very common to find furniture there that still needs to be re-finished. I initially purchased this shelf with the intent of using it in out Living Room.

Here is how it came out:

The shelf didn't work out in my own home so it is now for sale.

 I can see this piece used for a display shelf at a cute boutique or home decor store.. so if no one else wants it, it may become a permanent fixture in my booth ;)

Thank you for stopping by!

~Kim

A Productive Day

Thanks to the purchase of a walmart kiddie pool, today was a productive day in furniture painting.

First I was able to finish a dresser that I started working on yesterday. Here is what it looked like when I got it home:

BEFORE

Dresser's are probably my favorite type of furniture to re-do because there are so many options that can change the look dramatically (color? knobs? drawer pulls? distressed? design/graphic? stained?)

But ironically enough, I kept it basic haha.

AFTER

I painted it, distressed it and added a protective finish. I also painted the original hardware.

This piece will be going to "A Classy Flea" Saturday if you're local and interested!

Next, I refinished this end table that I purchased the same time as the dresser:

BEFORE

AFTER

The aqua and coral colors were inspired by my best friends nursery :)

I really love the lines of this one and wanted to play that up by adding the vertical stripes.

This one is headed to "the flea" tomorrow.

At the end of the day I also started working on a cool side table that I just picked up this morning.

Here's a sneak peak at the "before"

BEFORE

I hope to finish it up this weekend, so check back for the after!

~Kim

Repurposed HiFi Radio

Recently my Aunt gave me my late grandparents old Motorola Hi-Fi Radio to refinish and sell.

I am slightly obsessed with 1950's style and design so this piece was right up my alley.

Luckily the radio had already been removed by my Grandfather when it stopped working and he  lined the interior with cedar wood for my grandmother to use as a blanket chest.

Here is how it looked when I got it home. I really wanted to do something fun, and a little different than most of the pieces I've done in the past.
I started out by priming the piece then chose I light and bright color green to paint it.

Since the inside had been lined with cedar wood I would have had to remove the pieces to get the front speakers off, so I just put fabric right over it using spray adhesive.
(The fabric is actually a better homes and gardens table cloth)
I used some white rope that I had on hand for the trim.

It was a neat feeling working on a piece that I my Grandfather had once worked on as well so many years ago.

I replaced the hardware with new ceramic knobs from Hobby Lobby and painted the front panels blue to coordinate with the fabric.
Finally, I distressed the piece and put a protective coat of wax over the whole piece.

Here is the result:

I'm so happy with how it turned out! I cut the fabric to fit around the Motorola emblem to keep one little piece in it's original state.

This would work well as a buffet or console and has plenty of room for storage.

It wasn't until the H-iFi was painted that I really noticed what great lines the top and bottom had.

There is a good chance I will be keeping this piece for my Dining Room. That also means the hutch that is currently in my Dining Room will be for sale, so stay tuned :)

~Kim


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