Pink Lamp

Shabby Painted Magazine Rack

Lately I've been experimenting with new paint colors. I've had this magazine rack for awhile and thought it would look better with a new paint job. I think originally it was probably somebody's high school shop class project. It is very well made and is quite sturdy.

In this "before" picture I had just wiped it down with a clean, wet cloth. It was very dirty to start with.

It was separating at the top so I clamped it back together using wood glue, then tacked in nails on each side. That's the only repair I had to make. The embellishments on the sides barely show up. My plan is to change that.

I used two shades of blue. The front panels are painted a lighter shade. I only did this because I am experimenting with colors. But I really like the subtle difference. After I was done painting, I lightly distressed it then sealed it with a clear wax.

I used a Fleur-De-Lis stencil I bought at Hobby Lobby. First, I stenciled it white, then dabbed on some pale pink. I used the same treatment on the side embellishments.

This little lamp is my next project. I plan to change the color of the base, change out the socket to a smaller one, and rewire it.

This is the first time I've used a stencil for awhile. I wish I could hand paint pretty flowers but try as I might, I've never learned how. Linking to:        

French Chic Boxes

For awhile now, I have been on the lookout for some old sewing machine drawers. Well, you know how it is, when you're looking for something specific, it's hard to find. So, when I ran across these three boxes I decided they were close enough for what I wanted. They were just ugly brown boxes with wooden knobs. I don't think they had ever been painted. Sometimes I don't take "before" pictures, not realizing how pretty the end result is going to be.

This is what they looked like when they were finished.

Actually, this was a pretty easy project. As you can see, I painted the insides pink, the outsides white, and the fronts black. All I did was print out a graphic I liked from The Graphics Fairy . This graphic is French Corset Ephemera. Then I mixed some Mod Podge with water. I cut the paper to fit, then dipped it in the glue mixture, then pasted it on. I added the graphics to both sides.

Then I sponged some diluted pink paint on the paper, then dabbed off the excess until I achieved the look I wanted. If you'll look to the left you'll see I smeared some black paint on a piece of cardboard. Then I dipped a popsickle stick in the black paint and made stripes on both ends. I didn't want them to look perfect, and they don't.

After I distressed them a little bit, I added new knobs that I purchased at Lowe's, then sealed them with porch floor sealer. The reason I used porch floor sealer is because I bought three gallons of it at a thrift store the other day. Seems to work ok. hehe



Earlier this week I found this fabulous industrial cabinet and only had to work on it a little bit. It was used in a post office to sort mail. Because it is all steel and very heavy, the first thing we did was add casters. I spent one afternoon looking for casters that would fit. I finally found them at Tractor Supply. It wasn't very dirty and only needed a little cleaning.

Someone had glued a funky top on it. I think it was formica with a fiberglass backing. Whatever it was, it was easy to remove. But taking off the old glue was a project. I had to use lacquer thinner and fine steel wool. I finished it off using Turtle Wax car polish. It has some rust but the overall piece is pretty amazing. It is shabby for sure.



This is by far the best thing I've found lately. I luv luv it.

This little podium is another project I've been working on this week.



So far I've primed it with DIY chalk paint, and I've added one coat of latex satin Heirloom white. I still have to shabby it up and wax it. Linking to:                    

Weekend Finds

Friday morning I stopped at an estate sale and the only thing I bought was this cute little bookcase. I especially like it for its size. It's only about 18" wide and about 5' tall. It didn't have a back but that's no problem, as we go to Home Depot or Lowes about everyday.

It's nice and sturdy and had never been painted. I looked in our stash of scrap lumber and found a piece of bead board that would work. Mr. Shabby was kind enough to cut it to size for me.



 

Here I have primed both pieces.

 

I painted the bead board back a pretty shade of blue from the "oops" department at Home Depot. Then I propped the back to see if I liked it. I did.

 

I can't believe I started working on this Friday morning and finished it Saturday afternoon. I don't get many easy projects like this.

 

This is a little retro cabinet I've been working on. It has neat doors. I should have this project finished this week.

 



On Saturday I went to an estate sale and bought this beautiful, 5 stack barrister bookcase. It's in wonderful condition. The finish is original, the knobs are original as well. All the glass is old and wavy. I can't tell you what I paid for it, but I'm asking $1,295.00.



 

 

I also found this rusty, crusty commercial magazine rack. All I plan to do with it is seal it so the rust won't rub off on merchandise. This is the second one of these I've found recently.

I have to keep the projects coming and this little table fits the bill. I will paint it and change out the knobs. After it all gets glued back together, of course.

 

I don't really need any more cookbooks but these looked pretty interesting.

 

And, can you believe I found another cute ladder? This one is going to get painted a real funky color!

 

Linking to:  

 

OMG Another Ladder

If you are in the business of "treasure hunting" you have probably found that you sometimes have a run on finding similar things. Lately, for me, it's been ladders. First, I bought a 6' ladder and got rid of it asap because it was too big and heavy. Next, I found a cute little 4' ladder. It's all painted up and pretty. And recently, I found this cute little ladder that only stands about 21" tall. It is adorable (after a little tlc).

This is what it looks like after I painted it. This was such an easy project. All I had to do was paint it, then distress it. I used Heirloom white, latex satin paint.

This is what it looked like when I bought it.

It's very well built. See?

The man I bought it from charged me $1.00 for it. As I carried it to my car I think he was laughing at me.

The shutter on the left is one of my painted projects. So is the "chic" sign. I made the sign out of our old porch flooring.

I have it sitting on the dresser I bought a couple of weeks ago. To see what the dresser looked like when I bought it check out  My Morning Haul

The little dresser has good bones but boy, did it need a lot of work! The first thing I did was add casters.

The paint job on the exterior was o.k. but I felt the sides of the drawers needed cleaned up. Plus, every one of the big drawers needed major repair. Mr. Shabby worked many hours fixing them for me.

After the drawers were repaired, I worked one whole day cleaning, sanding, and painting them. Then I wiped the inside of the drawers with orange bees wax. Now they look clean and smell clean.

I didn't paint the exterior , I just distressed it a little more.

This is my sweet little 4' ladder, all painted up and pretty.   Linking to: