My Favorites of 2011 & a Gift

 

Now It's Your Chance to Win a Gift

At

Cutting Edge Stencils

http://www.cuttingedgestencils.com/

Congratulations Jane, you are the winner!!!!

I will email you with the details.

Thanks to everyone for participating

(I did use the True Random Number system and eight was the first number that came up.  I then tried to save it and got another number, sorry, its my first time at using it.)

I have had a fun opportunity to be contacted by a great company,

Cutting Edge Stencils,

and try out one of their stencils of my choice and review it. 

My first thought was to stencil a pillow for my

bed.  Then I thought about a benchI have and how cute it

would look with some stenciled fabric on it. 

 Finally it hit me,my bar stools! 

Why hadn't I thought about it sooner?

The stencil I picked goes perfectly with these

stools.  I love how they turned out, and until I can afford to get me some

 beautiful wood one's, well these will do fine.  Look at the before

 and after picture's and how easy it

was for me to do this.

   My Grandkids are usually the only one's who use these stools and their pretty neat kids,

   I guess with time   and bumps this is what you end up with. 

    No problem, I have some fun plans for them that includes stenciling.

I picked some gray fabric and since I already had black paint and the stools frames are

 black, I knew they'd go well together.  As you can see above, I used paint tape to

hold the stencil in place while I used the small brush to apply the paint

I decided to use the stipple brush and not roll it because I was a little nervous

about the paint seeping under the stencil.

I also wanted it to vary in it's shades of paint.  First I put some paint on the brush and then I dabbed the end of the brush on the paper to get rid of most of the paint in the brush and then with your brush straight up(this is really important because if you lean your brush it will look stroked on instead of the finish you get from dabbing the material with your brush staight up).

The paint drys pretty fast and when it's completely dry you just over lap the stencil and keep on painting.  So much easier

then I thought it would be.

Once I had a big enough piece done for both of the tops of the stools I started

to upholster them.  I didn't even

remove the old fabric.

Here it is done.  I really like how it turned out.

It completely changed the look of the stools.

I really had fun with this project, it's the first time

I have stenciled on fabric and

I loved it.  It was fast and very inexpensive.  Now it's your turn to get the stencil of your choice for free.  Here's how you enter to win a stencil worth up to $50.00, and shipping is free, can't beat that with a stick, can you?

Become a follower of mine (thanks)

"like" them on facebook, here.

http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/pages/Cutting-Edge-Stencils/130488356769

Rerurn to my blog and let me know that you "liked" them.

The contest will end Friday, Jan. 6th

and I will contact the winner.

Most importantly go to their website and check out all

their beautiful stencils.  Go to the bottom of this page

and leave your comments, thanks so much.

Good Luck !

I am extending the give away until Monday because of the holidays last weekend

            

                                       If I had to pick a favorite project....

At this time of the year I enjoy going back over the pictures of the projects I've completed in the past twelve months.  

Some times it's hard to choose which one's are my favorites because for one reason or another I end up loving the one I'm working on.  This year is

no except to that, I've been fortunate to have found some really

unique and inspiring pieces. So I guess the best I can do is share with you some redo's that brought me a great deal of happiness and one's

that I learned so much from.

 I did this settee in the spring and it was one of those that was very hard to part with.

Before



After  

This next one was my first ASCP project.  I was so stressed out when I used her paint because I didn't want to waste a drop of it.  Once I
 learned from all of you pros how to use it, I relaxed and enjoyed using it.

Before


After

This next dresser I had to clean bugs off of the top because it rode all the way home from North Dakota, about a thousand miles, on top of my hubby's car.  It's an out dated dresser that became very chic looking.



Before

After

 

                      

                                                                                                                                                                                        This piece was a mess when I found it and after taking a longer look at it

I discovered that I was dealing with a plastic finish, click here for details. 

I do love how it turned out and was so happy when a young mother bought it

for her little girl.          



After

But my very favorite redo of the year has got to be my bedroom.  I still go in there and smile every time because of how beautiful it turned out. 

It was my first headboard redo, but not my last. I also made curtians, painted the

 wall and refinished the end tables.  I reupholstered the chair at a different time but it works well in here.

 

   

    Before

 



        

     After



      

   

I have done a lot of redo's this year and have learned so much from every one of them.  I love what I do and get such great support from my hubby, who even made me a shop to encourage me in  my

endeavors.  I hope all of you have had a great year and I wish

you the very best this next year.  I hope you have fun at what you do and take the 

frustrations that you will have with some projects and apply what you have

learned to make the next project even better.

Have A Happy New Year!!!!! 



The Most Beautiful Time of the Year

I sure do love Christmas time.  I love the songs and the decorations, the good smelling candles that you seem to only pull out at this time of the year.  I love the thoughtfulness that everyone show's to neighbors and friends.  I love it all, well almost all of it, I'm not a real fan of

the cold weather, but that will pass all too soon also.

I put out my stockings after adding some blue sweater fabric to them.  The stockings are made out of two hand towels that I picked up at the craft store.

Grandma cutting paper dolls with her granddaughter is what Christmas is all about to me.

This is my beautiful ceramic Christmas village that I got years ago.  I love it so much, if you look closely the details almost make you feel like your in that small little village on Christmas eve.

On my tree some of my favorite ornaments are the violin's.  I picked these up at a craft store that was going out of business for just penny's.

This isn't a good picture of the poinsetta's, but I have them all over the tree and love them.

  

Christmas wouldn't be complete without a group of carolers. 

The light in the lamp even works, so sweet.

    

           In my family room I decorate with the more old fashioned Christmas decorations.  Santa, carolers, and a banner in traditional colors. 

This buffet is next on my list to redo in January, I can't wait to get my brushes on it.

                                   

   

   

                                                                                

    Happy Holidays to All

I Hit The Jackpot

I got this end table with another one this fall at a yard sale.  I love it when you drive up to a yard sale and you spot a treasure, it.s like you hit the jackpot!  I feel like this one is a real treasure, even

though it wobbles really bad.

                                   These before pictures show how nice the craftsmanship is on it.

Isn't it funny how you can look at a piece, and because of the detailing in the wood, you just know

 it's going to be beautiful and fun redo.

The top was really damaged with water spots and oil stains.  So, with sander in hand, I knew I could restore it to the beauty it once was.  I used ASCP in old white on the body because this piece has so much

distressing to do after its painted and Annie makes it so much easier.  I then used

spray on poly to seal it.

I put a hug tack in the bottom of one of the legs to level it, and it did the trick, no more wobbling.

Here are the before and after pictures.  I wished I had gotten better pictures of the top, I stained in a dark walnut and put on three coats of rub on poly, Min wax.  I think it turned out so pretty, I know the new owner

will be really happy with it.

Thank you so much for stopping by.

 I love your comments and followers as well.

Sandi

Small Server

I picked this little server up with another piece that I posted about .  It was listed on Craigslist, which is one of my best resources for finding furniture.

The woman who sold this to me said her father who had been a military man all his life had bought this in Carmela at least fifty years ago.  He loved these pieces and kept them all his life, his daughter got them when he passed.  She had them for years in her garage but wanted to let someone buy

them that would use them,  that would be ME.

I gave her a coat of Kilz oil based primer because lately all the older furniture I have been buying has been bleeding through the paint so I wasn't going to go ahead without using the oil based primer.

If you have looked at many of my posts I guess you can see that I really love the top being stained and the rest painted.  I think it really adds to the character of the furniture to be able to enjoy the beautiful wood grain, and yet enjoy the beauty of the painted detailing.

 Ooops, I forgot to take pictures until the furniture was at the sale.  Like the end table this piece also sold within the first hour of the sale.  I knew it would find a good home, much better then in a garage.

I painted the body in Valspar malt and the accents in Valspar honey milk.

I got the combination over at whitestreetinteriors.blogspot.com.  She had this beautiful combination

of colors on a hutch.  I knew I would be using it someday, I was just waiting for the

right piece of furniture.

Thanks for stopping by, I love your comments and followers as well.

Sandi

Details, Details...

This fall I was out yardsaling and not having much luck.  At the beginning of the summer it seemed like every yard sale I went to was a good one.   Then I had a really long dry run, none of them were any good.  At one of the last yard sales of the season I happen to spot this end table

and another end table that was just as old.  This one has so much detail on

it, I just knew that it would look beautiful in white.

I started to paint it in ascp but it immediately bled through.  I then pulled out the oil based Kilz primer and gave it a good coat of that. 

I wanted the top to be stained so I sanded it down really good.  It sanded off in a reddish color.

I stained it in Min Wax dark stain and then used rub on poly on the top.  I put on about three to four coats of poly.  I then distressed the whole piece which took some time because of all the detailing.

I knew it would be beautiful when it was done though, and it was.

This little gem sold within the first hour of the show, I really hated to part with it though.  Sometimes I would just like to keep them all.

Thanks for stopping by, I love your comments and followers as well.

Sandi

I feel So Much Lighter

I feel like I have had a huge weight lifted off of my shoulders!  The furniture pieces I showed you in this post are all done and delivered to the open house/furniture sale.  normally I enjoy working on such

neat pieces but I was working on five at the same time

and I was ready to be done with all of them.  However, they did turn out really nice and are

selling great, and isn't that what matters?  So I want to share with you the before's, and the afters.  This piece was bought off of Craigslist and was in really good condition.

I love the scrolling around the drawers and handles, won't they be even prettier in white?

It had a pretty good shine left on it from the last redo, so instead of sanding I pulled out my ASCP.  I really do love that stuff.  I used old white, then distressed her and gave her a good coat of Min Wax rub on poly. 

I'm so mad at myself for not taking after pictures where the light was good.  I remembered to take them once I was at the show. 

Someone had sealed the top with a paste or a wax, I mean a lot of it. I wanted to stain the top so I sanded and sanded but it hardly made a mark in it.  So I pulled out the stripper and used it.  When the old finish finally started to come off, it was a real thick white, sticky mess.  I could hardly get it off of my scraper.  I put the stripper on about eight time's

trying to get through the paste.  l then sanded some more only to

find out that the top really wasn't very pretty at all.  So all that stripping was in vain, I ended up painting the top, and then sealing it about three times with rub on poly.

Every piece is so different, and I learn from each one.  I think that's why I enjoy doing this so much.  I do love how it turned out.   So take another look... 

Before and After



Thanks for stopping by,
I love your comments and new followers as well.
Sandi