Check out our DIY projects!
Chalk painting, refinishing, painting, upholstery, updating furniture and lamps
Here is a diamond in the rough 💎 . . . we saw potential! 🧐
This old door had six panels, but we only needed five panels for a queen sized bed headboard. That works great because Neal prefers an odd number of panels. (For my sake, glad he likes odd!😉)
Continue reading “Making a Headboard from an Old Door”
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Bye-bye butcher block table and HELLO farmhouse table!
In the early 1990s (when Ryan and Emmy were toddlers😳) we moved into a house in Auburn, Alabama (War Eagle!) and bought this kitchen table from Sears. It served us through several moves and the stories it could tell from our two children growing up! Originally, it was a butcher block table with white legs; our son Ryan painted the legs black and used this for an art table/desk in his room while he was in high school. 
Continue reading “From Butcher Block to Farmhouse Table”
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This was one of my favorite projects for many reasons:
Continue reading “Vintage Bench Makeover”
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We found this Singer sewing machine base at an antique mall in Vestavia, Alabama several years ago. We love old things. We used it on our patio porch for several years. We used a rough (not polished) piece of granite as its countertop.
Because Neal and I have moved around so much for my career, I was finally thankful to actually have a craft room/closet to leave my sewing machine out and used it as needed without having to unpack/pack up each time. I also have more time now that I am semi-retired.
Below are two before pictures of the sewing machine base. Notice that it is very rusty. 
Continue reading “Making a Sewing Machine Table”
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I really enjoy the transformational process that occurs when I chalk paint furniture. We purchased this bench from Grandinroad. It is the prefect size for our porch; however, we changed our minds about the color (black) and decided to chalk paint it so it blended better with our porch.
Continue reading “Chalk Painting Our Front Porch Bench”
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A few years ago, my mother and I traded a piece of furniture. She wanted a bigger piece I no longer needed and I just loved this little table. It is old. Below are more before pictures.
Notice that someone did not use a coaster! 🤨 My family (including me) is still a work in progress! 😉
Step 1: Gluing
Because of its age, this needed to be glued and tightened up. Neal helped me with this part. We used Elmer’s wood glue and Neal is the king 👑 of clamps. He has every size and shape to get the job done!
The most frustrating part of a project is waiting to glue to dry when I am ready to transform something. 😫
Step 2: Sanding
I used fine sandpaper to remove any bumps or “burrs” and to give it a smooth painting surface.
Step 3: Chalk Painting
This is my favorite color of chalk paint. I have used it to transform several pieces of furniture. It is sort of an oatmeal color and goes with everything. It also looks good over black or brown.
I usually paint small items on my kitchen island. I put wax paper down and if I get any paint on the countertop, it is easy to wipe off.
I painted two coats of chalk paint, being sure to get all the crevices. I usually start with the table upside down to get the underside. Just knowing that the underside was not painted would bug me. 🙁 Once I paint the underside, including the feet, I flipped it over and finished painting the remainder of the table.
Below are pictures after it has been chalk painted. Up close, you can see the grainy texture, which is characteristic of chalk paint. The purpose of using chalk paint is ease of sanding the paint off easily to expose the under color.
Step 4: Ready to sand off some (but not all) of the chalk paint in strategic spots. I do all the like areas first (end pieces, inside and then outside, both feet, the bar across the bottom, the shelves and then the top for last. This helps me to double-check myself for consistency (so they all the sections blend/match), but at the same time wanting it to look random as if natural worn spots. Even though I try to be consistent, I am also inconsistent to give it a naturally worn appearance.
Rounded areas are fun to do because you can give them a real worn look.
I constantly look over the piece until I am happy with its appearance. You can sand more or less depending on your preference.
The edges are easiest, but I don’t overdo it. Then I work on all the flat pieces.
Step 5: Now we are ready for poly.
I don’t use wax, but instead, use Minwax wipe-on poly (clear satin). I use rubber gloves so I don’t have to clean my hands with paint thinner. I take the gloves off and reuse them for each coat. I use a cotton rag.
I don’t want the furniture to have a shiny look, but just to have protection. (My sweet family has ruined several tabletops by not using a coaster. 😩) I put two coats on the entire piece of furniture. I start the same way that I did the chalk paint, with the furniture upside down. I put at least three coats on the top for extra protection. (People still need to use coasters!) Make sure that you read the directions and give plenty of time to dry between coats — overnight is best. I have made the mistake of not letting it dry sufficiently between coats and it took a LONG time to dry, but it finally did!
The poly tints the color a little – – sort of an antique/aged look, but I actually really like the look of this. Even though this is the first time I have used this color, because I use this poly so much, I know what to expect each time.
Drumroll . . .the final result!
It is perfect to hold my Cricut at the end of my desk (outside of my craft room).
It is also nice to have a place to put some of my favorite books!
Check out some of my other chalk painting blog posts:
Get some chalk paint and a brush and transform something from trash to treasure!
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