Baby Blue

I am some what new to

painting furniture

so I've been doing a little
internet research

I thought I might share some

of the "painting wisdom" I've gathered

Make you own chalk paint.  I know this might be old news to a lot of you but I've

never tried it.  And for those of you new to Chalk Paint, this stuff is great

no sanding, or striping required.  It sticks to anything and has a great look.

There are different methods but here is the one I'm going to try-

1 cup paint

1/3 cup plaster of paris

1/3 cup water

The blog said to use warm water and whisk you plaster of paris in a little at a time

until you have a fairly smooth consistency

Now add it to your paint

I also found that you can add any kind of paint - latex, craft paint, etc

to get the color you are looking for

Another suggestion was to go to Home Depot and buy Sample paint

Pick your color and buy a sample 7.75 oz for $2.79

then just mix your colors until you get the shade you want!!

While I was surfing I found a great blog -Altar'd Designs

She did an Annie Sloan Chalk Paint Color Comparisons

Example

If you love                             You'll love

  ASCP Old White                   SW Antique White or

                                                   Behr Polished Pearl     

Here is the link:

http://altard.com/altard/annie-sloan-chalk-paint-color-comparisons/

Next, I researched wax - there is AS wax (kind of pricey)

Minwax Paste Finishing Wax, Briwax, Johnson's pastewax

and Howard Citrus Shield Premium Natural Paste wax

I went to Home Depo looking for the Howard brand. 

All they had was Howard Feed-N-Wax.

I bought some but when I got home I pulled it up on the internet and

they don't recommend it for painted surfaces. 

I will be taking it back and getting the Minwax Paste Finishing Wax.

I'll let you know how it works on my painted furniture

I did find some good info on applying the wax

use an old T-Shirt for application

Apply wax sparingly, rub it in good and wipe it off

Let dry for 24 hours

buff with a clean cloth or T-Shirt

This should leave you with a nice soft finish

and protect your paint as well

OK, now that I have a little wisdom

(probably enough to be dangerous)

I'm ready to move on to my next project

Remember this piece from my last post

well it's going from dirty white to baby blue

 I made a trip to Home Depot and bought some supplies -

TSP removes grease, grime, and dirt

I'll start off cleaning it good with this product,

then I'll give it a light sanding

Next I'll make my chalk paint

I'll mix a little flat white paint with

my sample, Martha Stewart Aegean Blue

color chart for the Glidden aegean blue eggshell paint

from the Marths Stewart line

Once it's painted I'll replace the old nobs

with these cute ones from Hobby Lobby

It was a 50% off sale so I got them both for $4.99

I'll give it a nice waxing and

buff it to a soft glow!

Every Little Birdie says-

I can't wait to show you the

finished transformation!

           
Linking up over at -
http://youaretalkingtoomuch.com/

    

Chicken Wire and Paint

That's what I've been up to my
elbows in today

Here's a look at what I accomplished

My latest projects

A few flea market frames, a little white paint,

insert chicken wire, add a few

 small white close pins and......

you've got a cute frame to hang

pictures, notes, or recipes

And as you can see above I've been working on jars

Two canisters

and one large vintage jar

I also finished my table today

It went from this

$12.00 flea market table

to this.....

All fresh and new!!!!!

And speaking of tables

look what I found yesterday

at one of my local flea markets

It was laying out front in the dirt with two broken legs..cost $5.00

Hubby glued the legs back on

I am so anxious to start working on this piece

I think it's got lot's of potential



Every Little Birdie says-

That's what I've been up to today

What about you?????

Side Tracked

In my last post

I told you about some

projects I'd be working on

over the weekend........

 

Well, I got a little

side tracked Saturday morning
 

A neighbor told us about some stone

that had been dumped on an empty lot next to their house
 
They said it was free for the taking.........

The word FREE always perks up my ears!!

 

 

Next thing I know me & hubby are hauling

stone over to our place, I started working

on a flowerbed around some of my trees out front

 

I cleared the spot, placed the stone, layed newspaper

and covered it with a little dirt

 

 

Of course it's not finished

but that will have to do for now.

 

I must get on to my other projects

 

 

My table got a coat of primer and one coat of paint

I'll put the finishing coat of paint on it this week

 

 

 

 

I also painted this flea market frame

and attached chicken wire to the

back of the frame, then added some small

white close pins

 

 

 

Now it's a place to puts your notes,

pictures, or recipes

 

I'll be making more of these for my

booth at the Victoria Market Days

 

I also spent some time Sunday researching

Paint Sprayers.  I may invest in one

for my Annie Sloan projects.

 

Do any of you use one that you would recommend??

 

Every Little Birdie says-

 

That's it for now, I'll post again when

I've finished a few more projects

 

 

Weekend Projects

This weekend I'm going to

be working on a few projects

for my "Every Little Birdie" Booth

at the upcoming Victoria Market Days

in November

I bought this table and chair

today at a local flea market

I will be giving them both a coat

of Annie Sloan's Old White

I love the rose detail

it will look good painted and distressed

Kind of like this vintage fabric

but I might replace it with

my french script fabric

What do you think??????

I like it that the table has a bottom shelf

makes it more functional

I'm anxious to see the transformation after it's painted

I'll also be making more

tinted jar's like these

stashed in my closet

and I'm going to make more of these



I'm going to be a busy girl!!

I'll do a post next week

to show you what

I accomplish over the next

few days

Every Little Birdie says-

What are you working on this weekend?

It's Fall Y'all

It's Fall Time

Texas Style

Which means I have to put myself

in the "Harvest" mood

because the temps don't

drop around here till maybe November

........if we are lucky

But never mind, I'm a true Texas girl

and the warm weather doesn't bother me

I'll just create my own fall atmosphere

A few pumpkins and

a scarecrow should do the trick

Time to change the theme

on my sideboard

My mom gave me these

pumpkins with scripture

I love them!!!!

A little pumpkin grouping

on the table behind my sofa

I'm sure I'll be adding

more as the season continues

but this is enough to

put me in the

"Fall" spirit!!

Every Little Birdie says-

A South Texas Fall

is a state of mind

linking up at -
http://thebrambleberrycottage.blogspot.com/2012/09/time-travel-thursday-115-talented-time.html

Times Past

I've been dying to show you

the special gift

I made my niece for her

wedding shower

 I couldn't post it until after the shower

 because that would ruin the surprise!!

We went to the shower this weekend

and Katy now has her special gift

and lots of other wonderful things to start her new life



Katy's shower gift

I titled this "Times Past"
A collection of old photos that tell our family story

 

I had so much fun working on this project!!
(btw, I'm the little girl on the right)
We are standing outside our Grand Dad's Pub,
The Lord Nelson in Wareham, England



 Katy was thrilled with her vintage piece

She had mentioned how much

she loved all the vintage photos around my home

Here's a look at some of mine

This piece hangs in my guest room

This collection is in my hallway

This one is in my living room

I love having these old photos

around my home...... reminds me of times past

Now Katy has some of her

own to display in her new home

When I bought this frame it was gold and not too attractive
but after a coat of Annie Sloan's "OLD WHITE" Paint and a little distressing
I had a beautiful  vintage frame!!

The clocks are from my Pinterest page
the round one is attached to an old CD
I also added some vintage keys on the bottom line
I think these items add vintage charm to the collection of photos

On the back of the frame I attached this page which explains

the photos and our family story 

Every Little Birdie says-

I'm rejoicing in times past

and celebrating new futures!!

join me over at

http://thebrambleberrycottage.blogspot.com/2012/09/time-travel-thursday-115-talented-time.html

http://cherishedtreasures-terry.blogspot.com/2012/09/sunday-blog-love_15.html

http://youaretalkingtoomuch.com/2012/09/meet-me-monday-linky-party-14/

Fall Sale at the Gardens

 The Victoria Educational Gardens

have a plant sale twice a year

I've been anxiously waiting all summer

for the fall sale

It was last Saturday.....

After a couple of years I've got

the routine down

Get there early...

I did and I still waited in line to get in!!

Know what you want

because the good plants go quickly

Regardless what time of the year you visit, the gardens are always beautiful

the hunt begins!!

Once you start selecting plants you bring them over to the tables
they will give you a number for your spot
you can continue to bring as many plants as you want back to your spot!!

I quickly found my spot and started
loading it with plants!!!

and yes there are ladies that watch your plants
so they don't disappear!!!

And this year they had something new

The Master Gardeners were selling

their pots, garden books, and

yard art

.........and yes, I did find some treasures

Two shabby bird cages,

one rusty old angel chime,

and one galvanized container

What a fun shopping experience!!

Time to leave the gardens

..........and the great

part is there are lovely old gentlemen

with large wagons

standing by to load your plants

and garden treasures

and haul them to your car!

Every Little Birdie says -

I'm in the mood for a little fall gardening

How about you?

Linking up over at -
http://frenchcountrycottage.blogspot.com/2012/09/feathered-nest-friday-party-time.html
http://knickoftimeinteriors.blogspot.com/2012/09/knick-of-time-tuesday-51.html
http://www.savvysouthernstyle.net/2012/09/wow-us-wednesdays-83.html
http://fadedcharmcottage.blogspot.com/2012/09/white-wednesday-169.html