2016

Not doing a resolution this year, but I do pledge to try and do better by this lonesome blog!  It seems that more and more I find people interacting on Face book and Instagram than they do on the blogs.  We are an instant gratification society anymore I am sad to say.  While I still enjoy many long blog posts with lots of pictures, or descriptions on how a technique was achieved I fell into the fast track habit too.  It takes time to edit photos that don't come off of my phone.  It takes time to write a blog post too.  Sometimes I'm not really feeling 'wordy' but I try to fill you in on what I am doing.  But the comments and feedback are so few and far between that you begin to wonder if anyone is reading what you put on here anymore.  Well, except for that person in Bulgaria or Finland that I see in the stats pages.  I love imagining what they think of all this stuff.  At any rate, I am not quite ready to give it up and I will try to do better at posting some content and photos, and maybe even some class listings.  Do comment if you need more information.  As always you can find me on FB, and Pinterest by following the buttons.  You can always shop my paint store by clicking on the 'affiliate link' in the top right hand corner.  I answer email and respond to comments generally.  I am here for you Friends!

Let's get on with the show.  Here is a recent finish that is for sale.

And as you can see by the photo it has a spinning top!  I'm kind of thinking this might be the coolest puzzle table that ever lived!  It was a beat up, bedraggled, drab brown, with some heavy scratches on the top.  I don't even want to know what it went through...  This paint color is Peppery and reads pretty bright in the photo due to the warm winter sun shining on it. May I get an Amen for sunshine in the winter?!

I did not spend any time at all knocking down the scratched top because I knew I wanted to add some texture on there.  I had some great napkins that I thought would work well.  Napkins have typically 3 layers or ply.  You have to remove the bottom 2 white layers to get to just the printed top napkin layer to carry off this project.  But if you gently remove it (and honestly I didn't care if mine ripped a little as I wanted some of those peek-a-boo holes and even wrinkles) you can decoupage using our 1 Gel product.  1 Gel is also for an image transfer technique, but that's for another day.  You simply brush on the 1 Gel and quickly lay your napkin down.  I used a dry brush to smooth out the top of the napkin.  I also tore around the edges to eliminate HARD edges on my table.  If I found wrinkles I left them baby!

Once the top was dry I gently sanded it.  Yes, even over those wrinkles.  If it was a bit loose I sanded off the excess tissue to let the paint show through.  The napkin also tends to take on the paint color since it is so transparent with only 1 layer.  Shown are some of the products I used on the table.  I forgot to bring the 1 Gel outside.  I used the Dark Umber Spray Wax to give the top an antiqued look, I followed with a very light coat of clear wax to remove some of the areas that I thought took too much of the dark wax and looked muddy.  After letting that cure for over 24 hours I put 2 coats of Aqua Clear our water based sealant that will provide a bit more protection to the top.  The legs and base were sealed with clear and dark wax and buffed.

And if you are like me you'd like to see what this looks like up close, so here you go!  Thanks for stopping by.  Thanks for reading, and if you have any questions please feel free to leave them in the comments section, or shoot me an email.  If there are specific techniques you would like me to show you let me know.  All products used are Heirloom Traditions Paints.  I retail HTP and their boutique line Vintiques at the Brass Armadillo, Booth #43 for those of you local.  If you are not from the Omaha, NE area you can shop for these products by using my 'affiliate link' in the shop now section.
Have a great week!
Deb