Versatile Wardrobe, Meeting YOU, and Prayers

Happy Monday!  I've got a new reveal for you today.  I've been working on lots of littles lately and they are mostly at all kinds of stages of the process.  Here's a pic of 2 of them.  Nice big chalkboards made from the doors off of my display cabinet at the Brass Armadillo.

I actually used some APC Top Coat on these to make them more wipeable for the chalk markers.  Regular chalk still works too.  These will be available at The Prairie Market, but I may do one more to put in the Brass Armadillo soon.

I also finished this HEAVY duty piece.  It is super sturdy and extremely versatile.

It was a nice pickled oak from I'm guessing the 80's or early 90's.  It's clean as a whistle and has oodles of great storage potential.  Look!

Cubbies, shelves, drawers, oh my!  Where would you use it?  The Home Office, the Craft Room, the Family Room, the Nursery, the Play Room, the Kitchen, the Bedroom??  Seriously, this piece would fit everywhere.

I even kept it pretty neutral and painted it in American Paint Company's Rushmore over Dollar Bill.  It is waxed and buffed for a nice finish.  What do you think of it?

The Brass Armadillo staff has told me the paint is really taking off and that several of you asked to see me.  Unfortunately I'm not able to be there every day, though I do stop by a couple times a week to restock and fluff the space up.  I would LOVE to meet all my new paint customers though so if you  let me know, and I can make it work, I will meet you out there to talk paint and projects and questions.  In the meantime, take my card and call or email me and I'm always happy to help.  There are new classes listed at the Armadillo and they can also be found up above if you push the APC Paint Classes button.  Hope to talk to you soon!!

And on a personal note, I would gratefully accept prayers for my little warrior Chickie as she undergoes surgery tomorrow.  She is a brave, strong, smart little girl, and I know she will bounce back from this procedure quickly, but having the prayer warriors among you out there whispering her name is always welcome and appreciated.  So, keep Ellarie in your prayers!

Love you to the Moon and Back Baby Girl!

Have a beautiful week!
Deb

Every Piece Tells a Story

  My friend Lori and her friend Patti commissioned a special piece for some young newlyweds, and I was happy to do so.  Lori's Mom was my preschool Sunday School teacher so I've known her for a loooooong time.  Good thing too, cuz the piece they picked needed some 'splainin'.  The piece they chose, and no I forgot to take any before photos again, looked pretty decent on the outside excluding a dark stain or two on the top.  What we failed to notice at first was that the drawer bottoms were all patchworked together because the glides were all messed up.  The holes for the old, but not original, hardware were drilled at extremely odd angles and not level...at all.  And the legs had been cut off at some point in it's life.  At least they seemed level as it does not rock at all.  Well, all old pieces tell a story of sorts, and I loved finding an old political sign tacked up as a make-do drawer bottom.  I did not like that all the tiny nails someone had added in the feeble hope of keeping sketchy bottoms attached, but they missed the support wood completely and were lining the back of each drawer to make lock jaw seem like a given.  What I did think, once we removed all the tiny nails was that someone really loved this piece enough to try, despite maybe limited furniture repair skills, and hold this dresser together and make it last.  So to the young couple who receives this dresser, may you share many joys and, if there are rough spots, scratches, and dings along the way, may you use whatever means necessary to patch things up!  The truly good things are worth the work, the stories they tell are more interesting and appreciated.

When Lori and Patti commissioned this piece they gave me a lot of freedom.  Because this piece was quite old and had some oily spots that even my best primers couldn't quite kill I chose to blend 3 different colors for the base.  The movement would disguise any "freckles" that still wanted to bleed through.  And the oak was a bit rough and the graining opened up in some spots.  I used American Paint Company paints in Rushmore, Smoke Signal, and Plymouth Rock.  Just dipping and blending as I went.  It really seemed to soften up some of the rougher areas.

There was a lot of back and forth discussion on what kind of graphic to use on those nice flat drawers.  With the help of the Bride's Mother we were able to access some inspirational pins from the Bride's Pinterest Board.  Such a great idea!  Here is the one that I chose to use on this piece.  With some tiny pops of Peacock and Fireworks Red and Freedom Road for the lettering it all started coming together.

It's always a process with client pieces.  They wanted something bright and graphic and my first attempt didn't quite get it, but you just can't go wrong with Chevrons.  Especially chevrons in a nice happy yellow.  It's called A-Maize-ing, and it is!  We repaired all those wonky hardware holes and added new simple black pulls.    Sooo much better!

It's a good feeling to see this old but wonderful dresser writing a new chapter with a young couple writing their own new chapter!  Congratulations!  Wishing you all the Best!!

Deb

Linking up to: