Another Paris Themed Desk

Shabby Chic Paris Desk

Found this desk at a garage sale and had to have it. It had a ton of damage but for $20 and a little elbow grease I knew she could be a beauty. The side and back pieces I knew needed to be replaced, no problem a sheet of MDF can't handle. So with those areas replaced I started to look for a chair, because no desk can go without a matching chair. This one came from my Mom's dining room table set I recently refinished. You can see that one here: http://thatsnotjunk.blogspot.com/2014/06/moms-dining-room-table.html

We had five good chairs, so I sold four with the table and kept one. Yay! I then looked through my fabric bin. I found just enough Paris themed fabric to recover the seat and a little extra so I decided to cover the sides of the desk to match. Once I had the fabric secured on the sides I realized I needed something to tie in the stained drawers so I found some trim I had laying around, stained them to match and put them on. I cleaned up the original hardware and added two new old ones since it was missing a few.http://thatsnotjunk.blogspot.com/2014/06/moms-dining-room-table.html

Here is how she turned out:

Here is what I started with:

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Shabby Chic and Pretty in Pink

Pretty Little Liars Inspired Dresser

Love how this one turned out, very pretty and dainty. Despite the pink and green colors I think it is still a very versatile dresser.

My inspiration came from the bedroom of Emily Fields on 

Pretty Little Liars. 

(yes, I watch that show and love it!) 

She has this great collection of shabby chic decor and vintage furniture in pretty pale colors.

Here is how it turned out:

Here is what it looked like before:

And After:

Inspired Dresser

Sometimes inspiration comes at the strangest times! A few days ago a lady came by to look a coffee table I had for sale. Although it wasn't the right fit for her place she inspired my next project. She showed me a picture of her area rug that she was looking to match a coffee table to. The color was beautiful and so I knew I had to add it to the dresser I had just sanded. Thank goodness too because I really didn't know what I was going to do with it!! 

So this is how it turned out:

Here is what she looked like before:

Mom's Dining Room Table

Mom's Dining Room Table

 So many memories...

This table was used and abused my Mom's six grandchildren over the years. I can remember watching the kids gathered around doing arts and crafts, making cookies during their annual Christmas parties and just hanging out with her. She loved this table and wanted to one day refinish it and use it in her new farmhouse. Sadly it is too big to fit her new kitchen :( She had even purchased the material years ago to reupholster and make matching curtains. So when we realized it wouldn't work I decided to go ahead with her original plan and refinish it the way she imagined it. Even though she can't keep it at least she knows her vision was beautiful!!

I hope she is proud of how it turned out

Here is it all finished:

Here is what it looked like after the grandkids grew up 

LOL!

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Mirror Mirror

Mirror Mirror on the wall,

Who's the...

Just kidding 

We've been watching too many episodes of "Once Upon a Time" 

LOL

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Had a little fun with these misc. mirrors that once belonged to a dresser. Not sure which one I like better???

Here is the Before:

Antique Coffee Table

Antique Coffee Table

This was a fun little side project. I love antique furniture that has curves and details and gorgeous wood grain. This was a simple as sanding, primer, paint, glaze, stain and several coats of poly. Oh and a little fix of the drawer. I love easy! And best of all this fabulous piece of furniture was FREE!!

And the finished product:

Milk Paint Buffet

Milk Paint...

Worth it or not??

Say hello to my new buffet :)

It's been awhile since I finished a piece for my own house so I was excited to get to work on it. I had just purchased two colors of Milk Paint to test out, pearl and french gray. I have heard nothing but rave reviews so here was my chance to give it a whirl. 

Here is my list of Pros and Cons:

               Pros                                             Cons

Good selection of colors                     Doesn't cover much area

Dries super fast                                   Expensive (spent $30)

Can do several coats in a day             Dries grainy/rough

"Prep" work is minor                          Too much sanding afterwards

                                                            It smells  

                                                        

Overall it wasn't too terribly bad to work with. I did a lot of bad mouthing it while I was working though. It seemed like way too much work for the price spent. I am not too sure if I will work with it again. I know everyone seems to love it but I just don't get it. To me using a homemade "chalk paint" is much easier and super inexpensive and has pretty much the same look.

I will say this though, in the end, I am pleased with how it turned out. Not at all what I imagined I wanted in my dining room but it has now become that piece I will decorate around. So Yay!!

Now that I have a focal piece I can finish my dining room table and find wall colors!!