Before and After: Side Table makeover for only $12

I recently made over our little side table, it only took me a few days and only cost $12. Here is my Before and After post to share the process of this quick and easy makeover.

Above: you can see its original state on the left side, a very shiny mahogany finish popular in the 1950s. We have a lot of color in our living room so I knew I wanted something simple and neutral. And since we don't have a lot of black in the space- black paint felt like the right solution.

My Mom had leftover black paint, so no cost there and the knobs were $6 each from Anthropologie.

I simply sanded the table to knock down the high gloss and in some areas I sanded down to the natural wood finish in order to have it appear through the black paint when I sanded the final coat of paint. My mom recommended having a rough finish on this piece since it's very difficult and frustrating to achieve and maintain a pristine black piece of furniture, plus this way it will wear well over the years- during more moves and exposure to toddlers.

Detail shot of the knobs and the roughed finish.

TIP: To get a worn finish to a piece, simply sand the areas that would normally get the most ware- corners and exposed edges.

After two coats of paint I lightly sanded the top layer to expose the brown underneath. Then I finished the table with one coat of furniture wax.

After: The table in our living room.

And the table at night.

I am very happy with the result! It was a fast and inexpensive makeover that really transformed the piece, bringing it up to date and fitting into our space better. This project can now be crossed off my summer bucket list! Next up continuing to chip away at sanding the dining room chairs!

Summer Bucket List, 2013

I can't believe it is June already! Summer is officially here and I have a sneaking suspicion that it is going to fly by! thus the other night I began musing with the husband about what our summer bucket list should entail.  We are already booked to go camping with our friends back in Maine at the end of August... but what are some of the other to-dos on our list that will speak back to the more care free days when summer was a time of possibility, change, and potential...? Instead of what it appears to be today- the husband works long and crazy hours, while I man the home front in all of its domestic glory.  I feel like I need to make myself an upbeat summer-esque soundtrack to blast on the rare occasion I'm in the car without the kids!

So here's what I have on my list so far. (and after drafting it I'm realizing this list is not as carefree as it should be, it's more project oriented...!)

1) Get the vw bus family friendly: We've had the bus for almost a year and although she needs some bigger things done to her, there are a few basics that we can accomplish right now that will allow us to use it as a family. IE: install the bench seat we made last summer and the seat belts etc that will allow us to put two car seats in there! And then poof we can all pile in and drive around on adventures to go play in the river. (Last week we sold the original bench that came with our bus so now we can buy new chrome mirrors and headlights to replace the rusted ones!)

2) Redoing our hand-me-down dining room chairs.  They are chipping and could use a little facelift so my plan is to make them a bit rustic by getting them down to their original wood and applying a furniture wax to finish them off. Then I will cover the seat cushions with waxed canvas in either a dark navy or a teal/aqua- as seen in the above picture of the hints of color on top of the dresser. My hope is that the canvas will act as a contrast to the rustic finish of the chairs. I have 6 chairs in total- so wish me luck! (I figure if I work on them a little each day I can make progress quickly.)

3) Repainting our side table: I'm going to sand it, paint it black and add these new knobs from Anthropologie. I already have the paint, so the cost of the makeover will only be $12 for both knobs!

4) Add fresh Merchandise to my etsy shop.  It feels incredibly daunting to find time to shower let alone to make new art, but I'm strategizing how to do this. Mostly by working a little bit each day and then scheduling a big chunk of time when the husband is home- for me to accomplish a bigger task like screen printing an edition of bags, etc. It's exciting and I can't wait to share my new pieces with you!

now for the more carefree portion of the list.

5) Berry picking
6) camping in the backyard (maybe...?)
7) Installing a hammock in the backyard
8) Bike rides with the kids at the shore
9) Cherry pie- baking it, consuming it
10) taking time to be quiet in nature (silence and quiet is highly sought after at the moment)
11) continuing to fine tune our home- organizing, purging, editing
12) find a fair or festival to go to...


Let me know what's on your bucket list in the comments!?

Summer Bucket List, An Update: 2 Paintings and Counting....

On Thursday I began working on my Summer Bucket List goal- to paint landscapes. The original idea was to paint outside with oils, but since it's been hot as HELL here this week, and time permitting and all that- I worked indoors and from images on my computer. Better than nothing! So here they are, my first two paintings... fun to bust out the watercolors again, their smell takes me back to being a sophomore in college, which makes me feel old-ish.

 ; )

Stay tuned for future updates on this topic, and have a great weekend!

~abs

Musing about my Summer Bucket List... an Update

I mentioned at the beginning of June how this summer I really want to paint outside, specifically to paint landscapes... I know this is a tall order- what with having a toddler around full time (not just around, but responsible for) but mostly because how freaking hot it is going to be this week... as you can see, as with all goals, it's very easy to start coming up with excuses or road blocks. (If you can't even attempt to work on a goal then no opportunity of failure!) It's all well and good to have a goal-wish list, but if one never actually puts it on the calendar, it will keep getting pushed aside.

And yet I have this intense desire to paint... I let my frustration and lack of interest with oil painting wain during grad school, which was good since it allowed me to focus on breaking into and dabbling with installations... but now here it is, returned, awakened... perhaps it's the ultimate call to self, the call and search for my former self, the one that could have on a whim scooped up easel and paints and hit up a field somewhere... not that I ever did... I look back on my -before baby years and become a cliche of wishing we had traveled more, of wondering why we were so lame and didn't live that year in New Zealand, why we didn't go on a honeymoon....? And now, why the hell didn't I just go for it and paint landscapes!?  And the answer is that for starters I didn't actually want to paint landscapes, I find them daunting and because if I had, I would like to think I would have achieved this goal... but mostly before becoming a parent you have no freaking idea what time means, and you abuse it by luxuriating in its infiniteness...

And now I sit here at night after putting the little one to bed, and curse myself for continuing to abuse my "free time"... I sit here and stare at the computer... the mountain of things in my brain, jotted on countless misplaced lists, and even on a note in my i-phone, are so immense and endless I sit struck dumb as to where to even begin... and mostly I'm tired and lack inspiration to get off my ass.

Thus I turn to this bigger more lofty goal of painting landscapes. To escape into a landscape... one that I can dictate, where it is quiet and only the essential remains.

Practical conclusions have been reached- I will practice painting landscapes indoors, working from pictures and other images... doing little sketches in both oil and watercolor... researching and gathering inspiring images, and so forth. And then one cool late afternoon, I will throw baby in the car and hit up a field somewhere. (I know just the one!)

But most importantly to drop the whole Jacob Marley act of being shackled with regret, pointing fingers and warning the childless to savor their free time... but rather to savor my own time, the present... because I'm sure years from now when the house is again quiet and personal time becomes overwhelming, I will look back at these years and say I should have relaxed more and gone with the flow, to not be so hard on myself, that it's great to strive towards a goal as well as to sit motionless after baby bedtime hours and just soak in the quiet... my own little motherhood landscape

Summer Bucket List

Do you have a summer bucket list? Or rather a Summer -to-do-list, the fun kind, the one that inspires new adventures and lessons learned? In Yesterday's Links and Such post I included a quote "When Was the last time you did something for the first time?". So maybe one's summer list could have this theme...?

With the first day of June, I'm trying to write my own list, one that doesn't include items from my "Ultimate to do list" (such as various knitting projects, our wedding album (4 yrs is embarrassing!) and so on).

Although my list is still a work in progress, one key piece, that although does not fit into doing something for the first time... is to paint outside again. During my undergrad we spent many painting classes outside painting landscapes. I have mad respect for those that can capture a landscape in simplified hues and shapes... I would get bogged down by each leaf. And so that's the number one goal on my list- to paint outside again. (And to paint in general, I also hope to offer new original oil paintings in my Etsy shop).

So as you head out on your weekend, think about writing a fun summer bucket list, one that will challenge you... but one that will ultimately set this summer apart from the rest. And report back, cus I need help with mine! ; )

have a great one!!

xo

abs