painted furniture

Adding a Bit of Glitz to a Motif – The Royal Collection Metallics

Add Some Glitz! The Retique It Royal Collection Metallics Are you wanting your pieces to stand out so people take notice? One way to create the WOW factor is to add a little glitz. Whether you are stenciling a piece of decor, redesigning furniture, or even stenciling on a wall, metallics are a great choice. I recently redesigned a coffee table for my living room and of course I wanted a piece of art rather than just a plain ‘ol table! Today I’m sharing a video showing you how I giltzed it up. Sometimes the best things are the simplest! I used the Royal Collection Metallics by Retique It by stenciling just a bit of trim on all of the leaves. You don’t see it at first when coming into my living room, when casually glancing at it from the front, but as you walk around to sit on the … Read more

[SLIDESHOW] Beautiful Furniture Art by FFB PRO Members

This week I’ve opened up Furniture Flipping Blueprint enrollment and thought you might like to see some of the furniture art that my PRO members, both past and present, have created. I often marvel at the skills they have perfected. Talent isn’t everything, but hard work, experience, practice, experimentation, watching and learning is. I like this quote by Albert Einstein: “I have no special talents. I am only passionately curious.”   I can tell you until I’m blue in the face that it would behoove you to join Furniture Flipping Blueprint for so many reasons. But for you to SEE why you need to join is so much better. This time around I have special pricing, which is another reason why you should not to hesitate to join before time runs out. Come SEE what beautiful furniture artists my FFB members have become in the slideshow below. Here is the … Read more

Upcycled China Cabinet – Unwanted to Amazing!

I’ve got a good one to show you today! We’re always thinking of ways to turn cast offs into something desirable, aren’t we? Garage sale finds, Goodwill castoffs, hand-me-downs, Aunt Clara’s dusty old china cabinet… A while ago we bought this china cabinet at an estate sale. We paid $97. It’s an Ethan Allen, so I knew it had good bones and it reminded me of my mother. LOL For some reason I acquaint Ethan Allen with my mom. No idea why. Maybe because it’s from her era. Here is DH strapping everything down we go that day. It was the last day of the estate sale, so I got this china cabinet CHEAP. I got a couple of other things too. I felt like I had won the jackpot. This thing was sitting in the living room of the house of someone who had gone on, and the kids … Read more

Furniture Worship?

BALANCING OPINION WITH FACT Do we act like we know the difference? Look at the pieces and prices below: PRICING IS HARD We are free to charge whatever we think a piece is worth – I’m all for Capitalism and the freedom to ask whatever we want. BUT… Just because something is listed for a certain price doesn’t mean it will sell for that. Nor does it mean it really is worth that in our market. We must remember when seeing these listings, that something is only worth what someone is willing to pay for it.  Sometimes people price based on their own emotional connection to an item. Have you ever been to a garage sale and found items that are old and worn priced at retail prices? I have and it makes me chuckle. They priced based the item based on their personal attachment to the item, but as … Read more

Cleaning Paint Brushes

If you want your painting supplies to last, take good care of them. I’m super picky about cleaning my tools, especially my brushes. I try to get my paint brushes to as close to new looking as possible by cleaning them until I’m satisfied all of the paint is out. Here’s an extra tip: If you find it has dried before you were able to wash the paint out, soak the brush in hair conditioner or fabric softener for a day or two and you’ll be surprised at the results! In less than 1 minute, I show you in this video the simple process I use to wash out my brushes. These little tips by experienced furniture flippers can save you $ and much disappointment – go the extra mile to keep your tools in good shape. How’s that for a quick tip. You can find more on my Youtube … Read more

Fixing a Sloppy Paint Job

Here’s a little tip to save you some time and effort. I bought a dresser from Marketplace and the drawers had some messy painting going on. Drips, over painting, scratches, bristles embedded, etc. The worst part were the drawer sides. My options for fixing them were: painting them, stenciling over the mess, or sanding it off. I didn’t like any of those options. I thought on it a while and came up with a better option. It was easier than any of the three choices I originally thought I had and it worked. Here is the finished project – you can click the pic to go right to the post about this project: This is an example of the super short videos I create for my Blueprint members. I’ll be sharing some of them with those who wish to see the nicky picky details that most experienced furniture flippers have … Read more

[VIDEO] Creating Appliques Using Paper Clay

SAVE $$ It can be pretty pricey to buy ready made appliques, so this is a good solution for anyone wishing to add a little pizazz to decor or furniture. It’s easy and actually a fun thing to do once you get a handle on the particulars. This video shows you how to use paper clay to make appliques fairly inexpensively.   PAPER CLAY It certainly doesn’t hurt that this product and process is pretty easy too. I like easy. At the time I made this video I only used (afflink) paper clay, but since then I’ve learned about and also use hot glue and another medium similar to paper clay, Form Flex. These two are flexible after they dry unlike Paper Clay which is not. I share the other methods in the Blueprint – be sure to subscribe to the DROPCLOTH so you’ll be notified when it opens to … Read more

Cyber Monday Starts NOW

I’m going to keep it simple. If you want to learn to become an ace at creating furniture art…if you want to learn how to sell that furniture art…come join the Blueprint. I have the best deal of the year right now – $100 off the regular GOLD plan. One year for one low price of tutorials, videos (over 200), lists, links, step-by-steps, product reviews, explanations, etc. I’m not really sure why I put it so low other than the fact that everybody needs FFB. Go here to see what the Blueprint is all about, just click here: ValFrania.com/invite. It’s my invitation to you to become the pursuer of dreams, the accomplished artist, the skilled marketer and a leader in furniture flipping world. I have 2 great bonuses you can grab ’till Sunday night. Yes, the $100 off deal is still good through Cyber Monday, midnight, but the bonuses go … Read more

Are You Ready to Become a PRO Furniture Artist?

    Have you dreamed about growing your redesign and marketing skills and/or wondered how to gain the confidence you need to get to the next level? Black Friday – Cyber Monday Furniture Flipping Blueprint Gold plan will be at an amazing price for all new and returning members. It’s time to plan for 2022 to be a record year and do great things! What is the Blueprint? It’s an online manual, a membership, for furniture artists where they can learn A to Z furniture flipping. Are you ready to stop scrolling, trying to find answers, and get down to business? Go here to find out more about the Blueprint: ValFrania.com/Join.  Why would I ever consider being mentored by Val Frania? Who is she anyway?   Why is FFB an investment in my self and how will it help me in 2022? Who else has been a member of the Blueprint? … Read more

[VIDEO] Background & Stenciling Script Tips

So so SO many furniture artists forget that their furniture is no different than a painter’s canvas. Learn a few very easy techniques and you can WOW your audience. We need to do something to stop those scrollers and sell our furniture! In this video I’ll tell you about my favorite background technique and how I add script for an old-world look. Backgrounds add interest – not just one or two colors, but from one to many will create an uncommon artsy look. It’s great for under stenciling or even a transfer. Use it to create an old-world look, weathering, etc., or even just for a look of whimsy by using dramatic or contrasting colors. You get to decide. Plus, I explain the best way to stencil script onto your piece – method matters. The BEFORE We found the tables in a jam-packed salvage type of thrift shop. Removing the … Read more

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