Pure and Original Paint

Master Bedroom Headboard is Finally Done!

It’s only been about 3 years… This one gave us a run for our money. It was either sell it or disassemble it to get it up to our room. I couldn’t bear to sell it. I’d waited over 3 years to redesign it for our master, so I wasn’t going to give up so easily. It took me a long time to set aside time to do it because when I redo something of my own, I want to enjoy it. I didn’t want to rush through it because I had pressing matters calling for my attention. So I decided to let DH cut it apart so we could fit it up the stairs into our room, and then I painted it there. It took me a couple of weeks, but it was so worth it! This is where I talked about the redesign and the brushes I used … Read more

A Headboard Redesign w/ Brushes Overview

Do you ever get a chance to paint for yourself? I try to, but it’s kinda like the “Cobbler’s children have no shoes,” for most furniture flippers. This headboard has sat around waiting for me for about 3 or 4 years. It’s massive. And now, it’s almost ready for my master suite. Here’s the “before”. Here are steps 1-3:   STEP #1  Repair & Clean We couldn’t get it up the two flights of stairs because it was too tall and ceilings got in the way. So DH had to cut off the end pieces and reassemble them. He used L brackets so they can easily be taken apart in the future. Hats off to him for repairing it so well and figuring out the best way to take it apart and put it back together. STEP #2  Prime with STIX. STIX isn’t a regular primer that covers stains or … Read more

Damaged But Not Destroyed

We tend to toss rather than fix, don’t we? Let’s reconsider. Let’s look through a better lense when considering what to do with an item. It’s so amazing to see an upcycle, redesigned and/or repurposed piece of furniture, decor, or whatever. I’ve seen it. I’ve done it. And I want to see you see it a do it too. This former book table shelf plywood and 2x4s homemade thingy was on Craig’s List. It was terribly scratched up by the owner’s dog. The lady was super apologetic about it when I went to go take a look. I even considered saying, “No thanks” to her when I saw how beat up it was. But I took it anyway and stored it for over a year waiting for time and inspiration to tackle it. Whenever I have a new product, method or technique I want to try out, in my mind’s … Read more

Can Furniture Become a Piece of Art?

  #sponsored ART- noun plural noun: arts; plural noun: the arts 1. The expression or application of human creative skill and imagination, typically in a visual form such as painting or sculpture, producing works to be works produced by human creative skill and imagination. creative activity resulting in the production of paintings, drawings, or sculpture. 2. The various branches of creative activity, such as painting, music, literature, and dance.   The 10 Foot Amish Table Had to Go For years we ate as a family of 17 at a 10 foot Amish made oak table with 4 leaves and claw feet. It suited our purpose, but when we went from a huge brood to an empty nest, that table became obsolete. We bought it in Shipshewana, an Amish town in Indiana for half the price anywhere else. Isn’t it funny hnow a treasure can turn into an albarross when it … Read more

Carved End Table “Victoria” Turns Blue

A trip to Door County in Wisconsin has often yielded us treasures. Well, treasures to be that is. This one. This carved end table was sitting, as you can see, in a consignment warehouse. This consignment shop appears to be a quaint little shop on the main drag. But if you walk on through to the back, you will discover a huge warehouse full of furniture from days gone by – tossed aside just waiting for someone to see its potential.   I happen to be that person. This one was pretty to begin with. It had a glass top, so I’m guessing that’s hwy it was tossed aside and considered outdated.   BEFORE   Materials List (affiliate links in BOLD for your convenience) Pure & Original Greek Sky Classico CrystaLac’s grain filler and black satin CrystaLac Top Coat, Matte STIX bonding primer CrystaLac Top Coat, Matte Scott’s Rags Krud … Read more

“From Messed Up to Dressed Up” An Accent Table Update

“Clarissa” Just before I opened up my new membership site, Furniture Flipping Forum, I put together a three day course showing how to take an all wood accent table “From messed Up to Dressed Up.” It was a big challenge because it was in very rough shape to begin with and took longer to prep this piece than anticipated. The old varnish was thick and all crackled with parts falling off because it was so old and dried out. Pieces were falling off and there were gouges and loose veneer.     Every time I look at it I stare in wonder how something so unattractive can be turned into a masterpiece. But when you learn the steps, it can be done with a bit of elbow grease and know how…with lots of patience. If I hadn’t planned on providing this three day course to those interested in Furniture Flipping … Read more

Hannah, a Parlor Table Beauty, Lives to Serve Again

#sponsored I’d Never Noticed Parlor Tables Before It’s a funny thing. You buy a white car and all of a sudden you notice every white car on the road. That’s what has happened to me. I saw a really cool table at an estate auction a while ago and won the bid. After I refinished it, all of a sudden I saw parlor tables everywhere – antique stores, estate sales, online…   Today I introduce you to Hannah, named after the man who owned the store that made her – Hannah’s Furniture in Kenosha, Wisconsin. She had a tag on her underside:       She was quite beat up with gouges on her table top. We decided to pretty her up with Pure & Original Classico in Black Hills (a deep green) and add a bit of glitz with Champagne Metallic accents.         Materials (Most are … Read more

Mission Beautify Ivy by Saltwash and Pure & Original

#sponsored Have you tried Saltwash yet? While at the General Finishes Conference, we met the Salt Wash originator, Carol Hunter, and she gave us a 10 oz. can of Saltwash to try. Pure & Original had already given me two of their classic colors, Poetic Blue and Steel Blue, so we chose them to combine with the Saltwash.   The combination was stellar. The Saltwash gave it a unique look – one that will fit into any home from a classically traditional to Coastal, to Farmhouse. Not many designs can pull that off, but this one can.   “The Before”         “Ivy” was sitting in an abandoned house amidst piles of trash. We almost missed her. We brought her home, cleaned her up, sanded and got her ready to try out a new look. She had great bones. We named her “Ivy” because she is no longer … Read more

Accent Table Turns a New Paige – Pure and Original Fresco Lime Paint

#Sponsored Post They all were just passing her by… We named her “Paige”. Here she is in her original home before she became mine. She was one of many at an estate sale: Paige was pretty scratched up and worn out, but she had good bones. We snatched her up and packed her in with all the other pieces we found that day and took her home. She was an after thought. Why not? She had potential. After flipping her over, we could tell she had been handcrafted by the pencil marks that were still visible. Materials List (Affiliate Links) Soy Gel Metal Putty Knife Wallprim Fresco Lime Paint Rigid Hand Sander HomeRight Finish Max Sprayer Dead Flat Eco Sealer Java Gel Wipe On Poly FolkArt Mandalla Stencil Since we had just started using (afflink) Soy Gel to strip some pieces, my DH threw her in the mix. Strip off … Read more

End Tables Ava & Elsa Restyled by P&O Inspiration Collection 2017

#sponsored post The Story of Ava & Elsa Ava & Elsa were not wanted. Ava & Elsa sat out in a driveway thinking there was no hope. Ava & Elsa were wobbly and scratched up pieces with a $10 tag for BOTH of them. Ava & Elsa though they were worth more but needed someone to find them and make them beautiful again. I was that someone… AVA “BEFORE” Finding Your Inner Artist It does take practice, but the more you hunt and take home projects, the more you practice different techniques and experiment with different paints, the more you will gain a new perspective on our craft and gain your own style and develop a vision for redesign. Don’t tell yourself you don’t have the talent or tell me that you could never do what I do.  I learned how to transform old unwanted out-dated pieces of furniture and … Read more