Antique Dresser Reveal

I have finally managed to complete the vintage dresser. This was my first time using Annie Sloan Chalk Paint and I am a big fan. I loved not having to sand or primer. When I felt like working on the piece I just grabbed the paint brush! I did have to use two coats of the ASCP Old White but I believe it was because of the dark color of the wood and not anything with the paint itself. If you read my last post you'll know that I had a problem with adding glaze to the dresser, but this was not a failure of the ASCP. Yours truly neglected to do her research. :) My only complaint with ASCP is the price. Especially when you have to buy two different kinds of waxes!

Without further ado, here is the dresser beforehand. This was a Craigslist find.

I love the detailing on this piece! Especially on the top of the mirror. The only thing I did before I started painting was fill in the pieces of missing veneer (visible in the second picture) with wood filler and sand the top since I would be staining it a darker color.

As I previously mentioned I painted the piece ASCP Old White. I then applied the ASCP Clear Wax and the ASCP Dark Wax. The top I stained Kona by Rustoleum. The knobs are actually from Target. I think this piece would also look nice if it were distressed a little but I just couldn't bring myself to do it. Nothing else in my house is distressed and the room itself (visible in the bottom picture with the mirror reflection) doesn't really have that shabby chic feel to it. Maybe next piece...or maybe I'll just get mad one day and take some sandpaper to this one! Here is the dresser after her makeover.

I'm partying here:
Furniture Feature Friday @ Miss Mustard Seed
Frugal Friday at The Shabby Nest
Show and Tell Friday at My Romantic Home
Feathered Nest Friday at French Country Cottage
Thrifty Things Friday at The Thrifty Groove
Inspiration Friday at At the Picket Fence

Annie Sloan Chalk Paint Fail

Today I was hoping to reveal the antique dresser I have been working on. Sadly, instead I bring you an Annie Sloan Chalk Paint (ASCP) FAIL!! It could be that I am the only person in the world who didn't know this about ASCP, but just in case there is someone else out there who is late to board the ASCP train, now you will know too.

What is "this" you ask? To start at the beginning I had just finished painting the antique dresser in ASCP Old White. So far I had been very pleased with the ASCP. I knew the piece was going to look great once I got it glazed, especially the mirror on top with all of its detailing. So the mirror is where I decided to start the glazing. I brushed the glaze on and when I went to wipe it off... HORROR. It wouldn't come off! My Old White was now a yucky gray thanks to absorbing some of the black glaze!! So I did what anyone would do and I rubbed harder. It still wouldn't come off! I threw the rag down in frustration and picked up the phone to vent to my mom. "Did you put on the clear wax first?" she asked. I told her I wasn't aware that I needed to put a coat of clear wax first. Apparently I missed that memo.

So dear readers if you didn't know you needed to put a coat of clear wax on first you can now avoid my mistake, and if you did know, feel free to laugh with me (at me?) at my ASCP fail. As for me, I'm hoping the fix will merely involve putting another coat of ASCP Old White on the mirror, putting clear wax on, THEN glazing!

A sneak peek

I have been wanting to try Annie Sloan Chalk Paint (ASCP) for some time but the frugal side of this thrifty girl couldn't hardly come to grips with the price. Well, I finally bit the bullet and went to buy a quart and then I ended up having to wait two weeks on the ASCP in Old White to be restocked! It finally came in last weekend but I was hosting a baby shower for a co-worker. However, I could hardly contain my excitement so I did manage to find some time to put one coat on the piece I'm making over.  Here's a sneak peek! I can't wait to get out there and really get started!

Do It Yourself Bay Window Curtain Rod Tutorial

It's taken me a while but I'm finally ready to hang up curtains in the master bedroom, which is a bay window. So I set out looking for a bay window curtain rod for my space. Those things are NOT cheap. I take that back, you can get the white aluminum kind for $25 online. But who wants those? The next step up was a basic bronze curtain rod for $50. Not going to work in my space. So I decided to do what any thrifty girl would do--MAKE MY OWN!

Here are the materials you'll need for the DIY bay window curtain rod.

1. 10' long 1/2" Electric Metallic Tubing (EMT) Conduit

2. 5/8" wooden dowel rod

3. 45 degree galvanized elbow pieces (2)

4. Wood insert nuts (2)

5. Can of Rustoleum Metallic Paint. I used Satin Nickel as my color.

6. Curtain Brackets--to hold your "rod" onto the wall. I was lucky enough to find three of these packages at the local Goodwill. The second picture shows a close up of the bracket and the hardware it came with.

7. Two finials of your choice.

Once you have all your parts you'll be ready to begin the actual assembly.

1. You'll need to measure for the length of your windows and cut the EMT pipe to the appropriate lengths. Be sure to account for the elbow pieces in the corner so you'll need to cut a little shorter than your actual measurement. I was able to get all three rods out of one ten foot long section of EMT pipe. 

2. Clamp the dowel rod into a bench vise and then drill a hole in the center of each end of the dowel for your wood nuts.

3. Cut off each end of the dowel to a 3" long piece.

4. Put the dowel into the EMT conduit. Make sure you put them into the shorter side pieces as this will be where you screw in the finials. Also, this is a tight fit which requires no glue--though you'll probably need a rubber mallet to get the dowel into the EMT conduit.

5. Once the wooden dowel is completely in the EMT conduit take a screwdriver and screw the wood nut into your pre-drilled hole.

This is what the pipe will look like once the dowel and the wood nut are in place.

6. Spray paint your curtain rods with your color of choice.

7. Screw your selected finials into the nut inside the rod.

Now you are ready to hang your new curtain rod! I won't get into the details of the actual hanging as it should be pretty self explanatory what goes where. Here's mine assembled and hanging on the wall! If you place your curtains just so you can actually conceal the elbows and the wall brackets.

Here's a breakdown of the cost for the DIY Bay Window Curtain Rod.

$3.98   10' long EMT conduit
$2.50   Galvanized elbows ($1.25 each)
$7.97    Rustoleum spray paint
$1.98    Wooden dowel rod
$2.92    Wall brackets (3 boxes, 2 brackets in each box)
$1.85    Wood insert nuts (2 per pack)

Total Cost: $21.20

* I already had the finials so if you had to buy them it would be an added cost.
*If you already had the spray paint your cost would be even less!!

Frugal Friday at The Shabby Nest
Show and Tell Friday at My Romantic Home
Feathered Nest Friday at French Country Cottage
Thrifty Things Friday at The Thrifty Groove
Inspiration Friday at At The Picket Fence
Latest and Greatest Fridays at Days of Chalk and Chocolate
Furniture Feature Friday at Miss Mustard Seed
Newbie Mondays at Debbie Doo's
Nifty Thrifty Tuesday at Coastal Charm
Nifty Thrifty Sunday at Nifty Thrifty Things
Sunday Showcase Party at Under the Table and Dreaming
Tout it Tuesday at Claiming Our Space

A New Ballard Inspired Mirror

I must confess. I have a mirror in every room of my house. I LOVE mirrors. And no, it's not because I enjoy looking at myself. I just love what a mirror can bring to a room. They can reflect light in an otherwise dark corner, they can make a room look bigger, they serve as great focal points. A great mirror is a piece of art. Mirrors pull a room together, much like curtains do. What's not to love about a mirror? Therefore you can only imagine my great joy when I came across this beauty at Goodwill for $19.91 (side note--seems everything I buy from Goodwill here lately is $19.91).

I've had her hanging on the wall behind my kitchen table as is while I looked for inspiration. Granted, I could have left her alone and many people probably would have been perfectly happy to do so. To me she just didn't have that oomph about her. Finally I came across this as my inspiration mirror. This is the Cassidy Mirror from Ballard Designs. It retails for $189 on their website. I liked that it had a gold ring encircling the mirror part, surrounded by some color and interesting detail.

I chose out my paint, a deep blue from Clark & Kensington (another free sample from Ace Hardware), and went to work. The paint is supposed to have a primer in it so I didn't bother priming. Honestly, it took me a little time to begin working on her. I was so afraid I would mess her up. Finally, I just took the plunge. After all, worse case scenario I would have been out $20 and would have to search for something else to put behind my kitchen table BUT if things went as planned I would have a beautiful mirror for a mere fraction of the cost. I did have a minor panic attack when I put on the first stroke of dark blue but at that point there was no turning back. Here she is mid way.

Surprisingly, the paint went on well but I did have to put on two coats. I didn't tape off around the gold part so I had to be extra careful when I was painting beside it. (The reflection in the mirror is of my basement ceiling. I haven't quite learned how to blur that out.) Two coats of paint later and I was ready to glaze. Once again I turned to the Martha Stewart Glaze. This time in a gold color called Medallion. This mirror had great details. Some that I didn't even see until I glazed her. In the end I did stray a little from my inspiration photo but that's what the creative process is all about. The more distressed and nautical look of the Ballard mirror wouldn't have vibed as well with my decor.

I love the way this mirror turned out! Here is the final product plus a few close ups so you can see those great details.

ALSO, for any of my readers familiar with my thrifted red bed redo I have finally purchased a mattress and have a picture of the bed--complete with bed linens--on that post. You can view the updated post HERE.

I'm partying here:
Furniture Feature Friday at Miss Mustard Seed
Frugal Friday at the Shabby Nest
Show and Tell Friday at My Romantic Home
Feathered Nest Friday at French Country Cottage
Thrifty Things Friday at The Thrifty Groove
Inspiration Friday at At the Picket Fence