Claw Feet Side Table

Recently I acquired a sweet little side table from my Mom. Downsizing, she had some furniture she didn’t need any more and I snagged this table. I forgot to take a before picture but it was a medium to dark brown. I fell in love with the green color of my sideboard and decided to try the ASCP color Verailles.

 

First I painted the table with the chalk paint.

 

 

Then I did a little distressing.

 

 

And set it up in the perfect spot in my family room.

 But something just wasn't right. 

 

And then it came to me....the top was nice but a little boring so I decided to add a little color and design.

I was inspired by the colors of this pillow...

....and the design of this wall iron.

So..........

First I stenciled a similar design using a home made chalk paint in a blue.  You might remember the stencil from this project.

 

 

 

Next..on with color #2.
ASCP - Arles

 

Finally the last color, (an my favorite), Red!

 

Thanks for visiting,

Vanity Chair

I have had this chair since the summer. I literally bought it as it was being unloaded from a woman's truck to the front of the thrift store. I was with my daughter and we were looking for a shelf for Lucy's books and from the road saw some and pulled in. The woman who donated the shelves was still unloading. I bought this chair and the matching vanity (desk) and night stand. The desk's future is still to be decided and I redid the night stand to be a plant table (photograph at the end of this post). 

On the bottom of the chair was stamped:
GEO. FENNEL 
MT. VERNON N
 Through a web search I found the furniture company from which the chair was purchased:
 George Fennell & Company, of Mount Vernon, NY established 1901.
..along with several advertisements that where published in local newspapers over the years. Check out the prices. 

  

This advertisement was published in 1907....

This one was published in 1945. The article found within the advertisement is very indicative of the times. The country was at war and the company used the idealism of the nation's state of mind to market their furniture. I found the adjective "post-war" interesting. 

Note of Interest: My father was a World War II veteran and on the date this paper was published it was his 23rd birthday and he was most likely in one of the "far-away battlefields", dreaming of peace and a joyous homecoming. He did come home and lived to the fine age of 90. 

So, on with the story of this little chair. I pondered paint versus stain. After discovering the history of the furniture company I thought maybe I should restore the wood to its original state. To help me make the decision I painted part of the chair and sat with it for awhile. I liked the chair with color so...decision made.  

To come up with a color I mixed several samples left over from other projects.  It came out a pinkish color so I went with it. I also wanted to use chalk paint so I mixed the paint with nonsanded grout as instructed on DIY-CHALK-PAINT-RECIPES from "In My Own Style"  

After the paint dried I did a little antiquing......

and staining...

...but something was just not right. 

The little chair seemed to need something that matched its already special design. 
And then it came to me...

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 I taped off stripes with painter's tape and painted them with the chalk paint.  
(sorry, I go so excited I forgot to take any pictures)

 To make sure this little chair can take the ware and tear of a child 
I finished with four coats of minwax polycrylic and..... 

Voila!

Thanks for visiting,

This Project Was Featured on...

Farm House Chair

On one of my routine trips to the thrift store I walked past this chair several times. It has two spindles missing but other than that is in pretty good shape but I passed it by. I did this dance several more times on different days and still did not buy it. Then I came across these inspirational posts from Vintage Charm & Restoration and went back to the store to get my girl.....

Once I got her home I couldn't decide exactly what to do with her so I gave her a temporary spot in the family room. I like to place my pieces in a area in our home where they can be seen and become a part of the family (so to speak). Having a piece of furniture living with me on a daily basis gives them a life of their own helping me to determine their future. 

Here she is (yes...this one is a "she")....

 

So you can see that the spindles have been replaced in the picture above. I forgot to take a before-before or pre-spindle insertion photo...whooops! Below is the transformation;

 

During the spindle surgery I found portions of split 

wood in the area of the hole and repaired it with wood filler:

So, at this point I just knew that the inspiration piece had me 

and that my little farm chair would look best in a shade of turquoise.  

Because I wanted a soft finish I decided to use Chalk Paint but I didn't have any ASCP in that color.  

Ahhh, a predicament you say? Well, not so. 

I did a blog search and found a great BLOG (including recipes) for making my own.  

(Thanks Diane... I'm now a follower too).

   

 I used the non-sanded grout recipe and it worked great. 

(Best jar of Prego ever...LOL)

This picture was taken late (yes I stayed up till midnight on this one..yawn),  

after paint/stain but before wax.

 And after waxing....

Isn't she pretty?
I think she needs a cushion. Off to the sewing machine.

    a recap......