A garage-sale table two ways

Last weekend my mom and I went to what was advertised as a large community garage sale. It was held in three different neighborhoods of Eichler homes fairly close to where we live. I grew up in a mid-century modern home and we were hoping we would not only find some nice modern "stuff" for sale but also see some great houses. It was disappointing. There were only a few homes that participated and nothing for sale that was all that exciting, but it was a fun day with my mom and we made the best of it by going out for breakfast afterwards and perusing through some antique stores nearby. I did pick up a couple of side tables at one home we stopped by though. They were $10 each. 

I knew immediately that I would paint one of them gold and wasn't really sure what I would do with the other but for $10 I decided I couldn't leave without them both.

They are great little side tables. I painted one of them white.

I am not sure how long this will stay at my house as I am continually shuffling things around and moving them out to other people's houses ... 

But for now it will make a lovely side table that can move from room to room as needed.

I used this spray paint. I was a little worried the gold might end up being too shiny but it wasn't. It is just perfect.

It adds a little extra flair as we head into the holidays (because they are coming really soon!!!) ... 

Painted pumpkins, Fall flowers and a new chalk paint

It took me a while but I am embracing the change over to Fall - the colors that is (I am not loving the late sunrise and the early sunset!). 

I got out the paint brushes and had a little fun with some pumpkins this week. The warty ones are natural.

I used black spray paint, acrylic paint for the reddish-orange one and a new paint I found at Michael's for the blue one. It is by Americana Decor and is called Chalky Finish. It is similar to Annie Sloan's chalk paint and just like hers, there is no prep needed (my kind of paint!). 

It comes in a nice variety of colors and I found this chart that shows you how to custom mix even more colors:

I picked up a small 8 oz. jar of the color, Vintage, for $5.39 (40% off $8.99 with my downloaded phone coupon) and and used about a fourth of the jar to paint a chair I am working on for the wedding next month.

While the paintbrush was still wet I decided to throw some paint on one of the pumpkins I had. You can see it dried a bit more blue than the jar shows. 

I love that the blue is a pop of unexpected color ...

I used this paint for the gold stems.

I picked up some yellow Ilex to bring a little color inside the house too.

And this book came in the mail yesterday. You will LOVE it!

Ah, Fall. The year's last loveliest smile. 

Lindsay Letters

And it is Friday! That is definitely something to smile about. Happy weekend everyone!

Wedding preparations

What a week! I knew it would be a busy one but didn't expect it to fly by so quickly. I am juggling quite a few balls in the air right now and this week they all stayed up nicely. 

In between my regular design projects, I am stretching myself to do some crafty DIY projects for the upcoming weddings. I picked up a new chair at the Flea Market last weekend and painted it to match one of the wedding colors. And I painted some frames.

I also painted some of the furniture that I had used for my daughter's wedding four years ago ... it was a breeze with Annie Sloan's Chalk Paint. I used French Linen. A new knob from Anthropologie finished it off.

And do you remember this chair?

I found it on Craigslist ... it was in pretty bad shape.

I stripped it down ...

And painted it French Linen too ...

And then sent it out to have some blue velvet put on it.

It came back yesterday all dressed up and ready for a wedding. Happy Friday Everyone!

A few great doors colors

I helped a friend last weekend select a paint color for her front door. She lives a couple of hours away and has just finished a beautiful kitchen remodel. They did most of the work on their own, but every once in a while she would call to get some advice. 

[ client photo ]

Selecting paint can be tricky and it is even more tricky when it is going outside - the UV light changes everything. She wanted a blue door and was thinking about using a "Cornflower Blue."  She asked me what I thought about Hamilton Blue (Benjamin Moore). I thought that would be too light and suggested she look at a darker blue - not quite Navy - and a shade darker (at least) than her blue glider. I suggested she look at Van Deusen Blue (HC-156 Benjamin Moore). 

The color came out perfect.

[client photo]

Van Deusen Blue | HC-156 Benjamin Moore

Black Knight | 2136-10 Benjamin Moore

This house was a flip. The existing front door was a brown stain; it was weathered and faded and the client didn't think the door did the house justice. When you are selling, curb appeal is crucial. Black paint was the perfect solution here.

We added some black glazed pots with white flowers to tie it all in.

This charming Spanish house was also a flip ... the door went from faded wood to wow.

Shaker Gray | DE6231 Dunn Edwards

Stratton Blue | HC-142 Benjamin Moore

This door was a surprise for the client's new bride ... we matched her favorite color - the same color that she used for her wedding. She saw the door for the first time when they returned from their honeymoon.

 This is one of my favorite front doors ... I love a Dutch door.

This door was painted many years ago, and the main paint color on this house has been changed - it was originally Benjamin Moore's Sparrow (AF-720) which has more gray in it ... but the door has remained the same.

Sparrow AF-720 | Benjamin Moore

 It is one of my favorite color schemes. Look how great it looks on this house in my neighborhood:

Sparrow AF-720 | Wasabi AF-430 | Benjamin Moore

A few great doors!