Yellow and Pink Chest of Drawers Perfect for a Little Girl's Room

Oh I am so pleased to share with you my first custom order of 2014. The lovely Kate had seen a few of my pieces that I've put up on my Facebook page and wanted something for her little girl's room. She already had a yellow bookshelf so she was after something that would go, but not too matchy matchy. We decided that it would look really cute to have yellow on the outside and pink drawers.

This was the before shot..

.

Before... solid pine but a little rough.

Here's a pic of the drawers painted as we described...

Yellow and pink, bright and fun, but missing something?

I liked the drawers but they didn't 'wow' me IYKWIM. I had wanted to replace the knobs but whoever had made these had glued those suckers in so tightly that it was near impossible. I contacted Kate and told her that I thought it would look cute to decoupage around the drawers, just to give them a little something, so it was off to Spotlight to search for paper. I think I've said this before but Spotlight do have really beautiful scrap booking paper. But if that's your thing, you probably already knew that, right? Here are the 5 options I narrowed it down to, before settling on the top left.

And here's what my son Wil got up to in Spotlight when I turned my back for 5 seconds....

So glad we jazzed it up a bit more, it looks fantastic!

Close up of the paper detail.

And just for a little fun, here's what it would look like if it were a sketch (thanks Nikon camera)

Thanks Kate for asking me to do this for you, hope it's exactly what you hoped for!

Are you interested in a custom piece of furniture? Please feel free to contact me and we can come up with something together to suit your needs perfectly.

Aqua and Coral Queen Anne Coffee Table with Decoupage

*Beware stream-of-conciousness rant* I originally had a vision for this coffee table to be painted blue and left at that, but then I thought the orange trim would look really cute and then I decided a stenciled table top would look gorgeous but I've tried (and failed) to do a nice stencil previously and didn't want to ruin the table... and then I hit Pinterest.

Decoupage! I read a few blogs including this one from Apartment Therapy and decided to give it a shot. If you want to see some of the other decoupage projects I looked at- have a look at my Pinterest collection 'Furniture Inspiration' you can find and follow my stuff here.

The final product- complete with glass top which doesn't make for great photographs!

So after painting the legs and trim I set about working on the decoupage top. First stop was Spotlight where I was very impressed with the range of Scrapbooking paper. Most decoupaging websites said that you had to be careful that the paper you chose was not too thick so I was a little worried, but I found this fine to use. While there I also picked up some glue. Every site I looked at recommended Modge Podge glue but I couldn't find this, so I bought some generic brand of glue labelled 'Decoupage Glue' and figured that would do the trick!

Next I procrastinated, not wanting to make a mistake.

Then, I set to work. I trimmed the scrapbooking sheets so that I would cover the whole table without the joins being too obvious. Then I worked out the order that I would place the sheets down, leaving the middle piece last, so that it would hide any overlap. I covered the whole of the table top with glue using a foam roller, this is to ensure an even consistency. Then I put the paper on, adding a layer of glue to the back of each piece of paper before placing them in position. I found that the glue dried very quickly and there was only a very narrow window of opportunity for re-positioning, so it's best to be sure before you place them down. I repeated this until the entire table was covered then used my hands and the roller to work out any air bubbles. This part of the process is very similar to when you were in school and had to contact your school books. Thanks Mum for the valuable experience! I used a paint brush to apply a top coat of the glue to seal the paper. I did this because I find the coverage more thorough with a paint bush than with a roller, but I'm sure you could use either.

The coffee table came with a glass overlay to protect the top of the table so I popped this back on, however if there were no protective layer I would recommend sealing the project again with a poly so that you can happily wipe down the surface and keep it clean. Unfortunately the glass makes it difficult to photograph and show the true beauty of this piece so I've taken a few photos without the glass on so that you have a better idea of the effect. This is definitely one of those pieces that looks better in real life though!

Without the glass top but still with a little reflection

I do love the look of this one, if I didn't already have an awesome coffee table I would be keeping it for myself!

Want to buy it? Check it out on my sales page.

Like some advice for decoupage or to have a piece of furniture done for your own sweet self? Contact me via my Facebook page- https://www.facebook.com/RetroVintageLove

Vintage Yellow Distressed Painted Bedside Tables

They're done, finally!

Yellow painted vintage bedside tables.

Sometimes a piece just seems to take a long time to complete. These are an example of that. I suppose because it's actually two pieces it just seems to take that much longer. To paint these gorgeous little tables I used a couple of coats of Zinnser Smart Primer followed by Taubmans Calabash which is somewhere between a bright and a pastel colour but not specifically in either of those categories! The colour has proven quite hard to photograph, however- you'll notice in some pictures it looks lighter and in some darker- it seems to change a little depending on the light.

I really felt as soon as I saw these that they would come up better in colour than they looked in their natural timber state or in white because they are a pretty bold piece of furniture on their own with a great shape and lots of natural personality!

Just so you can compare, here's a picture of them before...

The tables before- notice that our grass has been cut since?! Love freshly cut grass!

I kept the original hardware but painted the handles black which looks great against the yellow and complements the dark distressed wood exposed underneath. Here's what that looks like up close.

Detail of the vintage handles and distressed paintwork.

Finally, I don't often do this, but here is a 'blooper' pic- can you spot the fault?

whoops!

Yep, I took about 10 photos of the tables then noticed that one looked a bit funny- then realised I had put the handle on upside down!

What do you think? I would love your feedback- please leave a comment below. Want to buy them? Contact me via email or Facebook- you'll find me here! Don't forget to like my page and share this post!
Happy Painting!

French country provincial style white and timber coffee table- cute as a button!

French Provincial coffee table, cute, no?

I never intended this coffee table to be a French Provincial style table. I bought it off eBay intending to make a twin of my own coffee table this turquoise and whitewash one which I just love so much.
When I picked up the coffee table though, it was a bit smaller than I had anticipated- my fault, the dimensions were listed and I ignored them due to my very poor spatial awareness skills and lack of any ability to visualise an item when given dimensions! I'm not sure why, but white was just calling out to me for this one. So white it ended up, not blue. Don't be sad, though, just this morning I picked up a Queen Anne style coffee table that I fully intend to paint my favourite aqua colour!

This is a little coffee table, perfect for a two seater sofa or a smaller lounge room. I think it has come up really well. The stained timber top is beautifully smooth and the timber itself has lots of lovely knots.

I thought I might also include a shot of the leg detail- last post my dog was photo-bombing, this time it's the cat's turn!

For those of you who love a before shot, here it is!

Before photo.... and time to cut the grass!

Yes, it is for sale- check it out on my items of sale page, complete with dimensions!
Want more? Sign up to follow the blog via email, or use the Bloglovin' icon- you will love Bloglovin', I promise! Want to help me choose colours, and see sneak peaks of upcoming furniture? Like and share my Facebook page Retro Vintage Love. Want to help me? Tell your friends!

French Grey Antique Vintage Style Chest of Drawers

A little while ago you might have noticed that I asked the question on my Facebook page (Retro Vintage Love- please 'Like' my page if you like my work!) whether I should paint this little chest a coral colour or grey. It was almost 50-50, but grey just won out.


Luckily for my fellow colour lovers, the coral is coming, I promise!

Here's what the chest of drawers looked like before. As you can see it was pretty poorly. The handles don't look too bad in pictures, but they were actually horrible plastic things, and one was missing, so they had to go, and the exterior was pretty chipped up and rough.

I sanded the whole thing back completely, which was a pretty horrible job due to the age of the varnish, then gave the whole thing a couple of coats of undercoat.

For the colour, I went with a Dulux colour called Moxa which is in the same range as the Ashville that I used to paint these chairs, however it is a bit darker, because I mixed the colour myself with some white enamel paint to make the finish more durable.

Here's a pic of the drawers after....

I bought new handles from Riverclay in Eltham. They have a lovely selection of handles and knobs. For the record, Bunnings do not. These were brass, I lightly sprayed them with black paint, there is still a little of the old brass visible, which I love.

Think you could give it a home? Contact me via Facebook or on my email- retrovintagelovefurniture@gmail.com

Painting Furniture White - The Vintage Dresser

There's no doubt about it, one of the most popular make-overs for old furniture is to paint it white. And it's easy to see why it is so popular- white is fresh but elegant and fits with nearly every decor style, whether that be retro (my personal favourite), shabby chic, French Provincial, vintage, farmhouse, coastal.... you get the idea.

Here's my latest white makeover. It is simply gorgeous. It's amazing how fresh an old piece can look with a fresh coat of paint.

I must admit, I found the prospect of this project quite daunting- but was pleasantly surprised. Even though there's a lot of detail in the woodwork, it sanded reasonably easily due to the age of the piece. And the smooth surface made painting easy too- time consuming due to the size of the piece, but not too challenging.

 

I used my trusty British Paints 4 in 1 Primer and British Paints Enamel White in Semi Gloss (only a tiny amount of shine- just enough to look fresh) 

 

Here are some before and after pics to compare:

 

 

I love this dresser for the little details too- in the top drawers of the dresser I found this gorgeous drawer lining paper. Pink paper with flowers and butterflies- you can't get much more shabby chic than that!

And check out the handles- so intricate and detailed, with just the right amount of ageing.

Also, the detail in the legs and bars that hold the mirror just make this piece so special.
Yep, I love it and could go on and on!

Do you have any pieces that you would like to paint white? Please share your own projects!

 

 

 

French Provincial Shabby Hall Table

Perfect place for all my teacups!

I'm so happy to finally reveal my latest project as this one seemed to take a little longer than the others.

I saw this little beauty on Gum Tree looking a little worse for wear. And as usual, I forgot to take a real 'before' photo- I realised when I had nearly finished sanding so you can just see the original colour on the left of the drawer.



Here is the 'Before' photo...

I immediately loved the shape and could see the potential. My friend Penny always suggests white legs, timber top so I thought I would go for it. After some sanding I used a spray primer. It's much easier to get into all those nooks and crannies on the legs. Then three coats of my favourite white enamel paint by British Paints, applied with a brush. To finish the piece I used the same cedar stain that I used to finish my turquoise table. Check out my sales page for details of how it could be yours!

I would love to have a whole heap of furniture in this style, but I would love to see in your comments: What dream piece of furniture would you love to own?



And here is the After!

Don't forget to like my Facebook page Retro Vintage Love (just search for it and you should find me easily), you can also follow me on Pinterest- Retro Vintage Love Furniture