dresser Archives - A Girl And A Brush

New piece Monday – Elena

November 12, 2012 By Denise 31 Comments

Hello everybody and Happy Monday to you!!

It is Veterans Day today, and I am so thankful to every service member who has ever served our country for defending our freedom and protecting our country.

Today, I am so glad to share with you one of my favorite makeovers so far, a sweet small dresser/buffet/not sure how to call it (smile)..

I bought this from a dealer, I was lucky to stumble over it while visiting an antique dealer searching for something else, and it was so cute, I couldn’t pass on…as sweet as it looked, it gave me the run for the money..what I thought was stain and polyurethane, was more like some sort of unidentified substance, covered in some plastiky finish…I tried to remove it with Citristrip, which usually does the trick, but no..it turned into dust, which was the weirdest thing..

Lots of sanding, sweat and tears later..it was clean, and ready for my coral paint…I am on a coral run lately, I absolutely love the color..I paired it with some green knobs, and I also painted the insides dark grey..the grey sort of brought the design together..

Hope you enjoy it as much as I do. It will be on my Etsy shop later today.

Shipping is available anywhere in the US.

xoxo

Denise

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: dresser

New piece Monday – Ceres

November 5, 2012 By Denise 17 Comments

hello friends!!! happy Monday!!!

how was your weekend? mine was good, way to short, and didn’t get done as many things I actually planned..I did slept in, both days, and that felt good.. Today I have to show you a sweet dresser that was in need of a makeover…

we named it Ceres..it reminds me of the cloudy skies from home…my other home (Romania).. it’s a gentle giant.. .

while overall was in a good condition, the top was in a terrible shape. it actually had a top tier, that we removed, the edges were raised, and only a miracle could have straighten that up…after we removed the shelf, we sanded down quite a lot…there is still a little bit raised but only noticeable when you run your hand over the top..i think is as good as new now, maybe better…the knobs were painted especially for this dresser..i saw them on Etsy..mid-century knobs, according with the seller description..there was a little rust, and a gold paint that had to go away, to make space for the Rustoleum Gloss Apple Red… match made in heaven..love the dark blue, red combination…

what projects have you completed this weekend? did you get everything on your list done?

xoxo

denise

Filed Under: Furniture Redo, Uncategorized Tagged With: benjamin moore, dresser, red knobs

new painted piece – Morpheus

October 30, 2012 By Denise 17 Comments

one of the most challenging pieces of furniture I have ever painted..i picked this dresser at an auction, way back in the spring I think, and I always put it aside, because I just didn’t wanted to start taking off the bubbly finish..it looked like somebody baked it in an oven…and even if I could swear that I had a before picture, I could not find it..

cleaning the old finish off turned to be easy..I wanted to try some milk paint on it, and it happened that I have just picked up some milk paint from Old Fashion Milk Paint Company…painting went great, but this dresser sucked in the paint like there is no tomorrow..so before I have even started on the drawers, I was out of paint..so I had to pick up another one..4 coats later, I had the color that I was aiming for..

i went for some aging with stain, and the same thing happen..the stain got soaked in..i had to apply it twice, but it was all worth it..by the end of all this, my dresser was supper hydrated, and didn’t look dry..mission accomplished..

I did seal it with a few coats of poly, after all that work, that milk paint is there to stay..and I must admit, I am pretty pleased with the results.. and i named it Morpheus..

what is your secret in dealing with really dry wood? have you encountered any situation when the paint just got soaked in?

the color also turned to be quite difficult to capture…the first picture i think is the most accurate..

i also got to try my new 50 mm lens, that i admit, i already love after taking just a few pictures..

mozart was nice enough to model a little bit so i can test it out..poor thing, needs a haircut..

PP Button Frame new painted piece Morpheus

Filed Under: dresser, Milk Paint, Rustic dresser Tagged With: dresser, milk paint, painted by me monday

I have a crush on blue

October 23, 2012 By Denise 3 Comments

Good morning and happy second day of the week my dear readers! I am not sure about you, but I am already ready for the weekend…and yes, I know, this week barely started. After years of getting up at 6 am, I finally realized that I am not a morning person. A big cup of my favorite german coffee seems to do the trick for now, but dragging myself out of bed is the hardest part.

So! How was your weekend? Did you have a nice time? Have you been working on any projects lately? I had a really great one, I have seen on of my good friends that came to visit from the other side of the pond, and that I haven’t seen in nearly 4 years. It was so much fun catching up, and I already miss her. If you already follow me on Facebook, you saw that I scored a really great french set this Saturday..dresser, desk and mirror, all by Thomasville. I admit, I did do the happy dance, I was so excited especially that I have been looking for that particular style of dresser for a while. Now, my garage is full…I almost lost the dog in there the other day..so shopping need to stop until I get some more projects completed..

Talking about projects, here is something that I have finished for a couple of weeks, but I was too lazy to take pictures..

This dresser presented me with all the challenges possible..The drawer on the top, had to be removed..it was broken, and the sides cracked, and I must say I was kind of happy to get rid of it..the drawers had to be repaired and bottoms replaced..and the finish…looked like somebody let it melt in the sun..Honestly, I have been wondering what was I thinking when I bought it..

In the end, I knew the answer to the questions.. and all the hard work is paying off..and we named it Hermes.

This is the same dresser I used the stain to age it here.

xoxo

Denise

Filed Under: dresser Tagged With: aging furniture with stain, benjamin moore paint, dresser

Arthemis

June 10, 2012 By Denise 58 Comments

dsc 0050 001 Arthemis

Can I start by saying how much I love how this dresser turned out? It is painted in Benjamin Moore paint, but to be true, not sure which one exactlly. I have been lucky to pick up a few mis-tints at a local Ace Hardware store for an amazing price. The wood was amazing to paint on, and even if it was painted entirely with a brush, it looks like it was sprayed. It doesn’t have one single brush stroke, that is just amazing. My new brush did the job flawlessly.

dsc 0051 001 Arthemis

The chest needed some reconstructive work, the back was missing almost entirely, the bottom drawers had to be replaced on most of the drawers, but structurally, it was perfect….oh, and how much I love the skeleton keys..they are the original ones on the chest, they just needed a little bit of cleaning..I rubbed them with steel wool and they looked perfect..

dsc 0063 001 Arthemis

I used glaze to gave it the aged look, and then I protected with a few coats of wax. I have to admit that glaze made me a little nervous, since it was the first time using it..and I kind of came up with my own formula..I mixed it with Minwax stain in Dark Walnut, and practiced on a piece of wood that I had painted in the same color..I just wanted to make sure I wont go to crazy and darken it up too much..

dsc 0057 001 Arthemis

The wax is from Fiddes, and is a wonderful wax, probably the only was that I will ever use. It goes on smoothly, and it buffs to perfection in a few minutes after you apply it. I get mine from a wonderful Ebay user, and I am sure that there are a few other online places that sells it.

dsc 0042 001 Arthemis

The knobs are from Anthropologie, and for this chest I decided to mix and match. It happened that I bought them a while ago when they were on sale, and since I am a self admitted knob horder, the chest happened to be the perfect candidate.

dsc 0061 001 Arthemis

..I am sure that you noticed the amazing picture by now..I love the frame, and the picture itself is just lovely..My friend Marna gifted the picture to me, and I loved it from the first moment I laid my eyes on it..The picture was taken in Germany, somewhere around the 1900′s..I love the hair style, and the outfits..amazing..

dsc 0055 001 Arthemis

XOXO

Denise

Chair%2Bon%2Bright%2Blike%2Bheader Arthemis

Filed Under: arthemis chest of drawers Tagged With: anthropologie knobs, benjamin moore paint, chest of drawers, dresser, fiddes wax, glaze

Union Jack dresser

May 31, 2012 By Denise 65 Comments

Well, it came a time in my life when I just had to do it, and get it out of my system…..I think everybody who paints furniture at one point thinks about painting a Union Jack..it is one of those things that you need to do…

When I first bought the dresser, I didn’t know exactly what I wanted to do with it..the idea came much later..I bought it from an estate sale, after seeing it’s picture on a Craigslist ad..I woke up at 5 am. and drove 70 miles, because I had to have it..Yes, I know, call me crazy..

It was structurally solid, but it needed a tone of repairs..all the bottom drawers had to be replaced because the wood was thin as a sheet of paper..it also had numerous layers of paint and lacquer..

My biggest inspiration for this dresser? Miss Mustard Seed Union Jack Jr…

I stripped the top to reveal the gorgeous and very heavy solid wood underneath..The top was stained with Minwax in Dark Walnut color..

Finding the knobs were an adventure, I’ve initially saw some at Hobby Lobby but when you need them you can never find them..so then I happen to find this gorgeous knobs in sale at Anthropologie..Clear is the way to go with the knobs, because I didnt want to distract the attention from the flag..

Once the flag was painted and dried, I sanded the edges to give it a worn look and antiqued it.
I used Fiddes wax in Light and Rugged brown, to create the antique, worn finish..

Anyway, I’m only showing tight shots of this dresser, but more details and tutorials will come down the road and I’ll let you know where you can find them.