I really need some professional classes on how to photograph things!  I look at other blogs and the pictures are all cute and staged and the lighting is perfect!  Something to strive for in the future!  But for now I'm just showing what a little Modge Podge and old cabinets doors can turn into.
The artwork that has the bee on it was done with a transfer technique using Golden Matte Medium.  You brush it over the image (2 light coats), let it dry over night.  Flip it over, spritz with water and scrub off the paper with your finger or a towel.  You should be left with just the image which you can then adhere to whatever you want.
The bottom image I did a tea stain of some photocopies of some vintage sheet music that I have from my Grandma. Some of the music has copyright dates on them from 1902!  When I photocopied them they were waaaaayyyyy too white so I brewed me some tea and stained the music.  I tore them up and Modge Podged them onto the cabinet door.  I let that dry and then added the other image on top with more Modge Podge.  Once that was nice and dry, I did some shading around the graphic with some Soft Black acrylic paint side loaded onto a flat artist brush.  Makes it pop right off the page!  Both graphics were printed off of The Graphics Fairy.  I LOVE her blog.  She has some beautiful vintage graphics for everyone to use for FREE!

I went to the Monticello Fall Preview Sale a few weeks ago with my friend Jen.  I found this sad, little stool tucked under some table in the corner for $22.  I felt the need to breath some new life into it.  At the same sale, we found some burlap coffee sacks for a few bucks.  I again used my favorite new paint - Annie Sloan Chalk Paint - and painted the little legs.  Added some foam, batting and muslin and then the burlap. It was super hard getting the burlap around the ornate carved legs - after much cussing, cutting, thought, I decided it was time again for the glue gun!  I glued the burlap around those curvy legs and didn't like the finished product.  Ran to Michael's craft store and found a roll of hemp twine.  Grabbed my trusty glue gun and glued that on to mask my mess and .......Wa La!  Those edges look all neat and tidy!

I posted this ugly, dusty ripped chair a few weeks ago.  I scrubbed it down with some water to get the chunks off.  Ripped out the seat - which to my dismay was a piece of rusted out metal sheet with leather over it.  (Good thing my Tetanus shot was up-to-date) -  That was a bugger to get out!    Grabbed my new favorite paint - Annie Sloan Chalk Paint Old White and a dry chip brush and went to town!  I basically dry brushed this whole chair.  Don't get too much paint on the brush, just enough to get the paint on the tips of the bristles.  Use long light sweeps to get the paint on.  You want to see the background through the paint.
One think I learned from Annie Sloan's book was to always start painting your piece upside down so you don't miss anything.  It also helps you not bugger up your top that you already painted.
To do the seat took a little creativity because the metal was so thin.  There was barely 1/8" depth to work with......I had some jute webbing left over from another project so I strung that across the opening to create the "seat" strength, I then took a thin piece of soft foam hot glued to a piece of thin cardboard.  Then took the material and hot glued that onto the foam/cardboard creation and then used black upholstery tacks to nail the seat down.  I think it turned out pretty good considering I had no idea was I was doing!!

Time to clear the cobwebs!

Aurastone "Black Ice" on a shabby chic console table - close up of top.

Used Annie Sloan Chalk paint and tinted wax-Close up of the details

I got this cute but ugly table at a thrift store. The wood top was peeling off and someone looked like they tried to start painting the poor little thing. I swooped in and got it for $20 and gave it new life!

Well, this is the first full week in the Pacific Northwest since, Oh I don't know.....November! that it is finally NOT raining. I decided now was the time to do some major cleaning to my studio. So, while the sun was actually out, I took everything out of my studio and put it outside. I de-cob webbed, vacuumed and mopped the floor, dusted, etc. Once that was all done, I started bringing stuff back in. This allowed me the opportunity to "edit" what I was putting back so I could declutter. Now I actually have a "clean" room and a "dirty" room in my studio. The dirty side has paper on the floors, and is my painting area, spray booth, epoxying area. Hopefully my clean side will stay just that - CLEAN! (The dirty area has a tendancy to encroach through out the year into the clean area.)

With such a clean space it will be easier to walk in and want to stay in there and be inspired and create new art....I was feeling suffocated before! Now I want to decorate my walls, and make it pretty instead of a "shop".

So, as my tip to you this time of year - shed those things that are weighing you down, de-cobweb your space and your mind and be inspired!

Now that you have a clean, pretty and inspiring space - go create something! :)

They're Here, They're Here!

We got our postcards today...they turned out super cute! I will be handing my stack out tomorrow at some Antique stores, et.

Upcoming Vintage Inspired sale

We're gearing up for up for our first ever Vintage Inspired Sale. Fri evening Oct 21 and all day Sat Oct 22. I can't wait! More details to follow!!

Been shopping for some fun things to refinish

My friends and I are getting ready to have a Vintage Inspired sale on Oct 21 and 22......I can't wait. I have been making some art, buying lots of furniture and accessory pieces to re-purpose or refinish. The pictures above are just a few of the newly acquired fabulous pieces that I got yesterday. Stay tuned....more details about the sale upcoming, along with some before and after pictures.

Royal Design Studio stencil giveaway

"Enter to win $50 Royal design studio stencil at Craftionary @craftionary "