Antique Dresser REVEAL!

You probably don’t remember since it’s been WEEKS since I posted Part 1 of my antique dresser project, but I finally have her finished! If you’d like a recap, read all about her here.

Once I had finished stripping, sanding, and cleaning her she was all ready for a coat of stain. I kept the color dark and close to the original since I’m putting her in our sun room which already has a few rich wood pieces.

The stain was very easy to apply; I just cut up one of my husband’s old shirts, dipped it in the stain and rubbed it in. After I let it sit for about 15 minutes, I wiped off any excess with a clean cloth.

Again, this was a learning experience, so next time I will definitely wear gloves. This is what my fingers looked like by the time I was done and it took some serious scrubbing to get it off!

After the stain was dry, the dresser got 2 coats of polyurethane for protection. Here is the dresser after stain and poly:

While I waited for that to dry I decided I would try to clean up the old hardware.

 I was planning on painting the old pieces since I’m not a fan of brass, but after some soap and water and a good scrubbing they looked like this:

I love the character and aged look so I decided to leave them as is.

I also covered the new drawer bottoms my dad cut with contact paper. I had already sanded down the inside of the drawers to make sure they were smooth, but this will help protect the tablecloths and other things from getting snagged.

Of course I did this with the help of Homie (can you tell he loves when I craft?)

My dad secured the new pine top on my dresser and I was originally planning on using a white wash and staining a design on top. I taped off the top and mixed a bit of tan paint, white paint, and water.

Once it was on, I decided it was too much of a contrast with the dark wood so I tried plan B. Instead of staining the design I put the vinyl cut outs on the top and stained over them. Similar to this table I saw at Christina’s Adventures!

I cut out the design using my Silhouette machine. It has definitely been worth the investment, the possibilities are endless with that thing!

After several days and coats of stain I was finally able to peel off the vinyl design and expose the lighter color underneath. The top also got a few coats of poly and I didn’t wait for the stain to be completely dry so the colors would kind of bleed into each other.

And here she is!

I still need to move the picture that is hanging behind her and decorate that corner, but I love how she turned out and I can’t wait to fill her with all kinds of fun things!

Not bad for my first serious restoration project. Have you redone any furniture lately?

I'm linking up to Primp, Catch a Glimpse Party, Show and Tell, and Thrifty Thursday!

Curling Iron/Straightener Bags

I know this concept has been around for quite awhile, my mom has one my grandma made her many years ago, but I have just recently started seeing them in stores.

Who wouldn't want a place to put your hot straightener or curling iron so you don't  have to wait for it to cool down to put it away?

I have a few that I use daily, but last night I made a few for my sister and thought I'd post a little tutorial. She is going away to college in a few weeks and we all know how precious space is in a dorm room so I know she'll put them to good use!

First step is to gather your materials:

• 1/2 yard of printed fabric of your choice (I used a cotton knit)
• 1/2 yard of ironing board material (this is usually with the utility fabrics)
• 1 package of extra wide double fold bias tape (or you can make your own out of another fabric)
• Optional: 1 package of jumbo rick rack

Step 1: Cut out fabric (don't forget to include your favorite helper!)

• Cut an 11"x13" rectangle from both the printed fabric and ironing board material.
• Cut an 11"x7.5" rectangle from the printed fabric ONLY.

Since I like the corners rounded, I used a bowl to trace a quarter circle at both top corners of both 11"x13" pieces.

Step 2: Finishing front pocket.

Using the 11"x7.5" piece, fold over one long side (11") approximately 1/2" and sew down.

Flip over and place a rick rack over stitching and stitch in place.

Step 3: Stitching together bag.

Using larger pieces, put wrong sides together and use pins to hold in place. Line up pocket rectangle with bottom and pin in place. Stitch around entire perimeter approximately 1/4" from the edge.

Step 4: Adding bias tape.

Cut length of bias tape to go around top half of fabric. Pin in place and stitch down.

Fold in half lengthwise, pin, and stitch bottom together.

Add bias tape to finish off outer edges (folding down each end so it won't unravel). You want it to overlap the first piece of bias tape you sewed on so I started the bias tape just below the curve, approximately 3/4 of the way to the top.

Stitch down the length of the bag, stopping just before you reach the corner.

Remove bag from machine, fold bias tape around corner and continue stitching. Remember to cut a little extra at the end so you can fold over for a finished edge.

That's it! Wasn't so bad was it?

Now you have a nice heat resistant bag with a little pocket for the cord.

I made her 2 of these and a little matching bag for her own sewing kit.

What do you think?

I'm linking up to Time to Shine @ Diamond in the Stuff and 20 Below @ Christina's Adventures!

Another Chair!

I recently showed you the makeovers I did on these chairs. If you remember, I redid this one to use in my craft room:

It was working out wonderfully until I stopped in to Goodwill and found this:

It reminded me of this version from Pottery Barn, but without the $300 price tag.

I loved the price ($20) but not quite the color. It was cream and just needed a quick coat of primer and white paint:

It's not a dramatic transformation, but now it lives happily in my craft room (with a newly finished pillow)!

<3

Nesting....

My mom has been looking for a set of nesting tables for quite awhile. A few months ago we were in Ross and found three black nesting tables with gold paint accents.

We weren't a fan of the color, but the size and style was perfect. Nothing a little paint can't fix! I didn't take a real before picture, but this kind of gives you an idea:

I took them home and gave them a good coat of primer to get rid of all that beautiful black and gold...

And then gave them a coat of green paint.

And to add a little more depth I finished with a coat of glaze. This is also a great way to subdue color and add texture.

Now they live happily in my parent's living room!

Not long after I had finished my mom's set of nesting tables, I happened upon this set of (also gold) beauties at a local thrift store for $15. They reminded me of this table. I knew exactly where I'd put them (once my husband finally got rid of the treadmill that has been sitting in the corner of our family room.....)!

 They too got a good coat of primer.

I painted the largest and smallest ones white and the middle table a light shade of gray.

A few accessories later and they look great in our entryway!

Like Clockwork....

Lately I've seen so many roman numeral clock pieces around blog land and in catalogs, but of course now that I'm writing about them, I can't find any to link to!

A few months ago I found this big glass dome at Goodwill for $5. It was quite a find, especially since it was in perfect condition so I took it home with me. Unfortunately it has been sitting in my spare room since then....

 I've tried a few different plates and bases, but nothing looked quite right. Yesterday, my mom and I were out running a few errands and stopped in a thrift store near her house. Waiting for me was this guy:

It used to be a clock, but the hands were missing. It had lots of potential and when I got it home, it fit just perfect with my lonely glass dome.

Since I didn't want the metal piece poking up in the middle, I had to pry off the clock mechanism that was still attached to the back.

 Once that was done, I cleaned her up, added a little votive bird holder (also found yesterday for $0.99), a little white vase (Goodwill $0.49), and a hydrangea from the backyard and she was just perfect!

For now, it has a home on my kitchen table, but I think it will eventually end up on this antique dresser (which I worked on today) and will post final pictures soon!!

I'm linking up to Thrifty and Fabuless' party!

Restoring An Antique Dresser

I've done my fair share of furniture painting projects (more of which I will post soon), but I have to say this is my first serious restoration project and it's kinda been learn as I go.....

A few weeks ago my mom text me this picture:

She and my sister were at an estate sale and had found this little antique beauty. She was in pretty rough shape with layers and layers of stain and sealant and she was missing a top, but for $10 she had lots of potential!

I knew the first step would be to strip the years and layers of gunk off so I coated her with paint stripper and scraped it all off. WARNING: it's probably not the best idea to do this in flip flops and shorts, but it was 100 degrees outside and I didn't even consider what paint stripper would do to my skin. Let me tell you, the tiniest little drop burns forever!!

Once the stripper had started to bubble, I scraped everything off the best I could. So far so good, she's looking better....

A few days later, after everything had dried I have her a good sanding to get any other layers/residue off.

The drawers looked pretty good from the outside, but the bottoms were old and brittle and needed to be replaced. A quick trip to Home Depot with my dad and a few cuts later, we had new drawer bottoms and a piece of pine to make a new top.

To make the top the right width my dad cut the board in half and glued it together with wood glue.

And he even got the drawer locks to work!

Now that most of the prep work is done, I'm ready to stain and reassemble everything. I hope to get it finished up this weekend and I know my husband can't wait to have another piece of furniture in our house, so I will post finished photos soon!