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Way back when...like three years ago, I posted photos of my tiny master bath.
Saying it was due for an upgrade, we had peeling wallpaper, needed new tile, and some serious drain pipe issues. The small space was screaming for a makeover from its 1990's origins.
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I featured this little shelf, which held everything we needed in the tiny bathroom.
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It was just always so foreboding brown, I hid the dark with towels and doilies.
Now, I had a quart of satin latex with primer added in light blue, a few shades lighter than my bedroom walls.
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(PS, I'm not fond of chalk paint for anything but craft projects. Satin Latex paints have beautiful strong finishes and are durable enough to use on furniture, walls, or trim. Most have added primer which makes one coat sufficient for almost all surfaces.) And, no sealing or waxing or anything else, extra...! So, unless you are going for a 'custom' layered expensive finish---Satin Latex proves it's durable, and certainly more cost effective.
Originally this Arts &Crafts Movement Library book stand has been in my collection for about 50 years. We dragged it from Wisconsin in 1976 to Illinois.
It's always been in my bedroom until 1990 when we made an extra bathroom out of a walk-in closet. The width was then cut to fit our new bathroom. It's been perfect for towels and bathroom storage since then.
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NORMALLY I WOULDN'T PAINT AN ANTIQUE!
I've always wanted to paint it, or at least lighten it. I tried some paint-wash on the underside of the dark stained boards. The orange tones in the stain made my light blue paint very gray
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In anticipation of painting, I scrubbed and lightly sanded the wood and let it dry. This was made from raised grain almost rough sawn red oak. How large the tree must have been to cut these thin full-depth planks that barely warped in 100 years. The piece is from prior to 1915.
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On the underside of the shelves, I tried a couple of techniques. The left was a dry brush with a full strength paint, the upper-right wiped off full strength paint, the bottom brushed on
with full strength paint.
I opted for the wipe off technique, thinking I could always add more color.
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North Chicagoland's been in a drought, so the air was very dry, and I worked on a small area at a time, paint-wipe, paint-wipe with a dry rag, and so forth.
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Even working in the shade the paint was drying fast.
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Hubby just kept taking photos...as I worked very quickly.
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Progress, it was certainly brighter than the original.
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In the end, it was pretty even. I lightly dry-brushed any areas that were still dark.
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Normally I don't paint antiques...but this piece had been altered anyway the top V shelf had been replaced from slats, which were awkward and warped.
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Now the newer wood, just blended in, as I wiped lots off to leave the softer grain to match the others.
Best part, this color blends beautifully in our new up-graded bathroom with new drain pipes, I'll share in another post!
Hugs,
What Projects have
you finished in Lock-Down!
Do not use my photos without linking back to this post on my blog.
Thank you for your cooperation,
Sandi
Sandi
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Sandi, I always thought the same way about painting antiques but have since changed my mind. I have painted a few pieces and love how they turned out, so I say, I'm glad you did it. Pretty color and it turned out beautifully. Can't wait to see it in place in the "new" bath. I have to tell you that I have a cousin named Sandy and you two look very much alike. Wierd..Stay well..xxoJudy
ReplyDeleteHi, Judy. I think there were a plethora of Sandys, Sharons and Susans in the 1950's. And thanks for loving my poor little shelf. I kept looking for something new, but I have switches on that wall and everything seemed to interfere. Thanks, Sandi
DeleteYou are right because my other cousin, her sister, was named Sharon..xxoJudy
DeleteSo pretty!
ReplyDeleteThanks so much Jenna, just a simple project, but I think I have wanted to do this for 20 years or so...LOL.
DeleteHa Ha Sandi you have come over to the dark side or should I say light side with painting an old piece!!!! It looks fabulous. I agree reg. paint with primer and a gloss or semi gloss finish work the best. I have used chalk paint on furniture but it does not hold up as well. It gets costly too to have to wax or finish it. With this being in your bathroom you want a nice coating of good paint with the moisture. Looks really pretty. Hugs. Happy New Week. Kris
ReplyDeleteHi,Kris, wait until you see the new piece we got...I was thinking of you when two new chairs, disrupted the whole living room, and now it's dominos to get everything to fit again. Well the refreshed bathroom is ALL WHITE...lol, so I guess that qualifies. I do love my white kitchen, but I still haven't painted the dining set...then I will have stepped over...for sure! Grins, and thanks, Sandi PS(Chalk paint is simply latex with plaster added, or whatever you want to call it, and we all know how bare plaster holds up..., maintenance, maintenance, ...etc. Ding...uh oh.!
DeleteI love how this turned out Sandi! I have an old bookshelf that is badly in need of some updating. Not an antique...just old! You've inspired me to finally give it a try. Thanks so much!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Denise. I still have on more thing to do in the bathroom, then I'll take photos in there...it's not as blue there, lol. And, DO IT! says the woman who waited 20 years...!
DeleteSandi,
ReplyDeleteI LOVE how this sweet table came out!! A really pretty color...Funny that you mention your small bathroom as today, I am attacking our upstairs bathroom...giving it a good cleaning and redoing the caulk on the tub...UGH!! Thanks so much for stopping by!!!
Hugs,
Debbie
Debbie, it is so tiny...I still have one thing to do in there, and then I'll take photos--it's not so blue in the room, than the outdoor photos. Indoor light makes such a difference sometimes. Hugs, Sandi
DeleteGreat redo! Thanks so much for linking up with me at my #UnlimitedMonthlyLinkParty 17.
ReplyDeleteI arrived in the USA from London on what you might call Boxing Day - if you celebrated Boxing Day - 1965. In Pittsbugh which I fell in love with. I'd written forty letters to separate magazines all over the US begging to be employed and it was part of my romantic idea of the USA (heavily influenced by reading John Gunter's Inside USA) that there was a faint possibility this would happen. And lo, I was right. We stayed for six years.
ReplyDeleteThere were many surprises, most of them pleasant, and I have written extensively about them in my blog Tone Deaf (Previously called Works Well). But here's one that impinges on what you've posted above. One of the cliché views of the US then was that it was a wasteful, throwaway society. In fact, the reverse seemed to be true. Half the population seemed to be engaged in mega-DIY projects like building holiday cabins out in the forest, adding bathrooms, and installing V8 engines in VW Beetles. Greatly daring - if on a smaller scale - I installed an a/c unit in our house when we returned to Pittsburgh after an unsatisfactory flirtation with Philadelphia which we loathed. The detail in your post merely confirms that the tradition is being maintained.
You apparently live in a mystical area, Chicagolands. While in Pittsburgh I was head-hunted for a job in Wheaton, Illinois. Two executives flew in from Wheaton to interview me and dangled big bucks; I felt terribly flattered and accepted. Started work in Wheaton on a Monday and resigned on the Thursday. But that's another story.
How interesting, almost residing in Chicagoland in the 1960's. A hotbed of Civil Rights, Cultural Revolution/Playboy, and dirty politics. Well, that wasn't in Wheaton for sure, LOL. I was fond of Wheaton in the 1980's for the well-heeled bought my porcelain jewelry and stoneware art pottery in fabulous quantities. My work was in the ceramic arts, and I had an antiques/arts/crafts shop. Now, I enjoy being retired.
DeleteI think I would enjoy reading your writing from that time, 1965-the early 70's. So much was happening, a government evolving, society attempting change. Context is always a 'timeline' thing. Ideally we learn from the past, well, some learn from the past.
We didn't arrive to Chicagoland until 1976, after escaping bumble-F-nowhere in N. Wisconsin. But, our do-it-yourself streak runs deep, and learning to 'make do', also is a way of life. I look at blogging as sharing and in this time of lockdown at times is one of the few outlets for communication. Looking forward to more chats, with you, sir. Thanks for your visit, Sandi
Very pretty!Love it in blue.Hugs!
ReplyDeleteThank you, it's a pretty color, I still have some paint touch ups to do in the bathroom before photos...! Hugs, back!
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