French luck

I don't know if I've mentioned this but I love all things french.  I don't know if it is just the idea that everything European has such a sense of history.  I can't really afford the 'real' french antiques.  They seem to be priced for the rich and famous.  So, I do the next best thing and scour for french mass reproduction type pieces.  These are the pieces I have found at reasonable to great deals and blogged about:

 

After seeing all of the pictures, it seems I may have a problem perhaps an obsession that appears to be excessive.  But we will ignore that for now, what do you say?!

So on my never ending quest for french furniture, one day the heavens opened and I heard the trumpets when I found this gorgeous french armoire on Craig's list.  I knew I had to jump on it.  I mean when would something this cute come up again since armoire are almost a thing of the past.  So, I drove an hour to fall in love in person.  I couldn't get the lady to come down in the price but sometimes you have to pay a bit more for something you love.  Here it is:

A closer look.

Gorgeous right?  Here is where you come in.  I am tormenting myself on whether or not to paint it.  Here are just two inspirations.  The first from Miss Mustard Seed blog post here.

The next is from Savvy Southern Style.  She posted about it here.

I think it would look good with a wash or really weathered look. 

To paint or not to paint that is the question I ask you.  Would love your input!  No, no, I need your input.  Looking for your opinions at:

Frugal Friday @  

Fallin' for Fall

Yes, I love fall.  There is no other season that can compete with the colors and weather.  I think I would prefer to live in fall for at least half the year.  I always wait to bring out my fall decorations until Labor Day.  I know some of you think that is a little early.  When Hobby Lobby bombards you with it in July, Labor Day is as long as this fall lovin' gal to can wait!  Sorry it took so long to share it with you. 

I wanted to share my mantel this year.  I took down my metal art and replaced it with this gorgeous empty frame.  In doing this, I had to paint the wall again.  All of my candle lighting provided the wall with the outline of the metal art.  So after hanging the frame, the question of the day was what to put in it.  I found this great wreath at JoAnn's and added some picks.

One day, I hope to go white but I can't seem to part with my sparkling leaf garland that lights.  I have had it for years but just can't seem to let it go.  It is just so cozy and relaxing to light up at night.  Let me know if you can think of any improvements.  I'm sharing over at:

Just give it a try

Just give it a try.  That is what I told myself about using this Annie Sloan wax.  I haven't been able to get the hang of it.  So, what is a girl to do but pick up some small piece to practice on.  I found four of these at Goodwill. 

In there current state, I can't say I really like them but who couldn't use another candle holder, right?! 

So, I painted a light coat of Annie Sloan's Old White, followed up by a wash with some gray latex paint I had around.  I wish I would have taken a picture at this stage because with the gray wash, it looked pretty dull and cold.  So here is when the wax entered.  Every time I've used the wax, I have used the wax brush and can't achieve a smooth finish.  This time I just went with a good old rag.  I applied the clear wax followed directly with the dark wax.  This gave it so much more character, warmth, and depth.  Just look at it.

Get a little closer.

A lot different from what it started out as, uh?  I'm sharing this over at:

 

Ready, set, study

Okay, before I get to my newest project, I have to share something my 4 year old said to me. You see, she is my picky eater. Needless to say, dinner time isn't always fun. Yesterday I informed her that if she didn't eat any fruit or vegetables, her belly would just have to go hungry. With her strong will, that is exactly what happened. So this morning after being up for only 5 minutes, she told me, "Mama, you know it is not very polite to starve people. It will make them die." I'm happy to report that I at least got some green beans in her for lunch.

On to the latest project. My friend from church had approached me to see if I had a desk about for her son. It just so happened my mother was complaining to me to come and get this desk I had been storing in her garage. So, I guess it was going to be a win-win-win situation for all concerned. When I had spotted this desk, I new it would look great. The only qualification I put on it before buying it was the drawers had to work without a problem (and they did). So, it started out like this:

After sanding, staining, priming, and painting, it is all ready for a sweet, little boy to use.

Just look how great the top turned out.  I'm hoping the little guy enjoys it. 

I plan on sharing over at:

     



Candles for fall

I just love a project you can complete in less than 2 hours.  When rummaging through the bins at the Goodwill outlet, I came across these candlesticks.  At first glance, they are definitely dated but just imagine what they could look like.

Maybe something like this. 

Just a coat or two of Heirloom white spray paint and a little sanding to add that weathered look.  Now, I have 2 updated candle holders to give a soft glow to the dining room for my fall decor.

Remember to think beyond what you see and to what it could be.  I plan on linking up to:

 

French dresser face lift

I was on a mission to get my daughter a new (to us) dresser.  Her old one used to be mine as a young girl.  After having her pull the drawer completely out every other day, I decided I had to take action.  I know you blog gals understand what I mean when I say I went shopping for a new dresser.  Yes, it meant looking at Goodwill's, Salvation Army, Craig's list, and auctions.  It is kind of scary that I never even thought about entering a furniture store.  Anyways, I came across a dresser at an auction just like this one.  Since I forgot to take a before picture, I found the exact same dresser from google images.

I decided to leave an absentee bid and to much of my surprise, I got it with a nightstand to go with it. Since it looked like the typical 60's/70ish french provincial dresser, I was surprised by just how heavy it was. You could tell she had seen better days. After cleaning her up and prepping her, the color had to be picked. When conferring with my 4 year old, her suggestions were pink and purple. A hot pink would have looked good, but I'm not quite ready to open Pandora's box with my daughter and decorating her room. So, after much persuasive discussion with the little decorator, we agreed on a nice gray. Let me just tell you, it was so hard to pick which gray. Each one looked so different depending on the time of the day. Once the color was picked, I painstakingly took my time and painted it correctly.  Without further anticipation, here is the french dresser with a new face lift.

Here is her nightstand.

I'm pretty pleased with the results.  The best thing of all is just how smoothly the drawers function.  The only problem now is that I feel like I need to paint her bed gray.  Oh well, I'll save that for another day (or week, or month).

I'm sharing over at: