Fright Night

A Labour of Love

First off, I hope everyone on the Eastern seaboard managed to stay safe and dry through the "Frankenstorm". Here in Ontario, we experienced strong winds and lots of power failure, but the electricity did not quit where I live, thankfully.

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The reason for the title of this post?

This piece I picked up curb side:

 You really have to see past the yuck factor. And the fact that it's missing two drawer sliders.

You really have to see past the horribly badly done crackling refinish, the chippiness and the the gross colour.

The bland hardware.

 Did I mention the badly done cracking finish?

No, you have to see beyond that. You have to see the nice curves and legs.

And see the final product in your mind's eye.

It took hours of sanding, stripping, resanding, restripping to get the crackling finish off. There is no paint in this world that would have covered the crackling without all the bumpiness showing through. 

I used an eco-friendly stripping liquid which, unfortunately, was not efficient at all. Then I used the Circa 1850 (or is it 1840? Not sure, but I'm not going downstairs to check the can, lol!). This product was a lot better, however, this crackling paint was so thick and sticky, I had to reapply the stripping solution times on numerous spots. A LOT of elbow grease.

I just happened to have three handles I picked up earlier this summer at a garage sale, cause "you never know when you might need them". Well today was the day. They were the right size and I thought they suited the French provincial look a lot better than the original handles.

Finally, the dresser was ready to be painted. I used Annie Sloan Chalk Paint in Paloma. 

What a gorgeous colour!

I spray painted the handles silver.

I stencilled some patterns with Inka Gold gilding wax in Silver and Old Silver on the drawers.

I also applied Silver gilding wax to the edge of the top.

Sorry, I took the pictures at the store and there wasn't a whole lot of natural light. You can't see the full beauty of the Paloma colour. It's a nice, dusty lilac. Love it!

A closer look. Love the "new" handles!

There she is, pretty in Paloma.

(I didn't mention the drawer sliders part. My wonderful hubby helped me with that part. I was lucky enough to find metal sliders at Lee Valley for $4 each. But installing them was quite a challenge! Again, labour of love, I tell ya!)

So, to recap, we went from this:

To this:

Wouldn't it be funny if the people who discarded this piece unknowingly bought it again?

The Square Round End Table

First off, I'd like to remind you about my giveaway for a free My Memories' digital scrapbooking software package. Click HERE to read all about its amazing features and how to enter. I'm extending it till Monday, so you still have time!

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I'm working hard to try and paint all the big pieces in the garage so as to make room, but they appear to be multiplying instead of diminishing, lol! Anybody else has that problem? This is what it looks like:

It ain't pretty behind the scene, folks!

Sooooo, it doesn't seem like my goal of getting the garage empty of all the furniture to be painted before the winter will materialize, so I'm facing another winter of parking outside, lol! First world problems, am I right?

In any case, I did manage to finish a few items that I delivered to Rustic and Refined Interiors this week, one of which was this little table. I found it at a garage sale and I paid a little more than I normally would, but I thought it had really appealing details.

It is both square and round, proving you can be versatile in life!

It has some rough spots.

 (Here is my dog Coco photobombing. Both she and the cat love to do this! 
They're like children, ooooh, Mom's got the camera out! Let's get in the shot!)

I chose French Linen for the top and the rim and Old White for the legs and the stencilling on top. I decided to keep the square on top, so I used Frog Tape to mark it off. Seeing as it is a little bit on the pricey side, I save my Frog Tape for when I need to create neat lines and detailing.

A little stencil detail in the centre for added interest.

I chose not to do any distressing, keeping it neat and clean lined instead.

This table is now at the store, awaiting its new home.

I'm working on a beautiful antique server that was left at the curb. Yes. Left at the curb. Free. Nothing wrong with it, it has beautiful hardware and everything. Wait till you see it!

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Linking up to these wonderful parties:

Feathered Nest Friday at French Country Cottage

What should you do with cupboard door samples?

Well, turn them into art of course!

I found these 5 cupboard door samples by the curb. And right away I knew what I had in mind for them.

 

I painted them with Annie Sloan Chalk Paint in Old White, then I distressed them and applied clear wax.

Next I printed images from The Graphics Fairy on off-white card stock paper.

The plan was to modge podge them in the centre part of the doors. Well, it was a lot of work locating the middle of the door, then the middle of the images. And with my mediocre limited measuring skills, it meant having to reprint a few of the pictures because they were off centre. 

Okay, finally they were all centered nicely. Next I modge podged the back of the images and glued them on the doors. So far so good. Next, in order to protect them, I modge podged the front of the images with the matte finish modge podge. Well, apparently, you can't do that with ink-jet printed images; it washes off the ink.  ;^(  I had to scrape them off the doors.

So, I went back, reprinted the images and this time I sprayed them with a canvas protector, also in a matte finish. Reglued them on the doors. Let everything dry thoroughly and then went over them with a thin layer of modge podge. Success!

Hubby and I then installed some hooks on the back and here they are, ready to grace someone's kitchen or dining room:

Yes I know, there are two doors with identical teapots. It's a mistake, folks. One of them was supposed to be 3 adorable teacups. But with all the measuring and gluing mistakes, I lost track of what I reprinted and that's how I ended up with two teapots. I'm kind of a klutz that way. Oh. Well. I'm okay with it. :^)

My husband really likes the way they turned out and thinks I'm on to something. Unfortunately, they're one of a kind, because I don't know where I can find an infinite supply of cupboard door samples. For free. The curb is a fickle mistress, my friends. She doesn't offer the same thing twice.

Too bad, because I really learned from all those mistakes and now I'm a real pro at this!

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Don't forget to enter my giveaway for a free My Memories digital scrapbooking software package, only 3 more days to go!

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Linking up to:

Feathered Nest Friday at French Country Cottage

And Now...Drumroll Please...A Giveaway!!

I am very excited to be offering my very first giveaway! And it's a good one!

I was recently contacted by a company called My Memories. They offer an award winning digital scrapbook software that is extremely easy to use. They asked me to test it out and then review it on my blog. As a reward, I get to give one copy of the software to one of my readers!

My Memories Suite is rated no. 1 by Amazon and TopTen Reviews. It lets you easily create digital scrapbooks, photobooks, cards, calendars and gifts for very little money.

I started scrapbooking some years ago. I love the idea of telling a colourful story with pictures. However, every time I wanted to work on my scrapbooking, it meant taking out all the supplies like paper, glue, scissors, ruler, markers, ribbons, buttons, glitter and various accessories, etc. and spreading them out on the kitchen table. By the time I had everything selected, cut and ready to assemble, a good chunk of my time was gone and all I produced was one page. Then, there was the cleanup. Putting every bit away and picking up every tiny piece of paper remnants. Not to mention running to the store and buying tons of supplies that I probably won't all use up. I soon got tired of this and you guessed it, the scrapbooking stuff is sitting somewhere in my basement, collecting dust.

With My Memories, I was able to quickly create a few pages in no time and the best part, no mess! This is so much more fun!

I've been wanting to make a photobook of our Paris trip and this program is perfect for it. Here's the cover page for it that I created with My Memories:

I also started an album for the kittens I foster:

This is a very versatile program. You can even make personalized calendars:

You can also create custom made cards, add your own pictures, messages, etc.:

There are literally thousands of elements to choose from. And as if that wasn't enough, you can purchase extra themed packages from their online store and they are very affordable. Some are even free! Really, your imagination is the limit.

You can even create an album with music and videos that you put on DVD to send to family and friends who can view it as a slide show. Weddings, christenings, graduations, birthdays, the possibilities are endless!

So here are the rules to participate in this giveaway to win the software package:

1. You must follow this blog.

2. Go to My Memories' website and choose your favourite digital paper pack or layout, then come back here and leave me a comment telling me which one you chose.

3. For even more chances to win, follow My Memories on their blog, Facebook and Twitter:

    Blog- http://blog.mymemories.com/
    Facebook- http://www.facebook.com/pages/MyMemories/140359372717593
    Twitter- http://twitter.com/#!/mymemoriessuite

BUT WAIT, THERE'S MORE!! Even if you don't win the software, you can still be a winner! You can take advantage of a $10 off discount towards the purchase of My Memories software suite. All you have to do is copy the code on the top right of my blog and go to My Memories's website to apply it to your software purchase.

I will announce the winner next Friday, using random.org's random number generator. GOOD LUCK TO ALL!

Note: This is a sponsored giveaway. My Memories compensated me with a software package to review their program,  however my review is completely honest. I do enjoy the software!