Today I Paint...

I spoke with our carpenter yesterday and he told me that our cabinets are built and the doors have arrived! That means it's time for me to paint. He knew we'd be painting these cabinets, so he choose his wood accordingly (no oak or maple will be harmed in this process).

I've chosen "London" All-In-One Paint, which is a gray-green from Heirloom Traditions. This is the same color I chose for our cabinets in the main kitchen. This paint is awesome, and really stands up to daily use. If you're interested in checking out all their available colors and products, you can click on their company name above. (I'm not getting any compensation for mentioning or linking to them.)

Once these are installed, Handsome and I will decide whether or not I paint the lower cabinets all the way around the pantry. We'll see how the darker color affects the light and mood of the room first.

No time to waste today. I told him I'd be there by 10 am, and I have to take care of the barn girls and help with the doggers first. I promise I'll snap a few pictures while I'm working so I can give you a little peek at the cabinetry by Saturday. I'll see you tomorrow Friday!

OH, MY GOSH!!! I just realized that Tag didn't get his two-cents worth in this week. I'll make sure he gets to post tomorrow. Sorry, Tag. My bad. 

 

 

Ta-Daaaa!...

Brynwood Needleworks - Carved Acorn Headboard - Before

Well, the suspense is over. I can finally show you what I've been working on. This is the before photograph of the detail on the headboard of a queen size bed set I purchase a few months ago.

Brynwood Needleworks - Carved Acorn Headboard -After

I waited to start work on it until I was healed from my last surgery. I knew I wanted to get the paint on before the weather got too cold to do that in the garage. I finished this project over the weekend, so I can finally share it with you! Have you guessed yet what drew me to this set?

Brynwood Needleworks - Carved Acorn Bed Set - Before

I found it on - you guessed it - Facebook Marketplace. It was about an hour away, so I showed it to Handsome, and he agreed we should get it. Once it was here, I realized it was a little (basement) musty, so before I could paint, I took the time to clean it with water and Murphy's Oil Soap™. Then I used the Deglosser from Heirloom Traditions All-in-One Paint Company.

To say there was a little elbow grease involved would be an understatement. I cleaned both sides of each piece - taking extra care around the spindles - and let it dry between sessions. When my nose and I were satisfied that I'd accomplished my goal, I was finally able to use the Deglosser to take the sheen off the wood finish. (I also removed the metal decorations from the footboard to deal with later.)

Brynwood Needleworks - Carved Acorn Bed Set -After

Once everything was, again, thoroughly dry, I began painting. I used the Heirloom Traditions' All-In-One Paint in Cashmere (white), and London (gray-green). The Cashmere took three coats to completely cover the oak finish. The London paint only took two coats.

Brynwood Needleworks - Small Bed Side Table Showing Drawer Detail

I also painted a small, antique washstand table I had to coordinate with the bed. The exterior is London, and I painted Cashmere inside the drawer.

I'm wasn't sure how I felt about the modern-looking drawer pull, so I've since actually changed that for a more rustic-looking one. I took the gold-tone medallions from the bed, and used Rub 'n Buff™ in a silvertone on them. I like them much better in the silvertone, but...

I also have some carved acorns that I've had for years. I may try those on the footboard to see if I like them better than the metal trim. If I do, I may switch them. 

The plan for this bed is to bring it into the main bedroom. As much as I love (and I really do) my farmhouse bed, I want to use that in a future guest room, and have a queen bed in the main bedroom. I just didn't like the mattress as tall as the last one was. It was nearly impossible for me to toss myself into bed every night with this gimpy knee. (My little brother wanted that set, so it has a good home.) 

I  have an antique oak table that's on the other side of my bed now. I've had it for 30 years, and I just can't bring myself to paint it. I do, however, have a table cover that fits it perfectly. I'm going to embroider it along the borders with my new flower obsession design, in colors that go with the bed and washstand. I think it will fit right in without having a painted finish. Fingers crossed. Otherwise, I'll find another washstand on Marketplace for painting. I see them just like the one I have all the time.

We have a few things we need moved in the house, so in a few weeks we'll hire professionals to do another "in-house move" for us. I'm making a list of what we want moved and where it needs to go, so I don't forget once they're here, and we can make the best use of their time. Time is money, you know.

When that happens, I'll be sure to take photos of the new setup. It will be all moved and settled before the snow flies, and we can just enjoy the new (and final) arrangement.

Now, what was I working on before this? Oh, yes. I remember. Time to get my morning coffee and then I'll get back to it.

Sweet Distractions...

Brynwood Needleworks - Carly

I've been painting out in the garage the past couple days. Claudette likes to hang out with me, so the dogs usually stay inside with Handsome. Once I know they're coming outside, I shoo her back into the barn, or the dogs do when they come out. Such was the case yesterday.

 

Claudette was sprawled out under the lawn chair that was in the grass. She was quite comfortable there, so when I went on a short break, I sat down on the chaise and talked to her. Then the back door opened, and out blasted three dogs. Bella came straight for the chaise, having seen my wee cat under me.

 

I managed to grab the collars for the black dogs, and they had a short standoff with my cat. Of course, Tag was standing next to her, and she wasn't quite sure what to do. I moved the two girls away from my chair, and Claudette hi-tailed it for the barn while I held the dogs at bay. Carly is respectful, but I'm still not sure about her mother, so it's best to give the cat a head-start.

 

Once the excitement died down, I was talking with Handsome, and we both started laughing when we saw Carly. She's a fetching fool. She had jumped into the back of Handsome's truck and grabbed a retrieving dummy out of the box he keeps them in. She came out to the yard, proud as you please, that she'd purloined one of her "toys". Handsome tossed a few times for her, but not before I took this picture.

She looks like a puppy in this photo, but she's nearly as large as her mother, and Bella is 55 pounds! I think the last time she was weighed at the vets, Carly tipped the scales near 50 pounds. You'd never know it from this image. She looks so much smaller.

I'll be back in the barn over the weekend, and hope to finish my paint project to be able to show it to you on Monday. I'm sure Tag will have more photos of the weekend to share on Tuesday. Off to get my morning coffee...

My Weekend Project...

Brynwood Needleworks - Farmhouse Kitchen Cabinets Project

The weather was beautiful this weekend, and perfect for painting! So, I went out to the garage to continue working on painting out the cabinets we purchased for our kitchen. 

I white-balanced each of the images in this collage, but the only photo that shows the color the way I actually see it is the photograph of the two containers of product I was using to paint! The deglosser is in the container with the dark lid, and the primer/paint combination is Heirloom Traditions All-In-One Paint, and you can see the variety of colors available HERE. The color I'm using is "London". I'm covering the original stained wood in these KraftMade™ cabinets.

The images upper left, clockwise are: 1) Upper cabinets with the doors removed. (Interior cabinet paint color is Cashmere. I used an entire pint covering the dark wood! We were contemplating painting the base cabinets Cashmere, too, but it took multiple, multiple coats to cover the wood. I said, "Nope. Nope. Nope. We're not going to use that on the outside!" London started covering almost immediately.) 2) Base cabinet and lower door (2 for each base), 3) First coat of London on the upper cabinets, before painting the cabinet interiors, and 4) Heirloom Traditions All-in-One-Paint and deglosser.

The base cabinet shown is finished and drying. I still have to do the backside of the base cab doors, and then I'll move on to the second base cabinet. We're already using the 12" wide, 4-drawer cabinet in the house, so I'll have to empty that to paint it, too.

Coffee, and then heading out to the garage. I really want to get the cabinets finished so they can be installed in the kitchen. I can't wait to show you how it turns out!