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We are well known for our rain here on the west coast. It usually
rains for a long time but its relatively light compared to other
places. Last night was a different story. All of a sudden it poured
like a mid summer Florida storm. I in the mean time was worried
about some items outside so I went to the top of the deck stairs and
started down. Well I made it to the bottom however I was no
longer on my feet. Yes I took a fall the moment my runner stepped
on the wet stair. My hip landed on the ground, but my rib and wrist
hit the concrete.
"GEORGE!!!!"
Well he came and got me back in the house and I was banished to
the bed for the rest of the night with ice.
My hip is bruised, thank god for that extra cheese cake,
my rib feels fine but my wrist is sore.
So today I had to come up with light duty work.
I also couldnt do my regular job because my PC is gone to Future Shop
to be scolded and straightened out, so here I sit getting familiar with Georges PC.
So today I decided to sit still, let my wrist heal and be a creative painter.
Its a beautiful serpentine dresser call *JACK*.
Hes not done but I am for the night.
I also manage to finish a pair of wooden pillar candle holders made in India.
I got them at a yard sale recently to paint and distressed. The
plan is to take them to the community show next week but youll
have to wait and see if I can give them up.
Here are the close ups of the accents I promised the other day
on the lingerie chest I finished. Let me know what you think.
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Sonja had fallen hard for my first Union Jack dresser
but only found it after it sold to someone else.
She later signed up for my workshop
and reminded me of her interest if I was to complete a similar piece.
Her patience has paid off as the second one has recently been completed,
and its all hers.
This bow fronted chest was original purchased by my mother
in 1968 at a second hand shop for $4.
I honestly cant remember when she passed it on to me
but I can remember how she hated the drawers always getting stuck on her.
I gave it a fresh coat of white paint and added the appliques
many years ago but never did the fixes it needed.
So the first thing to do was get all the drawers running smoothly.
I removed the top so I could work inside easier and strip and stain it later.
One problem was the top drawer.
The bottom had separated and kept getting hung up half way open.
A second issues was all the drawer glides inside needed to be refit.
So I installed new ones made from some nice hard wood stolen from a parts dresser.
Now onto the task of getting the flag pattern marked out.
Ive done 2 dressers, 4 chair seats, and a little something else all in the Union Jack
pattern and still never find it easy to get it perfect.
Patience is a prerequisite for this project.
I used red chalk paint
(which I do not recommend using)
and navy craft paintWhen I tried to distress the face the fine dust of the red chalk paint would stain
the neighboring white paint.
When I tried to wax the red chalk paint it would also stain the white.
The craft paint doesnt do this.
So after fussing and trying to fix the white I re taped the flag
and took it outside and sprayed the white to get a fresh crisp look again.
The original round posts that stopped the drawers from pushing too far inside had
worn large gouges in the wood at the bottom edge of each drawer.
So before taking her outside I fixed the stops so all the drawers would sit
flush with each other making the second taping a bit easier.
The final step was to get the top looking rich and feeling luscious to the touch.
I stripped it with acetone and stained it with Kona stain
Then took a few days to lay on several coats of poly.
Here she is in all her glory!
NOW ITs YOUR TURN TO TRY ONE CARRIE!
Sharing at:
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Here is the final piece to the Union Jack set.
It started as a fairly simple 80s blond table.
But it did have this great wood graining on the surface
This whole project was a learning process or a feat of trial and error.
Figuring out what would work, what could work, and what just wasnt going to fly.
I first painted the apron and legs in blue
Then decided I wanted it white
The blue and red was kept thin and even distressed to take advantage of the graining.
The entire table was rubbed down with dark wax.
It helped to emphasize the grain ...
darken the blue ...
and finally to ton down the white to match the color of the drop cloth on the seats
The table also has a leaf that I did in red to create a wider strip down the center when used.
This set will be on display at
THE FAIR TRADE MARKET POP UP
starting November 2nd thru to the end of the month or until it sells.
Many of my piece are being used in the store to display textiles and artisan wears from
around the world. All are for sale and we hope they find new homes.
For more information on the store including address and hours:
http://www.facebook.com/lamano.ethicaltextiles#!/thefairtrademarket?sk=info
I will be attending an opening gala evening Thursday Nov. 3 and will take photos to share
more about all the beautiful products, textiles, and vendors.
Read More..
Dont they look like the perfect soldiers lined up?
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| Color - Emperors Silk |
Georges favorite color is red.
Every now and then (all the time actually) he wants me to paint something in red.
So far when George suggests something its worked out pretty well.
SO I WENT FOR IT ... and was scared the whole time!??
Heres how these 4 beige 80s chairs started out and how they ended up.
http://micheleravendesigns.blogspot.com
