A few canvas pieces that I have created.

Over the past year I have been busy learning a new technique for painting canvas artwork.  I was very

lucky to have met Deb Drager from Kansas.  She is a wonderful instructor and an amazing graphic designer.  She taught a unique class called "Collageables."  It is a cool way of layering and creating a truly unique master piece.  I have photos of a couple of pieces created in her class and some photos of a piece that I created on my own.    

Above is a piece with two separate canvasses that have been connected by pieces

of metal.  There are embellishments, nail heads, various plasters, foils  and rust.

The above piece has all kinds of hardware and gears.

It will eventually have a working clock.

The above piece has been created using plasters, rust, nail heads and a great stencil.

Let me know what you think about the pieces I have created so far.  I will be offering a fun tutorial on creating a couple of canvas pieces that utilize scrap book material and stencils.  I will post it in a few days.  It is being made this very moment!  

French Inspired Writing Desk

I love transformations.  I love to see something before and watch it blossom into something new and improved.  I was excited when I found several worn pieces (with good bones) at a hotel 

liquidation sale.  All together there were 9 separate pieces.  I have plenty of surfaces to change and to document the end results.  

Photo of the desk.

Close up of the worn top. 

The painting process begins.  I used Olympic Gold paint by Modern Masters to highlight

the edges.  Believable Buff paint by Sherwin Williams to paint the main bod of the desk and Tricorn Black from Sherwin Williams as an accent color.

   

When I paint a rectangular surface I like to work from the outside to the inside.  It makes it much easier to get perfectly straight lines with the tape.  I like to use Frog tape.  For this project I used the low tack yellow Frog Tape.  

See, perfectly straight lines!

I hand painted the fleur de lis onto the surface.

I then hand painted the words.  The phrase is actually just the definition of Fleur De Lis translated in french.  I looked it up in english and then used a free online translator to translate the english version into french.  I played around with different layouts until I found one that I liked the best.  I transferred the words onto desk top and then hand painted the letters.  

I, being the queen of china crackle, applied a layer of china crackle by Modern Masters and then antiqued with the antiquing gel that came with the china crackle kit.  

  

  

Here is a close up of the hand painted fleur de lis that I painted on each corner of the desk.

Here it is...ready for a good home!

 Close up of the drawer.

Close up of the Fleur de Lis.

Thanks so much for checking out my blog!  Let me know what you think of the desk!

Sheri

Oh what a find!

There was a local hotel going out of business.  I totally lucked out by acquiring 4 queen sized headboards,   2 solid wood king sized head boards, two great desks and a set of nesting occasional tables.  They are scratched and discolored here and there.  I am excited about the prospects of redoing each piece.  I will have lots of new material to paint for a while!    

This is the top of the desk.  It is so ugly...but just wait...it will look fantastic when I am finished with it!

Here is a view of the desk.    It needs new knobs and a fresh coat of paint, maybe some decorative painting to tie it all together.  I am thinking a french theme. What do you think?

This desk definitely has an Asian shape to it.  I think it is Chinese Chippendale inspired. 

I am going to paint some faux silk on the top panel with some Chinoiserie style tree branches and birds painted over the faux silk.

Here is my tiny living room loaded down with the two king sized headboards, nesting table and four 

queen sized head boards.

Better view of the queen sized head board.  It has good bones.    I have plenty of ideas floating through my head for them.  I am thinking about painting one silver, one with a patina.  Endless possibilities!   I am so excited, one headboard, four different ways!

I love rustic.  Especially in my own home.  I also love fun and graphic.  I paired a fun/graphic stripe with rustic paint techniques to create this table and chair set in my home.  It will always be the center of attention, but if I don't want it to be I could always put a table cloth and slip covers over the pieces and get a totally different look! 

 I have old whites, greens, golds and rust colors in my house.  I decided to leave a bit of the natural wood showing through in a couple of spots on the table.  I antiqued and distressed Annie Sloan Chalk paint on a couple of stripes.  I used Modern Masters rust activator on a couple of more stripes and I did a china crackle technique using Modern Masters China Crackle kit on the green and Old White stripes.
 

 Whenever I change decor I can always change the color of one stripe. That is something that appeals to me because I am always changing and evolving.  What I may love today, I may hate tomorrow!  

In fact, I started out with a much more bright white stripe.  I really felt it was too pristine.
I went in and added more brown to muddy it up a bit.  I am much happier with the results!

What do you think?  Please write me a note and tell me what you think about my table and chairs!

Valentine Day Treats

I made these cute little pretzel/candy treats for Valentine's Day.  They are so yummy!
Thanks to g*rated   griffithsrated.blogspot.com  for posting on your blog and sharing on Pinterest! One little picture can go a long way towards making somebody's day extra special!

Valentine project tutorial.

Happy Valentine's Day!

 I have a super cute Valentine tutorial for you!  I don't know about you, but I have random pieces of wood, canvas, and other surfaces just hanging around my house.  I found a small piece of wood.  It was the perfect size to paint a Valentine onto!    I started by painting the wood with 2 coats of Sherwin Williams paint in Dover White.  I have these adorable stencil impressions from Royal Design Studio. 

I  randomly stenciled the impression onto the Dover white.  Of course, I let the white thoroughly dry first. 

  

 Below is a picture of the wood piece after I got all the stenciling completed.

After the stencil paint was dry, I  hand painted a cute heart.  I added some gentle shading and highlighting to give it some dimension.  I used Sherwin Williams In The Pink and Rambling Rose.

After the heart dried paint dried, I hand painted gold colored scrolls using Modern Masters

Pale Gold metallic paint.  If you can't hand paint scrolls, it is just as easy to use a stencil!

  

I aded a subtle antiquing glaze allover the surface. I used Modern Masters

Statuary Bronze.  I went heavy on the glaze surrounding the heart.

I then hand painted my sentiments.  Again, a stencil can be used.

   

I applied the Modern masters China crackle kit with the dark enhancer to add a timeless feeling to the project.

Here is the project ready to be given to My Love!

Have an amazing Valentine's Day!

Chalk Paint tutorial

 Annie Sloan Chalk paint is all the rage!  All I've been hearing about is this paint.  I had to give it a try.
I purchased two Annie Sloan books on Amazon.  After reviewing the books I decided to give it a go.
I purchased two quarts of paint in Old White and Duck Egg.  I also purchased the  clear wax.
I have dark Vella Wax in my work shop and decided to try it with the paint, as well.  I created three different sample boards (shown above) with the paint that I ordered.  

The sample above was painted with Duck Egg.  There was no need for priming.  Just brush two coats of the paint onto the surface.  After the paint completely dried I sanded the paint slightly to distress.  After cleaning the excess dust, I then made a very watery mix of the  Old White and color washed the Duck Egg.  After that dried thoroughly, I waxed with the Annie Sloan clear wax.  I then buffed after the wax dried.    

The above sample was painted with two coats of Old White.  I sanded the brush marks out and cleaned the excess dust off.  I then waxed it with Vella dark wax.  I already had this in my studio.  I think it looks very good over the chalk paint.  I love how the wax left a soft profile in  the crevices of the molding.

The final sample was first painted with two coats of Duck Egg.  I then sanded the brush marks out and cleaned the excess dust.  I then sealed the Duck Egg with the Annie Sloan clear soft wax.  After it dried I painted two coats of Old White.  I sanded down to reveal the duck Egg in some places.  I cleaned the excess dust off and sealed with a coat of dark Vella Wax.

I have to say, I really enjoyed using this paint.  It feels very smooth to the touch and sands incredibly!
It is a great tool to achieve a distressed, shabby chic, or french look!      I can't wait to find the perfect furniture piece to make my mark!