I rescued this lovely:( round leather coffee table from the side of the road in the rain a couple of weeks ago, Aside from the leather being in not so great shape and a bit wobbly, the rest of the table looked to be solid and well made! I threw it in my truck, brought it home and tried my best to hide it from my husband who now hums the “Sanford and Son” theme song whenever I bring any more furniture home!

I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do to it right away, I usually wait a bit for inspiration to strike! I look on Pinterest and other blogs and websites for inspiration. I knew that the leather had to come off because it had too much damage but I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do on there to  highlight the center.

The leather had been gouged and torn in many places. Luckily I just started pulling up the leather and it peeled off very easily. Underneath was in fine condition. I filled and sanded down any deep divots in the surface.

I took the legs off the piece, cleaned the whole piece very well and then sanded and cleaned again.  I made my own chalk paint with some calcium carbonate and water and  some  flat latex paint I had leftover from another project. The color was Polished Pearl by Behr.  Here it is with the leather off and the first coat of the chalk paint.

Originally I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do in the center so I left it unpainted at first.  Then I decided to paint the center the same as the rest of the table.

Not the best shot, but you get the idea. Here its all painted in the Polished Pearl chalk paint.  Because it is white, it needed about 3 coats of paint, sanded in between each coat.

Then inspiration struck! I had gotten some stencils for Christmas from my mom that I had been wanting for some time and I decided to use the  old french script stencil in the center of the table.  I just used some black acrylic paint I got from Michael’s.

Here is the top halfway done, and it looks so pretty with the stencil on there. You just need to make sure to line up the marks at the top and bottom so you stay straight.

I started the stencil in the center at the bottom and worked my way up to the top.  I didn’t tape along the outline of the circle, I just touched up the edge of the table with some chalk paint any areas I had applied any black paint by accident.  I used a stencil brush being sure to take off any excess paint on a paper towel before applying the paint in a stippling motion.  I wanted a faded look here and there, I didn’t want it looking too new.

And here it is!! I distressed the edges with a sanding sponge and did a light sanding over the stencil as well.  I let it dry a day or two before applying and buffing  2-3 coats of   Johnson’s Paste Wax over the entire piece.

Just a close up to see the wood showing through.

So, the next time you see a yucky looking table on the side of the road, don’t pass it by! It can become something beautiful again! Good luck out there!

This is a little cabinet I painted for a good friend of mine. It was a family heirloom but it needed some love and attention.  She wanted it painted in something dramatic and she thought that a deep Chinese Red would be just the thing. It was missing some trim work and wood detail here and there, the hinges were falling off and their were some cracks in the doors.  Before I could even get ready to paint I had to do the repair work.

I set about using wood filler to fill in any of the areas that were missing veneer or trim work. I filled in the cracks also along the edges of the doors.  I sanded well all over after it dried thoroughly and then primed using Bin Primer.

I used a sample pot of Sherwin Williams Positive Red and some Plaster of Paris to make my own DIY Chalk Paint.  I use a couple of tablespoons and a bit of water and stir it together and then add about a cup of paint.  This piece needed quite a few coats to get full coverage because I didn’t tint my primer. Lesson learned.; -)  I let the piece dry well in between each coat of paint.

I sprayed all the hardware and the hinges in Rustoleum’s Oil Rubbed Bronze spray paint.

I finished the piece using Minwax clear wax and then used the same wax mixed with a bit of Rustoleum’s Kona stain to make my own DIY dark wax.  I brushed it on first and then used my shop towels to wipe off the excess leaving some behind in the cracks and crevices.

Here you can see some of the detail of the wax in the corners and the edges of the detail.

I love the way this piece came out! It is so much fun to paint with such a bold color! Can’t wait to do it again! Do you think you could do such a bold color in your home? Try it! It might just be the pop of color you need to spice things up in your decorating scheme!

This beautiful buffet started out as a simple piece, but my client wanted it painted a light gray color and more distressed looking. This was my first time using Rustoleum’s chalk paint line. I used the Aged Gray Color.

This unusual antique secretary was going to be thrown out before I got my hands on it! Its such a beautiful piece with so much potential, and I thought I would try to sell it as is.  After I got no interest, I decided to paint it! And I’m so glad I did. It was lined with fabric in the back and the bottom doors were missing but I knew it could look awesome!

The drawer opens to reveal a lovely secretary desk inside. I removed the old, peeling leather.

I removed the old paisley fabric from the inside back.

I made my own chalk paint by mixing Valspar’s Tabby Cat Gray and plaster of paris with a  little water. I used Stonington Gray by Benjamin Moore homemade chalk paint as well  for the inside back and shelves, desk area and the lower cabinet.

I heavily distressed the inside back and the outside as well to give it a time worn farmhouse feel.

Finally I waxed the entire piece with Johnson’s Paste Wax and buffed to a sheen.

This beautiful antique hutch was a piece that my client had in her family for many years. She wanted to keep it, but wasn’t crazy about the original state it was in.  We perused Pinterest and she sent me an inspiration picture and I got to work on updating it for her.