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Cute Vintage Shelf

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This was one of those little pieces we found while we are out hunting for treasure. It didn’t appear to be anything special but it was solid wood, had nice detail and most of all the price was right! So we brought it home and added it to our ”to-do” list (pile). We’re not going to lie, it sat around for quite some time. It just wasn’t one of those pieces that scream to be done right away. Finally, one day while we were painting other pieces we decided to go ahead and paint it with some leftover paint. And are we glad we did! Wow, what a transformation!!! This piece is the perfect example of how a little paint can take a ”ho-hum” piece and really transform it. Now of course while it was sitting in that pile, did we ever think to take a before picture? NO! We feel like we’ve really cheated you out on this one. Our apologies. You’ll just have to take our word for it.

Cute Shelf

Ta-da! The paint and distressing just seemed to bring out all the beautiful detail. Seriously, it was really kind of meh before.

Small Shelf

We decided to leave the hanging hardware on for the option of hanging it on a wall or setting it on a dresser or desk.

Beautiful Detail

We painted it using our signature go-to DIY chalk paint using Behr Swiss Coffee. We gave it a light to medium distress and sealed it with clear wax.

Apparently, we aren’t the only ones who fell in love, it sold within seconds of posting it for sale.

As always, we want to thank you for taking the time to visit our site. We appreciate all of you so much!

Rustic Solid Oak Bench

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When we first saw this bench, we knew we had to use milk paint on this one.

We love the chippy authentic aged finish you get with milk paint. We used a custom mix of Oyster White and Snow White by The Old Fashioned Milk Paint Co. We then distressed the entire piece with our orbital sander and sealed it with hemp oil.

We’ve only used true milk paint a couple of times and we are always amazed at how smooth the finish is.

 

Custom Window Cabinet

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This custom cabinet features an old salvaged window. The interior has been painted with General Finishes  Antique White Milk Paint. The exterior is painted with General Finishes Lamp Black Milk Paint. We then lightly distressed the exterior and sealed it with antique wax by Miss Mustard Seed.

 

 

Vintage Imperial Table

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We can’t tell you how nervous this one made us! This was our first time using true milk paint. We’ve wanted to try it for awhile but the uncontrollable chipping made us hesitant. We love a chippy look but with true milk paint, you just never know what you are going to get. So when we found this table we decided to bite the dust and give milk paint a try! We used Old Fashioned Milk Paint in Oyster White. Once the paint had dried, we sanded off all of the loose paint and sealed it with hemp oil.

We were really surprised by the lovely, smooth finish the milk paint gave us. Love that!

 

It was kind of fun (and scary) to watch all of the loose paint chip off.

We just never knew where the paint was going to chip off…or how much.

All in all, we are quite pleased with the finish we were able to achieve with milk paint. We can’t wait to use it again, maybe try some layering!

 

Rustic Shabby Chic Table

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We love a rustic shabby chic look as much as the next guy! When we spied this one in a thrift store we knew we had to have it. It was quite worn and in need of a new top. We knew a little white paint and distressing would make all that detail just pop. We thought about adding an upholstered top and making it a small bench but we weren’t sure if it could handle the weight. It was solid for a table, but a bench? We opted to keep it a table and add a rustic planked top.

We started by cleaning and lightly sanding the piece. We painted the table base with our favorite go-to DIY chalk paint using Behr Swiss Coffee. We then gave the table a moderate distress with sandpaper and sealed the paint with hemp oil. For the plank top, we cut cedar planks down to size, sanded well and stained with Weathered Oak by Minwax. We secured the top with wood glue and a brad nailer.

Rustic Shabby Chic Table

 

rustic shabby chic

We went over the table with a white glaze to get in all the nooks and crannies. We finished it by sealing with a dark glaze.

We love how the rustic top balances out all of the feminine detail. We hope you like this as much as we do.

Vintage Hutch

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Hutch

Phoenix Chair Co. Hutch

We are absolutely in love with this piece. One of the many reasons we love what we do is researching and learning the history of our pieces. This piece has an old worn label on the back that reads “Phoenix Chair Co. Sheboygan, Wis. USA”.
We found this article from the Chicago Tribune with a brief synopsis of the company’s history.

Phoenix Chair Co., which claimed to be “the largest chair factory in the world under one roof,” has an interesting history. It was formed in 1875 by a group of local businessmen concerned about the loss of jobs after a fire consumed Crocker and Bliss, then one of two industrial plants in the city at the time.

Rising from the ashes of such destruction, they named the new company Phoenix, after the mythical bird that rises from the ashes to start another life. Within a few years, it was selling more than 10,000 chairs in more than 400 styles every month. By 1888, it employed 400.

Phoenix was known for making everyday household furniture that its catalog said would attract “unusual attention wherever it is shown.”

The company continued to grow and, in 1942, it was chosen by the United States government to make furniture for federal housing projects. Ironically, it was a fire in 1962 that leveled the plant that led to Phoenix’s closing in 1964.

Isn’t that interesting?! We wish we could find more information on the piece itself. Nonetheless, it is beautiful and we are thrilled to give it a new life.

It was in very good shape when we found it. It just needed a little TLC. We started by lightly sanding the entire piece and staining it with General Finishes Antique Walnut Gel Stain. We then removed the back which had been previously covered in fabric, very pretty at one time but it needed a little updating. We decided to replace it with beadboard painted with General Finishes Antique White Milk Paint. We thought the color would offset & compliment the dark wood & give the hutch a nice clean backdrop.
We finished by sealing the stained wood with hemp oil and dark wax.

vintage furniture

Phoenix Chair Co. Hutch

Isn’t that gate leg amazing?! We had so much fun reviving this old piece.

Thank you for letting us share it with you!

Upcycled Metal Tray

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Another thrift store find! We found this lovely tray and all of its glorious detail just begging for a little update. Like most of our finds, we were not quite sure what the plan was but we knew it definitely had potential. So home it went!

Metal Tray

We started by giving the tray a good sanding with our orbital sander to smooth out the surface and prepare the tray for paint. We primed and painted the tray with Behr Swiss Coffee DIY chalk paint, sanding between each coat for an ultra smooth finish. Once painted we decided to transfer an image we found and downloaded from The Graphics Fairy. We transferred the image by printing the mirrored image on wax paper with our inkjet printer. We carefully placed the image ink side down on the tray and pressed lightly to make sure the image adhered well. We then peeled back the wax paper being extremely careful not to smear the ink. Once completely dried we sprayed the tray with a clear matte sealer for protection.

Metal Tray

We love trying new techniques, especially when they go well! This was such a fun and easy flip. We can’t wait to try it again.

Barn Table

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We are calling this one ”Barn Table” because, well, we found it in a barn. We are just clever like that! When we found this table it was missing it’s top & was looking kind of sad but we just knew it had potential. Look at that detail!

Barn Table Before

We started by giving the table a good scrubbing and sanding. Knowing we wanted to stain the new top we used a piece of premium plywood. We stained the new top and drawer front with General Finishes Java Gel Stain. The rest of the table was painted with General Finishes Lamp Black Milk Paint. This is our favorite black paint. The color is just so rich & beautiful! Once everything was dry, we lightly distressed the entire table. We love the way distressing brings out all of the details. Finally, we finished this piece with General Finishes Flat Out Flat Top Coat. We wanted more of a matte finish for this piece and Flat Out Flat is the perfect choice for us!

Barn Table Detail

Milk and Cream Cloche

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We love to scour thrift stores for what we call hidden treasures. One mans trash is another man’s treasure, right? One of our favorite items to look for and find are glass cheese domes. A little paint and creativity and you have a unique piece that would look great in any room. They are great for displaying plants, candles, trinkets or to just let them stand on their own.

We chose to go with a farmhouse kitchen theme for this one. We painted the wood base with our signature go to white DIY chalk paint in Behr Swiss Coffee. After the paint had dried we gave it a light distressing with 220 sandpaper. We designed & cut the stencil using our Silhouette Cameo 3. Once we had the stencil set in place we filled it in by sponging on black acrylic craft paint. Finally, we finished the piece with clear wax to seal the paint and offer light protection. We love the subtle timeworn sheen you can achieve by using wax.

Milk & Cream Cloche