Dining Room Hutch Re-Do

I am onto my 3rd Annie Sloan project (if you count the school desk)! I couldn't wait to get started and my awesome aunt and uncle agreed to take Logan for the weekend so I could devote more time to it. Chris and I enjoyed a much-needed dinner date, followed by a trip to Lowe's (I know--romantic), and ending with hardware removal and applying the first coat of paint.

This was the hutch before. I had a vision. It looks a little country but I loved that it wasn't huge and had lots of storage. And I got it for $80. Bonus.

This is the hutch top after a couple coats and a coat of Minwax Finishing Paste. I used Annie Sloan French Linen, which is a grayish-beige color. I was really nervous about it at first because after the first coat it looked white, which wasn't what I wanted. But one thing I have learned about this paint is patience. It always looks different after it dries (which is super fast) or in better light (duh).

 And the doors. These things were a bit of a beating. The paint just didn't want to cover everywhere and spots just kept popping up. Oh, and I gave up on taping off the glass but I shouldn't have. The paint comes off easily if you wipe it immediately, which I didn't do. So we had to scrape it off after everything was said and done. Not a mistake I will make again. Until next time when I am too lazy to do it.

The finished product! It is hard to tell in pictures but I did use the dark wax in some spots (with the Annie Sloan brush--which I highly recommend, or at least a brush of some sort...it was so much easier than a rag!). I spray painted the original hardware Oil Rubbed Bronze. I plan on covering the back panel in a coordinating fabric so it will make more of a statement. I will post a picture when I get that done...I am still in the decision-making process right now.

I am VERY happy with it. I can't wait to fill it with my white china (from our wedding that I don't think we have ever used) and some serving pieces. And I am not gonna lie, the bottom cabinets are probably going to house my ever-growing Annie Sloan paint collection since you aren't supposed to store them in the garage due to the heat (at least here in TX). 

Now I am on the search for my next piece to re-do!

My First Craigslist Dresser Re-Do

Ever since the Haven Conference, I have been itching to try Annie Sloan Chalk Paint. I tried my hand at it with a small school desk but had my mind set on bigger and better things. Mainly a dresser for my son's room. So I set off to peruse good old Craigslist and after much searching and emailing/texting, I ended up with 2 dressers AND a dining room hutch. Let's just say I have a very supportive and understanding husband who made a late night trip down the road to pick up one dresser and then an after-work trip the very next day to pick up my other two finds. I think he was just happy that I had something other than obsessing about having another baby to occupy my time.

Anyway, a few days later Logan and I met him in Dallas and we went to Uptown Country Home to buy some chalk paint! ***oops, when linking to that I might have forgotten I was writing a post--they have some cute stuff online!*** Back to business now--I got a quart of Napoleonic Blue (for the dresser), a quart of French Linen (for my hutch), and a buffing cloth. Oh, and Logan picked out a $1 goodie bag with a wooden train, hair barrette, and a plastic dinosaur in it. Digging through the goodie bag cart kept him entertained while Chris and I discussed paint. I choked a bit when I paid $80 for two quarts of paint but from what I had heard, it went a LONG way (they were right). At least I didn't have to buy wax since Heather had won some AS dark wax at the conference and I still had alot of Minwax Paste Finishing Wax left from the school desk project. I couldn't wait to get home and get started and I needed to get started soon so I could maintain my momentum/excitement for the project because I know myself and I rarely finish projects that I start. That's why my hubby was shocked when I had this dresser done in a weekend.

So, without further ado, the pictures:

The original picture from the CL ad

We moved it into the dining room (super awesome thing about this paint--you can use it indoors with pretty much no noticeable odor), removed the hardware (ugly brass) and drawers and I got started. It probably took less than an hour to get the first coat on.

1st coat

Chris helped me with the 2nd coat and then I left it alone for the night so I could see what needed touching up in the daylight.

2nd coat (the next morning)

The next morning I could tell that I needed to do another coat. Now, most people using this paint wouldn't mind some of the missed spots, but I wanted a more modern look with little to no distressing since it was for a little boy's room and the original wood coloring was super light and I was trying to go super dark. So, 3 coats it was.

3rd coat with clear wax

After the 3rd coat, I let it dry and did the clear wax. My Minwax Finishing Wax seems to work just fine, it's just not near as soft as the AS stuff. Other tutorials I read mentioned Briwax, which I saw at Ace Hardware today, so I may try that next time. Upon the suggestion of a friend of mine who has been doing ALOT of AS painting lately, I waited to do the dark wax until the next day--she recommended at least 12 hours. It was hard to wait that long, I was so ready to see how it was going to turn out...but I was nervous about the dark wax. I didn't want it to look dirty or even antiqued. I just wanted it to darken the blue a little bit. So I researched that night to keep my mind off the dresser in the next room that was calling my name.

Pretty much everything I read agreed that you must do the clear wax first otherwise the dark wax will just stain the paint and won't be fixable without repainting. Also they said to put a little clear wax on your rag/brush (I used an old t-shirt, which I think wasn't quite lint-free as suggested...grrrr) and then dip into the dark wax lightly. It doesn't take much. Then you rub it in and then rub it off immediately with a clean rag/brush to get the excess off. So I worked on that this afternoon. It took a while. Well, that and I am a perfectionist and ended up repainting the top to make it smoother and then of course I found some other spots...stupid OCD. Then I probably should have waited another 12-24 hours before doing anything else but I just couldn't. I did another light coat of clear wax and let that dry. After it dried, I used the buffing cloth I bought (which is basically just a microfiber/terrycloth pad) to buff the wax. That got rid of some of the streaks I didn't love and shined it up just a bit. Then just to be sure it would be protected from a rambunctious 5 year old boy, I did a clear semi-gloss coat of Polycrylic over the whole thing. I don't know if that was necessary but it did give me the more glossy look I was going for so I am glad I did it. Looking back, I may have wasted my time doing the wax since you really can't tell the dark wax was even put on--partly because of the dark paint color and partly because I was afraid of using too much/making it look dirty/messing up. But it was good experience and it made me feel good to do the whole process.

While the polyurethane was drying I spray painted the old hardware with silver spray paint. I was going to get all new hardware, but once I spray painted it and put it on, it really looked good (and saved me $$$). I was barely able to wait for the polyurethane to dry before putting the new pretty hardware on.

The finished product!

In Logan's room--he is so excited to have a blue dresser (that he can open easily)!

Sorry for the poor picture quality, they were taken with my cell phone. At night. And I am not a professional photographer. Whatevs. You get what you get.

I can't wait to accessorize his room and get rid of his old chest of drawers and bookshelf that used to occupy this wall space. We are going to build him new bookshelves and I am envisioning cork board and metal baskets or display shelves above his dresser.

I can't wait to start on my hutch...or maybe I can, my arms are tired and I am exhausted. This work is tedious. My only saving grace was that it goes on really fast and I was able to do it indoors (not in the 100 degree Texas heat).

So, what do you think about my first official AS furniture re-do?? Have you used it? Do you plan to?

**Edited to add: After 3 coats of this paint, I still have over half a quart left. I watered it down on the 2nd and 3rd coats by dipping my paintbrush in water before the paint, but even if I didn't do that I would probably still have half left. It's amazing how far this goes. Now I need to find more things to paint blue...

I shared this at the Serenity Now Weekend Bloggy Reading Link Up Party!

Hand Me Down School Desk Re-Do

My aunt gave me an old school desk for Logan a few years ago. Really cute, only it was pink. Logan didn't seem to mind and it just went by the wayside. I had planned to paint it but hadn't gotten around to it until my new furniture painting obsession began. At the Haven conference I got a sample pot of Annie Sloan Chalk Paint in Louis Blue so my sister and I decided to paint it that color. She had won some dark wax at the conference but we didn't have any clear wax. We weren't sure if it was absolutely necessary or not, and all the stores that carry ASCP were closed today since it was a holiday, so we went to Lowe's and bought Minwax Paste Finishing Wax in Natural.

There was really no need to sand anything down since it was metal so we were able to get started quickly. We used our Purdy paintbrushes we got in our swag bags from the conference and did 2 coats of the Louis Blue and used most of the sample pot. We even watered it down a little to make it go a little further. Not sure if I thought it would go further than that or if we just used too much but I wasn't planning on using that color on anything else, so it was okay.


It went really fast. They paint dries really quickly so we were able to get the 2 coats on within about 30-45 minutes total. Then we did the Minwax Finishing Wax using old cloth diapers. After that dried (which was quick) we used the Annie Sloan Dark Wax. What a difference between those two! The Minwax was only about $5 and the Annie Sloan goes for about $27 I think, but man, that AS wax is soft (hence the name Soft Wax-duh) and goes on like buttah. The Minwax was hard and took more elbow grease for sure. And the AS wax goes a really long way with a tiny amount, so it is probably worth it to splurge, in my opinion.


All in all, it took us about an hour start to finish and my first Annie Sloan project is done! It will go in Logan's room, which will also be getting new bookshelves and a painted Craigslist dresser (see previous post).


The pink desk in all it's glory!

 After the 1st coat

   ALL DONE!!!

Logan likes it much better now!

I am very excited about how the first project came out! Now I am ready to experiment with my new furniture pieces! Can't wait to go get some more ASCP (hopefully this weekend!).

My New Obsession

I've never had much luck with Craigslist...I never found anything I liked and if I did, it was usually gone by the time I found it. Well, a couple weeks ago, a group of 6 girls (including me) went to a DIY conference in Atlanta and my obsession with painted furniture began when I was introduced to Annie Sloan Chalk Paint. I had heard of it before, but had no clue what it was or why it was such a big deal. Well, now I know, and now I want to paint EVERYTHING. In the past 4 days, I have spent many hours on Craigslist and have purchased 2 dressers and a dining room hutch. I have plans to paint one of the dressers and the hutch. The other dresser is going to my aunt so she can paint it for her daughter. It was just too good of a deal to pass up. I knew someone would want it, even if I painted it myself and resold it. Oh yeah, about the painting. I have never done it before, so I may have bitten off more than I can chew by starting with these large pieces. But go big or go home, right? Right?! So now I need paint color advice and any other ASCP advice, if you have used it before and have any tips for me.

The hutch (isn't she pretty??) will go in my dining room (I hope it fits!). I only paid $80 for her and she is heavy and well made!! But I need color suggestions--my dining table is dark brown, my dining room is a dark greenish/blue color with white molding. I am at a loss when it comes to finding a color that would work.

This was the first dresser I found. My aunt is going to take this one. Paid $50 and it's in great condition, just needs to be painted.

I found this dresser last and my hubby went and picked it up last night at 9:30, but for $50, I couldn't pass it up! It is very heavy and has dovetail joints and everything. I am thinking of painting it a dark blue/navy and getting some new hardware to go in Logan's room.

So, my garage looks like a used furniture store but I am excited to work on these projects (inside, of course; this 100 degree Texas weather and I do not get along) and use some of the knowledge I learned at the Haven Conference! Wish me luck and please give my advice/tips/motivation along the way!

Please Tell Me I Am Not Alone

I am really hoping someone out there will validate that this is a normal phase, that I am not alone, that this too shall pass, that it is okay to be *this* frustrated with your own child. Let me explain.


Lately, Logan has been exceptionally greedy and seemingly ungrateful. Now, I am not sure he is meaning to be this way, he is just now learning what those words really mean, but it is really getting on my last nerve. Whenever we go anywhere, and I mean anywhere, whether it is something he wants to do or an errand we need to do, as soon as we leave he asks where we are going next. Now, I understand this when we are doing boring errands, but when he asks after leaving one of his fun activities, I want to lose it.


Take this morning for example. We went to see a movie with friends and then went to lunch with them, the kids played on the playground, and we had cupcakes for one of the kids' birthdays. Fun day, right? As soon as we leave, and I mean, we weren't even out of the restaurant, he asked what the rest of our plans were. I told him nothing and he got mad. I explained to him that we had a busy morning and that now is time to go home and rest. He argued that it wasn't busy, it was only 2 things. I told him that I didn't have to take him to do anything, so he was lucky and should be grateful, etc. He continued the whole way home, this time wanting to go to McDonalds (even though we just ate lunch). I told him if he said one more word about it, he would go to his room for the rest of the afternoon. So he continued to mutter under his breath, I couldn't quite hear him but I heard Chuck E. Cheese mentioned so I know he was still talking about going other places, but purposely staying out of earshot. I chose to ignore him, which worked for the moment. We had to run one more errand and when we left that place, he asked if we could go to a park or if we could do something else. I told him yes, he could go to his room the rest of the afternoon. He began to spit his tongue out and make ugly sounds, which I chose to ignore (until we got home). When we got home, he went straight to his room. Now, he has books and a couple toys in his room, and I don't mind him playing in there, I just needed him away from me for the time being. Am I overreacting to this? Is this a normal stage? This is not the only time we have had this discussion, it happens every time we go anywhere (or don't go anywhere).


Same thing with toys. The other day we were out with my dad, who, yes, spoils Logan. That's what grandpas do. I understand that. But when Logan starts talking about getting a toy as soon as T-Luv (yes, that's what Logan calls him...long story), that is not okay. That is greedy and rude. He should not be expecting to get anything from anyone unless it is food, water, or shelter. Everything else is a bonus. He kept on, whining and throwing a mini-fit, and I finally lost it when he threw a stuffed animal and it hit me in the side of the face while I was driving. He knows that is a big no-no (throwing anything in the car, much less toward me) so I quickly turned off the road we were on and pulled over, yanked him out of the car, and spanked him. That quieted him temporarily but the attitude continued even when we got to the restaurant (I know, I should have just taken my dad back home and gone home ourselves). But when he decided to eat, his attitude got better. This kid is highly affected by food, I mean, he turns on a dime once he eats. I think I have discussed this before. So then I feel bad for reacting the way I did, but nonetheless, he shouldn't act that way...he is getting old enough to control himself (at least I hope this is something he can control). So after he ate, his attitude did turn around a little, but it was still a rough day.


But that's a common occurrence with the toy (or book or shirt or anything) thing. He is constantly wanting more, more, more and he doesn't even play with all that he has (which I know is too much). Please tell me this is normal and my child isn't just being the most greedy child on earth. We talk about greediness a lot and how he should be so thankful for all that he has and for all the people that love him. But I just get really frustrated when he acts that way, but then I stop and remember that he's only 5. Am I expecting too much? I am thinking about starting some sort of marble jar or something where he can put in/take away marbles when he is acting inappropriately and when it is full, he gets a special treat. Has anyone done anything to successfully curb this kind of behavior before? Any ideas or suggestions? Or even just a reassurance that this is all normal?? Anyone? Anyone?

Logan-isms

**I just found this is my drafts folder from back in September, not sure why I never published it**


Logan generally cracks me up on a daily basis...wears me out, but cracks me up nonetheless. I have been thinking that I need to write more stuff down, and I figure now is as good a time as any. And I also understand that these things might not be funny to other people and that I am sure I am biased toward my own child...but in the moment, coupled with Logan's attitude/facial expressions/gestures, these things are pretty funny.


To Chris last night: (whispering) "I have a sweecwet (secret--I love how he says this). I hate this town. There's not enough room for the both of us."
*he is testing us on the use of the word 'hate' lately. He knows we don't like it, so he's seeing what he can get away with. But...there's not enough room for the both of us??? Where did that come from? 


Just this morning: "Do you want to go somewhere today? Maybe to the park and then QT to get gas and a slurpee?" 
*sly little kid...too bad we got gas yesterday. Nice try.


As I was turning his suggestion down for a slurpee yesterday (yes, this is a common conversation) due to lack of cash, our conversation went something like this:
Logan: Can we please get a slurpee?
Me: Not today. I don't have any cash.
Logan: Well we could get some. I have enough in my lion bank.
Me: No you don't. Daddy works hard for our money so we have to save it.
Logan: Well, get a job. Or we could just go to the bank today.
Me: You are my job. So maybe you should get a job and pay me.
Logan: I never get money for my jobs.
Me: What jobs do you do?
Logan: You know, riding my scooter, digging in the garden...
*maybe it's time to start coming up with a chore chart for him...


"I don't even get it..." (with hand on forehead, shaking his head)  
*In response to anything he doesn't understand


"Hey, babycakes." *while slapping my cheeks with both hands


I know there are more, and that's probably why this was still in the draft folder, but it's all I got for now. 

Freezer Cooking!

My sister Heather and I have talked about freezer cooking for a long time. We used to do it with a group of girls at a Dinner Station place, but it got to be more of a pain because it was so far away (Highland Village) for us and coming up with a time that worked for everyone was hard. So we got out of the habit but have continued to discuss it, just not do anything about it other than pin a bunch of recipes that look good (because isn't that what we all do?).


Well, now we are getting ready to go out of town on a girl's trip (yay!!) so we are trying to save money by eating out less but also have some meals ready for our families to eat while we are out of town. Heather was off work today so we each picked 3 meals to make and went to the store to get the ingredients. We each spent about $50 and came out of it with 7 meals a piece! We cranked down the A/C in my house and entertained Logan with a movie from the library and we were done in about 2 hours. We will definitely be doing it again and maybe adding another meal or two since it was so easy.


Here is what we made:


Unstuffed Shells

Source: onceamonthmom.com via Whitney on Pinterest

Chicken Broccoli Rice (I've made this before--it's excellent)

Source: onceamonthmom.com via Whitney on Pinterest

Spicy Sausage and Pepper Penne

Source: onceamonthmom.com via Whitney on Pinterest

Cranberry BBQ Chicken

Source: wegottaeat.com via Heather on Pinterest

Hawaiian Kielbasa

Source: freezermealsforus.blogspot.com via Heather on Pinterest

IKEA Swedish Meatballs (there was no picture for this one)

Source: myfreezermeals.wordpress.com via Heather on Pinterest

And here is what our haul looked like when we were done!

So excited to have meals ready to go! And there will still be plenty of leftovers for lunches, etc.