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All Things Home

Before and Afters

the unpainted desk & hemp chair

Despite what some may think, I don’t paint everything. Most of the furniture pieces I buy are in need of some help.  They’re tired, worn, spotted with water rings, sporting chipped & bubbled veneer and have seen better days.  Because of that, I don’t feel the slightest hesitation about painting them. Some pieces, though, are just perfect as is.  Such was the case with this oak desk… The wood and finish were in beautiful condition and the vintage glass knobs were perfect.  We did have to add some new stops to the drawers to keep them from sliding all the way to the back of the desk, but that was a quick fix. Usually, I feel that painting a piece brings out the details, but the graining of the wood made the details, like the cubbies and carved embellishments, really shine. So, the only thing I did beyond adding drawer stops

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Before and Afters

Antique Pine Table Makeover

Would you believe I still have several furniture makeovers from Lucketts to share?  The past few years, I got too busy to take before & after pictures and I really kicked myself for it.  This year, I made myself grab the camera and take a before of every piece AND made sure I had an after picture of each piece before it was loaded into the truck. This antique pine table was one of my favorite pieces.  I guess I had a lot of favorites this year, because this is like the fifth piece I’ve called one of my favorites!  I found it on my shopping trip to Virginia.  It was one of the pricier pieces I bought, but I really loved it and thought it would make a nice “focal piece” in my booth.  Plus, I loved it so much, I didn’t mind if it didn’t sell.  It wasn’t purchased

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Before and Afters

More French Chairs

We’re on the final stretch to Lucketts.  The truck gets loaded today and we’ll set up our space tomorrow.  I’ve been working on things and shopping for so long that I’m really looking forward to it finally being here. I told you I have French chairs coming out of my ears, practically.  I usually have four or five.  This year, I have nine…I think.  That might not sound like much, but I feel like it’s a lot. Here’s one I just finished a few days ago…. If you think that chair looks familiar, you’re right!  I bought this pair of chairs a couple of years ago and painted them in Shutter Gray with a wash of Ironstone.  I brought them to the Lucketts Holiday Open House when I was a vendor there and they didn’t sell.  So, I brought them home and used them for a while. I tried to

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French Chair Makeovers - Miss Mustard Seed
Before and Afters

the French twins

I told you there were lots of furniture makeovers on the way!  Here’s another one… Remember this pair of French chairs?  I found them on Craig’s List for a good price and they were in really nice condition.  A reader asked why I don’t just leave them alone.  It’s true, I could probably sell them as is, but they aren’t really “me.”  Why does that matter if I’m selling them?  It matters because people aren’t just buying a French chair or a dresser from me.  They can buy those from any vendor at Lucketts.  What they can buy from me is something with my style stamp on it.  Plus, I want my booth to be full of things I love and would use in my own home, not things that are just nice. So, Cari stripped them and pulled out the thousands of decorative tacks to get them ready for

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Favorite Finds

the ironstone mold jackpot & don't high five at yard sales

 I went out shopping on Friday again…one of my last big shopping trips before Lucketts and it was a good one!  I found four French chairs, a dress form, a really cool wood wagon, tons of ironstone and other fun things.  Here’s a look… …I’ve always had a soft spot for salt and butter crocks, but they are always so expensive.  This one was well priced… …and an ironstone sugar jar with a gold band… …some chunky ironstone bowls… …a pretty blue & white casserole… …a beautiful small ironstone tureen set… …and SIX ironstone molds.  I couldn’t believe when I kept finding them.  Usually I find one, maybe two at a time, but I found SIX all in one shopping trip. I have sort of developed a thing for ironstone molds, so I’m keeping three and selling the other three. I also found something I’ve been wanting for a long

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buying & selling antiques

the fabric & Lucketts furniture

Do you remember when I wrote about my guest room a few weeks ago?  I showed a scrap of fabric that I’ve been holding in my stash for about 12 years.  I love this fabric and it was, unfortunately, discontinued.  I held onto my one yard remnant, feeling it was too precious to even use. I laid it out on the guest bed as I was playing with fabric options for pillows and the duvet cover.  The fabric looked so beautiful with the hand painted bed, but I didn’t have enough to make much…maybe a pillow.  And I couldn’t find the fabric anywhere. Well, my blog readers came through.  Suzanne came through, to be more specific.  She had a few yards of the fabric in her stash and, more than that, was willing to sell all of it to me.  It came last week and I will admit to hugging

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woodworking

Organizing the Workshop

I confess that I have a tough time keeping my work areas clean.  I know the other creative types out there understand.  I am a bit of a neat-freak, but when I’m working on a lot of things, I don’t take the time to clean up the workshop.  Scraps of wood get tossed on the floor, tools are piled up on the workbench and things are in a perpetual state of disorganization.  I just close the door. So, my mom and I worked on tidying up the place. We picked up some more hooks and tool holders from our local True Value to use on the pegboard surfaces in the workshop. We even hung the hammers and drills… We used long hooks on the table saw out feed table to keep extension cords handy. If you’re planning on organizing a workspace yourself, here are a few tips… It may be

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buying & selling antiques

a balance, a baby quilt & a pair of chairs

Yes, I’m showing off more of my finds for the Lucketts Spring Market you’re going to get a lot of that over the next few weeks.  It’s approaching fast!  I still have some freelance things to wrap up, but I am almost done with those.  This weekend, I’m heading to Salt Lake City to teach a milk paint workshop at the SNAP conference.  Traveling is always tiring, but it will be a nice break from all of the work at home.  Once I get back…it’s all about Lucketts…painting furniture, more shopping, upholstering, pricing and planning.  Normally it’s a stressful time for me, but this year I’m more prepared than ever and I am really excited to delve into all of the projects head on.  Painting furniture is like therapy for me.  So, I should feel like a new woman once Lucketts is here! Anyway, here’s one of my favorite finds

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I’m Marian, a painter, writer, and lover of all things creative. From art and antiques to home projects and everyday life, I share my journey in hopes of inspiring you to embrace your own creativity and make beauty in the spaces you live.

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