Before and Afters Archives | Page 6 of 51

Before and Afters

Say Hello to Aviary & dresser reveal

Since the very beginning, I’ve asked you to say “hello” to each new color I add to the MMS Milk Paint line. Now, for the 27th time, I’m asking you to “say hello” to Aviary! Aviary is a smoky blue/gray with green undertones. It was designed to match the paint on an antique French birdcage I purchased a couple of years ago. It was a cool piece, but I bought it mostly because I loved the color. As I was thinking about a new color to add to the line, to replace Dried Lavender, I kept coming back to this one, knowing it would look lovely in milk paint. Like many of our colors, it’s a chameleon. It looks gray next to blue and blue next to gray. It looks light and soft next to darker colors and rich and smoky next to whites. Here is how it compares to

April 17, 2018 70 Comments

Before and Afters

craigslist cabinet progress

With school holidays and snow days, this week has been a short one, but I have managed to get some things checked off the to-do list. One of the main things I wanted to work on was the cabinet in my office. Since I knew it would be a time-consuming painting project (with having to paint the shelves, turn them over, paint the other side, seal them with Tough Coat, etc.), I decided to work on one side at a time. So, I got the left side completed! The first thing I did was replace the hardware with a pair of antique latches I found on Etsy. The ones that were on there were not original and made more sense for drawer than cabinets. When they arrived, though, I saw that the “keepers” and latches didn’t really match. They did, but they didn’t originally go together, so the finishes were

February 23, 2018 38 Comments

Before and Afters

green art cabinet makeover | part 2

When you last saw this piece (yesterday) in part one, it had the drawer fronts painted and oiled to match the body of the cabinet… Once the Hemp Oil was applied to all of the doors, it was time to put the hardware on. Now, I have to admit that I was intimidated to put all of the hardware on this piece. It’s a lot of hardware that needs to be in a straight line and precision is not my forte. I initially called Jeff in to help, but then I remembered (and actually found) a hardware template I have. I informed Jeff that I didn’t need him anymore, because he was being replaced with the template. (I don’t know why the green looks so drab in this picture!) I lined the template up with the drawer edges, also using the placement of the old hardware as a guide. Even

February 9, 2018 51 Comments

All Things Home

green art cabinet makeover | part 1

When I bought this piece, I knew I wanted to freshen it up a bit. It didn’t need dramatic plastic surgery. It just needed a little makeover, so it could look its best. Before we even brought it in the house, I put wheels on the bottom and my mom and I gave it a good scrub. I also hunted for and ordered some pulls to replace the mis-matched ones. I know there is a charm to it as it is, but just wait until you see the makeover… The pulls arrived over the weekend and, earlier this week, I took some time to remove the old hardware. What I found was not what I was hoping for… Someone had painted over the hardware. Bummer. This isn’t such a big deal, except it left some unappealing beige paint exposed and the new pulls weren’t going to fully cover it on

February 8, 2018 32 Comments

All Things Home

upholstering the daybed

When I last shared the antique French daybed here on the blog, I had painted the frame in MMS Milk Paint Farmhouse White and finished it with Tough Coat. You can read about those details HERE. I had some options in my fabric stash for upholstering it, but I didn’t have enough of any one print, so I decided to hunt for a new fabric, so I could buy enough of it for the upholstery, curtains, and possibly some pillows. I found this cheery yellow fabric. It’s . This is for a small sewing room/guest room, so it’s a great space to make a departure from my usual blue & white palette. I do like other colors, but I love blue and white and know I won’t get tired of that pairing, so it’s an obvious choice for spaces we use the most. This fabric actually does come in an

November 14, 2017 42 Comments

All Things Home

whitewashing a tabletop

I was going to think about THIS TABLE a bit more before I painted it, but I really could only imagine it one way, so I decided to go with that. Also, I had a new friend and local blog reader, Kellie, coming over to hang out and help me paint while our boys played together. It seemed like the perfect time for whitewashing this tabletop. And, even better, she had never tried MMS Milk Paint before, so I was able to teach her all about it as we worked on my kitchen table. When I stripped and sanded the top, I learned that the top wasn’t solid wood, as I thought. It’s a very thin veneer that is chipped, patched, and worn away in some places. I don’t mind imperfections, but I felt like whitewashing this tabletop would camouflage these as well as any future scratches and dings that

October 24, 2017 47 Comments

Painting the Daybed & Furniture Feature Friday!

Before I share the progress on the daybed, remember Furniture Feature Friday? Someone mentioned it to me in a comment a couple of days ago and it sparked an idea. Why not bring it back, but host it on Instagram by using the hashtag #FurnitureFeatureFriday ? It’s much simpler than the old school link parties and it’ll be a fun way to see and showcase the work and finds of others. Here’s how it will work… This will take place on Instagram, so you do have to have a public Instagram account to play along. Just share a piece of furniture and use the hashtag, so myself and others can find it. It doesn’t have to be painted furniture, but can be a favorite find, a new arrangement, a makeover, whatever. As long as furniture is included. And I’ll pick and feature my favorites on my Instagram account and here

October 13, 2017 31 Comments

All Things Home

adding shelves to an antique wardrobe

Remember this antique pine wardrobe I bought off of craigslist a couple of weeks ago? One of the last projects my brother was able to complete before flying home to Oregon was installing shelves inside. And one of the last things my mom and I got done before my parents drove back to PA was to unpack my fabric and fill those shelves. There is something about stacks of beautiful fabric, specifically antique linen, that make me giddy. I mean, seriously. I open these wardrobe doors and a rush of excitement bubbles up and I can’t help but release it in a giggle. This wardrobe only had a rod and a small shelf up high. That would’ve been okay if I wanted to hang clothes inside, but I wanted shelving for fabric and notions. Since the wardrobe is a beautiful antique, I also wanted to add shelves in a

August 31, 2017 45 Comments

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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