When it comes to paint, sometimes I just can’t help myself.  Something comes into my possession and I just know it will look better painted.  I think it’s partly because I’m a paint enthusiast, but partly because the designer in me wants to put my stamp on everything.  That can be an asset, but it can also work against me when it comes to taking on a mountain of work that one person cannot possibly move alone. Anyway, there’s my daily mini-therapy session.  Thanks for listening. So, this pie safe or, as one reader called it, “garde manger”, is a good example of me not leaving well enough alone. I had to look up “garde manger” and it means “keeper of food” in French.  That sounds more exotic (and healthier) than pie safe, so let’s go with that. This particular one is a reproduction I bought from a wholesale company.  It

I find my furniture-loving eye lately enjoying more primitive and humble pieces than I did even just a year ago.  There was a time that anything curvy and flouncy stopped me in my tracks, but now I love more simple lines and looks that are a bit more casual.  Don’t get me wrong, I still love a good turned leg and appreciate the curves of a bergere chair, but there is something about simple pieces, that can even be a bit crude in their construction, that tugs at my heartstrings. Take this little “cubby shelf”…  When it was brought to my studio, I looked at it and said, “A man clearly built that.”  Many men build beautiful things, but it was obvious to me that this was built by a man who needed a shelf, probably in his garage or workshop, and banged this one together. I can picture his

Again!  I don’t have a before picture for this piece.  I am sure now that I took before pictures of a few pieces and then deleted them in my enthusiasm to keep my camera card uncluttered.  That’s what I get for trying to be organized! So, you’ll just have to imagine the before.  It was brown and that’s about all I can say about it!  It did come with a mirror set in a large frame and I have plans for those, too.  For some reason, dresser/mirror pairings don’t sell as well as dressers on their own and mirrors on their own. The dresser was painted in two coats of MMS Milk Paint in Grain Sack.  I lightly sanded it after the paint was dry with a fine sanding sponge and allowed the paint to flake off where it wanted to flake.  I love it when pieces chip in a

There’s been a lot of white going on in the Mustard Seed Studio these days.  But, I think you do need some color to balance out whites, so I’m adding in some greens and blues in small doses. I decided to do one dresser in a bold green – MMS Milk Paint Boxwood layered over Lucketts Green. I thought I took a before picture of this piece and somewhere in all of the furniture shuffling (or perhaps picture deleting), I don’t have one.  You can see it Where’s-Waldo-style, peeking out from behind the pink wardrobe.  He’s a little photo bomber. The dresser was pretty, but it had water rings and discolorations on the top and the sides had come unglued.  Jeff shored it up and I stripped the top down to the bare wood.  Kriste painted it in Lucketts Green followed by a coat of the 100% Beeswax Finish and