I finished up the dresser today and here’s a preview of it…
This is one of those pieces that I needed to adjust my plan as I worked. There were all sorts of quirks…with the piece, not with the paint. I’ll share how I dealt with all of those issues and, of course, show how the dresser looks. Keep an eye out for that post next week.
Photo shoots in my kitchen almost always involve me having to do the dishes and then cleaning up my sink.
Just wanted to let you know my sink is used and isn’t always so shiny.
So, how is the butcher block holding up since we installed it this summer? Beautifully! There is one mark by the sink where I kept my soap bottle sitting…
See the oval ring? It hasn’t been an issue with the hand soap, so I guess there is something in Dawn that discolored it. I usually keep the bottle under the sink, but you know how that is… I’m not too concerned about it, though. Most people would never notice it and, as you may know, I am not a perfectionist with that sort of thing.
The wood around the sink, though, still looks great. When we first installed it, I was very careful to keep it dry, but now I slop around like it’s a normal kitchen sink and it has handled my abuse.
(Since so many asked, the soap dispenser is from Target in the bathroom section. It also comes in clear and aqua glass.)
So, I’ll keep you posted on that, but the wood counters get a thumbs up from me so far. I think I can also relax knowing that I can refinish them 10 years down the road, if needed. You can’t do that with other surfaces. Anyway, you can find the full post about my kitchen HERE and the HGTV.com tutorial on the DIY butcher block counters HERE.
Lastly, I’ve decided to do a “color of the month” for my milk paint line. Since there are 18 colors and 12 months in the year, two colors will be featured a few months. I’ll share the color here, but it’s going to be played out over on the new milk paint blog we’re working on. I love my milk paint line, but I don’t want my blog to become all milk paint all the time, so I needed another outlet for all of the projects, tutorials, inspiration pictures, retailer features, etc. I’ll still share about milk paint stuff here, but that blog will be the main place. And I’ll have some lovely ladies to help me out with the content, so I won’t be stretched too thin. The blog is live, but we’re still working on the design elements, content and that sort of thing. We’ll have a “grand opening” for it in a couple of weeks.
Until then, here is the color of the month for October – Typewriter!
On the milk paint blog, we’ll show some of our favorite pieces done in Typewriter, how it mixes with other colors, different ways to use the color (washing, dry brushing, etc.) and at the end of each month we’ll have a link party where you can share your work using that color.
I couldn’t wait until all of that is up and running to share these pictures with you, though. So, if you’re sick of these milk paint pictures, just hang in there with me. I’m really excited and inspired mainly by two things right now…photography and milk paint, so that’s what I’m sharing.
See you tomorrow for FFF…
50 Responses
who could ever be sick of milk paint posts?! excited for the new blog tho
So excited you’re starting with Typewriter! I just bought this color but since it’s so dark, and goes against my normal neutral pallet, I’ve been browsing for inspiration – it’s as if you read my mind!
Ahhhhh! Can you hear me screaming from colorado? I’m really excited about a blog dedicated to milk paint. I get so much inspiration from your work. That’s going to be the next best thing to taking a class from you. Yay! Keep up the awesome work.
I saw you sneak peek, the color is nice but the hardware is just beautiful with it.
We inherited my mother-in-laws bedroom set. Since I obviously can’t get rid of it… 🙂 I’ve talked my husband into letting us paint it. I was thinking silver something, but this “typewriter” might work. Thanks for the inspiration.
A warning: oxyclean stripped Waterlox from my Ikea butcher block laundry sink. Fortunately I had a leftover piece already finished so I replaced that 12″ wide piece.
That is good to know Susan – I am still trying to decide on the type of countertops for my laundry room and was wondering how butcher block would hold up. Really looking forward to the milk paint blog!
Your photography is really very nice! Clean, bright, nice use of depth of field, and good eye! 😉
I love your soap dispenser in your kitchen! Where is it from?
Also, love the color Typewriter!
I have had American cherry countertops for 12 years around my sink and they are beautiful. I have my soap dispenser sitting in a small ironstone dish (I bet you have one of those) to catch the drips…works great! The only thing I don’t like is the silicone seal around the undercount sink is now dis colored with mildew. We need to scrape it down and renew it. Otherwise everything held up great!
I followed them on pinterest.
The countertops look great. I keep my dish soap in a pretty bottle (another one for hand soap), so I can leave it out. You might try that.
I hate SS sinks. Have never liked them and when we built this house we had a soapstone or some similar product sink installed. I now have acrylic counters and a new sink – still an off white color – that I love. I can bleach stains if need be and it can actually be sanded – but we’ve never had to do that.
tina
those HL knobs are some of my favorites to use! saw the sneak peek on insta and SWOON!
Love your counter top! Such a great stain. Also, excited to try out your milk paint!
I am coveting your butcher block countertops! If only a kitchen remodel were in our near future!
Please check out our blog at http://www.thesidewayshouse.com!
Love the richness of your butcher block. I have my dawn in a lovely cruet from France. If you decide to use one, be aware that it will sometimes run down the sides which would leave the ring.
Although I have granite countertops, I have both cruet of dawn and hand soap on a narrowish, long white flattish dish (tray-like). It gives it a more polished look. An ironstone piece would look great!
Marian,
I think Typewriter might be the color for a desk project my wiife has.
The ladies at a garage sale gave it to her free because she was the only one that loved it, even with a missing turned foot.
Love your counters and your stainless sink too. My Stainless sink can handle anything and take it. If it gets dull I use the little black fine sponge sanding blocks like for sanding wood. I use water and dishsoap and “sand with the grain” of the sink, rinse and paper towel dry. They look better than brand new.
can’t wait for the new paint blog.
rick
I have a piece of trim I bought that I posted about today–it’s painted a sea foam green, and I’m guessing it’s close to 100 years old. The trim in our kitchen and bathroom was in the same shape–had been painted over many many times in 100 years old, and we couldn’t strip it all away. Do you have any advice or tips/tricks for stripping something that has been painted that much for so long? Or can some things not be stripped away?
Trim! Heck yes, lessons from yesterday!!!! Get yourself some Citristrip. Put it on thick and go to bed. Go to work. Leave it ALONE. It’s magic and you don’t need a hazmat suit. The old paint bubbles up in ribbons Use a firm toothbrush and a toothpick (or the screwdriver from an eyeglass repair kit) to just lift out the crevices. I’m stripping 15 antique doors and it’s almost fun. I’d do ads for them if they’d let me. Free.
Wow, thanks so much Christine!! I’ll get some and try it out! My kitchen has 6 doors in it that are covered in layers and layers of (pink, green and blue) paint–we gave up on stripping, and finally painted them a brown we had matched to the wood stained trim, but I’ve never been happy with the result. This will keep me busy for awhile! 🙂
We just finished stripping on of our five panel doors, covered sin a hundred years (literally) worth of paint and stain. We tried cities trip, leans trip, etc and the only thing that worked the best was a heat gun and a scraper tool. We followed that up with an orbital sander and it looks great. It took us two months because of the tiny detail work and the sheer exhaustion. Good luck!
Ugh, so many autocorrect typos! The products we tried should say “citistrip, and kleanstrip”.
I am so into this Citristrip that I’m bartering with my doctor. I’m stripping his parent’s ash bedroom set. Tall dresser, long dresser and 2 night tables. I did the tall, 6-drawer, 36″ wide dresser today. Well, this morning.
My antique doors I mentioned also have 100 years of paint layers. Each door reacts differently to the product. Over all, simply because I’m also sucking the stain out of the wood, too, (I mentioned bare wood, didn’t I?) it takes me about a day. I put it on, go to work. Come home & smooge — yes I made that up — off the paint. Add a 2nd layer for the stain, and before I go to bed, I scrape the lifted stain off and wash it down with the scrubbie.
Shoot! We’re close. I’ll come show you! They really should consider paying me. Put me in a Citristrip mobile and I’ll tour the country stripping. That didn’t come out right….
Marian, what brand/model is your kitchen faucet, and does it also come in bronze?
We should be updating our kitchen soon, and I would like to change the faucet, too. I love yours!
Since you mentioned your recent interests in photography and of course your milk paint line…here goes. I hate to be critical but wanted to give an observation. Since you got your new camera you have had a ton of photos. A certain amount I understand, but for example when you first blogged about your pumpkin on your dining room table for you halloween decor you had at least 4 photos. Of a pumpkin on your table. Really, one would have been adequate. Today has 6 pictures of your kitchen sink/countertop. For almost every post the same thing is happening. Multiple pictures of everything from multiple views. For some items I can understand it but it really is a lot of photos of almost every little thing. I find myself doing lots of scrolling. Of course tutorials with step by step pics, multiple pics are necessary. Anyway, it has kind of been bugging me so I am finally commenting on it to give you my feedback.
Okay, well, thanks for the feedback. I always enjoy blogs with lots of photos, so it’s definitely a preference thing. 🙂
I like all your photos and different angles. They almost look like art. Just my opinion!
Well I for one LIKE seeing all the photo’s. It is amazing how different views of the same thing can all look so… well…. different!! It has me looking at things in different ways too. Each to their own I guess 🙂
I, too, appreciate all of your photos, Marian. I’ve loved watching the evolution of your skill with photography, which I always thought was very good, and is only getting better. I agree with Audrey that your photos are like art, and with Caroline about how the differing views of an object offer a new perspective. This is YOUR blog, keep posting to it the way YOU want. I’m not sure what Denette’s complaint was meant to accomplish – she admitted herself that she just scrolls through photos she feels are extraneous. She could have continued her practice of scrolling without offering her unsolicited opinion about YOUR pictures on YOUR blog. You like lots of pictures, the rest of your readers like lots of pictures (no one else has complained to date, have they?) so please, keep posting lots of pictures!
Along with several other commenters, I too am wondering about your soap dispenser. It’s lovely. Is it vintage/antique, or something we can get ourselves? Do tell! I do love your kitchen, every single detail about it.
Very excited for your milk paint blog! I love your MMSMP posts, so its going to be wonderful to have an entire blog, with extra features on it, devoted to the various colors and application techniques. I’m quite excited for the link parties to see what other people are doing with your milk paint!
Oh cool! Perfect gray black. You know what is amazing… if you mix black with yellow… you get great shades of green… It’s crazy! Can’t wait to see the milk paint blog. I’m really enjoying the great photos too…
Cindy
If you want to keep your soap bottle out, how about putting a saucer under it?
Love, love the butcher block. That may be my 1st change in my new to me house..
love the color. I have a black, white and tan home. My bed linens are made from old French sheets my girlfriend in France sent me and the furniture in my bedroom is getting makeovers. Typewriter just might do the trick. can’t wait for your mildk paint blog tho, because I tend to have several problems working with the MMSMP
I just cut a hole for a soap dispense and now i don’t have that problem at all. It looks so much neater, too. They are easy to refill from the top (I thought I had to do it from the bottom for years). I used to have to get them “overseas”, but they’re easily , think Ikea, available now and you can generally get them to coordinate with your other fixtures.
Yes, I also want to know where u got that pretty soap or lotion dispenser. I love it!
Do you use the Bon Ami to clean your sink? Ours is in need of a good cleaning to get it a bit shinier again!!
Yep! I used to use the Bar Keeper’s Friend, but I can only find the powder, not the scouring paste, so now I use Bon Ami on my sink and stainless pots and pans.
I’ve been able to find Bar Keeper’s Friend in the paste at Bed, Bath and Beyond
I also have maple butch block counter tops. However mine are natural with a sealer. Yours look so pretty with a darker finish. How did you do it ? Was it natural first then you stained ? If yes would you share the stain color ?
Actually, they are walnut, so I just sealed them as well. The wood is the natural color.
I love wooden kitchen benches. In my previous house, a beautiful old Queenslander, I had them and, like you, used them as I would any other bench surface. I was in the house for 25 years and had the bench resealed once. I loved the look and the feel of the bench tops. I don’t understand why some people are afraid to use timber.
As if we could ever get sick of milk paint! Not in a gazillion years!! It’s so inspiring to see what you and others do with their projects. So I’m looking forward to that new blog, alongside this one of course!! Thank you for bringing daily creativity, and your life, into mine. <3
Hi Marian~~~Love the milk paint blog idea & can’t wait to be able to see it! Great colors to showcase. Love all the camera shots too. I can’t wait to read your blog everyday :0)
XO, Linda
Hi miss Marian,
I looove everything about you and what you do, I don`t often subscribe to anything but I had to with MMS. I just wish I could find your products in Ontario, Canada.
I even had a dream that I was working with the milk paints and you came to help lol
Well, don`t stop what you`re doing, I love how you inspire me, I`ve started refinishing furniture again, nurse one day, stripper the next (furniture stripper that is) lol
God Bless!
arrgghhh!! I just found where I can get your paints about an hour from here wooottt!
Not sure where you are from Vicki, but there are lots of places now. If your Home Hardware store has Homestead Paints then I’m sure they will bring in MMS if you request it (as I did). Happy shopping. 🙂
The first reader replied my same thoughts, “Who would ever get sick of your milk paint post?” I just love the typewriter paint! Before mixing, it looks like oreo cookie crumbs. Lol. What a yummy paint color. Would you say, after it dries, it resembles a chalkboard? With chalkboard projects being all the craze right now, I’ve been wanting to create a board for my home. I was thinking this would be the perfect color, but not sure I could use this paint for an actual chalkboard? I would not want to mess with the formula, that’s for sure. Thanks for all your beautiful ideas :).
I am excited about a milk paint blog(help is good and so are different people’s techniques)! I like that you are taking loads of pics, I noticed something different in a different angle…can’t please everyone so you might as well please yourself. Too, thanks for always reminding us that imperfection is actually perfection…aka character;)
Could you tell me where that gorgeous tile came from? Beautiful kitchen!!
Thanks!
My comment is years past your post about soap rings but wanted to share a possible save. I use the clear plastic caps from tops of yogurt or sour cream under my dispenser. Perfect size and unobtrusive – can be cleaned easily when they get gunky.