Charming Herb Tray via Chalk Paint and Stencils

I found lots of small treasures this past week, but that will have to wait for another post. They’ve all been put on the back burner while I completed another chalk painted project. You know those old wooden, dove-tailed flatware trays? I’ve always gravitated to them, and use them in my craft drawers instead of the kitchen. I’ve had this one for quite a while now, and had no intention of painting it. Recently, a dear friend gave me a new
set of alphabet stencils in a great font,
and I really wanted to find something
to use them on.
I’ve also been hankering to paint
a sign with chalk paint.
So at the intersection of chalk paint, letter stencils, and old wood, and throw in my gardening mood, here is the result…… I’ve acquired these old trays with graphics painted on the sides, (windmills are my favorite), but up until now, haven’t painted my own design. I wanted this tray to be at home on a countertop or table, rather than stuck in a drawer. I believe I’ve made it worthy of being on display now. Since the wood was already very old and aged, I didn’t want to hide all of the beautiful patina with paint. So I dry-brushed very lightly, here and there, with Red, Kelly Green, and Moss chalk paint. I gave the same treatment to the dividers and the inner walls, and darkened all of the inner corners with a black wash,
to mimic to look of darkened wood from moisture. I then stenciled “Herbs” and “Seeds” alternated on all 4 sides. Then after lightly distressing with sandpaper, I sealed the paint treatment with clear and dark wax. I left the bottom wood bare (above and below) just to preserve the rustic look. I really love how it turned out, so naturally
I couldn’t stop taking beauty shots of ways to use it. For holding mini planters of herbs. Great for tea bags, sweeteners, etc. A charming serving tray for cordials. And of course, for silverware…. I have another larger dove-tailed tray, but the wood patina is blonde, so I may be more liberal with the chalk paint. Not to mention the size will allow for longer words, so we’ll see what I come up with. Ciao for now.
A million projects waitin’….. Linking To:

I Found The Coolest Thing At The Thrift Store!

I braved the heat and went to the thrift store on Sunday. Since my lil’ Jeep doesn’t have A/C, I am only willing to drive as far as
my neighborhood GW to go
treasure-hunting on a face-melting day.
Oy.

But Oh, I was so rewarded for going. I only came home with one thing, but it’s a doozy! I can’t believe I found something this cool at a thrift store.

No matter what you call it….coal scuttle, coal bin, coal hod, it’s seriously awesome. I love everything about it.

The color,

the brass accents,

the feet,

the scoop,

and the removable bin inside.

Again I say, Awesome!

All I know is, those Victorians/Edwardians sure had a way of taking utilitarian items and making them beautiful. I’ve always believed that useful things should be aesthetically pleasing, since you use them all the time.

Haven’t decided whether to list it on Ebay or Etsy, but I do know it needs to be gently cleaned up a bit.

After this treasure, I think many of my future thrift finds will pale by comparison....at least for a little while. You heard me, Universe.
Prove me wrong!

Chalk Paint Before & After.... The Key To Your Castle

Oregon is officially into Summer temperatures. So when it’s 90+ degrees outside, and I'm more of a Boston Fern than a cactus, it’s the opportune time to play with chalk paint, while enjoying the A/C!

I’ve been digging through my hoard, and have found all sorts of things to work my paint magic on.

I’ve had this metal key plaque for years, but I decided it needed a better life than sitting in a storage box.

It had great Medieval bones, and since it’s a sturdy 17” of cast metal, versus the retro resin ones,

I felt it deserved the royal treatment.

Since I am such a fan of rust and verdigris, it should come as no surprise what colors I chose. Tada!

One of the many great things about chalk paint, is that it’s matte finish lends itself well to the rust effect, since rust and verdigris are powdery and crusty. Perfect!

Over the black, I added a chocolate brown, followed by brick red, rust, and finally aqua.

Rather than the usual distressing and waxing, to keep an authentic rusty appearance, I sprayed it with matte clear coat, and nothing else. The clear coat will also protect it from the elements, in the event its new purpose is to be garden art.

If you are ever attempting to paint something to look old, just place it up against something that IS old, and see if they look at home together.

Mission Accomplished!

Retro Family Drive-In Treasure

I haven’t had many treasures screamin’ at me at the thrift store lately, but one thing did stand out this weekend.

Ain’t it great? An homage to a bygone era.

You know how I feel about aqua and red, and when yellow is added, it’s no shock that this grabbed ahold of my attention, and didn’t let go.

Seriously cool 3-dimensional details.

….and I love the tinted windows showing the diner inside, with signs showing “Fountain Creations” and “Coca Cola” on the wall.

This is a resin Burwood clock from 1988. The clock is battery-operated, and still works. The plastic clock cover is toast, big time, and is easily removable, as shown. In the era of online shopping, I have to believe that replacing it isn’t impossible.

Coming soon to my Etsy shop…..

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Custom Chalk Painting and Etsy Synchronicity

Thought I’d share what project I’ve been working on.

Recently, an Etsy jewelry artist requested my painting skills. Pam, of Torchbabe (great name), is currently preparing for a large, juried artisan show in Wisconsin, and needed custom displays for her jewelry pieces. This has been an enjoyable occurrence of synchronicity, because she purchased displays from 2 other Etsians, then had them sent to me, to work my chalk paint magic on them. Once I was finished with them, I would then ship them to Pam.

Pam is truly an artist. Torchbabe is apropos, because she creates her jewelry pieces from scratch, cutting and working the metal herself. Pretty cool, eh? Visit her shop Here.

Here are two of her creations:

One display style she chose was a tiered set of bamboo stands. These will be used for her bracelets. She purchased them from the Etsy shop LastSummerTreasures. These are normally sold with a bamboo stem, but Pam had them assembled with copper pipe she sent them, for a custom look to tie in with her jewelry’s patina.

Here is what they looked like before I painted them:

And now, the after:

Given my typical chalk paint style, no arm-twisting was required to come up with a color combination that would showcase and coordinate Pam’s jewelry pieces.

This is the first time I’ve used chalk paint on bamboo, and I love how it turned out.

The distressing went well. I could have even gone further, but there were already so many colors, that I only revealed the natural bamboo in tiny doses.

The first paint layer was black, with some brown added to warm it up. Next layer is Rust, then Red, then Moss, and finally the deep Turquoise/Teal color.

Of course, it wouldn’t be complete without clear and dark wax. So far, I’ve only used Briwax with the chalkpaint, and I’ve been happy with the results. I still want to try out some of the more expensive brands, but since I can purchase the Briwax locally, and not have to pay a shipping charge, I'm quite satisfied.

I love how these displays turned out so much, that I just couldn’t stop taking pictures of them.

These look great with a dark or bright background. Awesome!

I didn’t have any of Pam’s jewelry for the shots, so I took a couple with some brass jewelry I had on hand.

What a perfect marriage. The jewelry enhances the stands, and the stands enhance the jewelry.

I will post pictures with Pam’s creations on the displays, after her show in July. Can’t wait to see how they look together. I also painted a ring case she purchased, but Pam still needs to put her touches on it, so I’ll show pictures of that, after her show, as well.

I’ve really enjoyed doing custom paint work for a fellow Etsian, especially with someone as sweet and talented as Pam of Torchbabe. You can love what you do, but if you’re not doing it with the right people, you don’t love it anymore. I am grateful that she sought me out, because we were right for each other.

Thank you Pam!

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