WHAT THE HECK IS GLAZE???

I get asked this question a lot, and quite frankly I couldn't have answered that myself just a couple years ago! Hopefully this info will help some of you!

******

*For starters, if you have absolutely NO clue what glaze is, it's a translucent liquid that can be tinted or mixed with paint to create an antique look, which, to me is probably the quickest, easiest method there is.

*It can be used on anything that has more decorative designs (crevices :) )that you want to see stand out and if you don't want bother with any sanding for distressing. Here are a few examples:


*Ok, so if you've never used or even seen the stuff, let me explain it:

I think it kind of looks like thin glue when you first open the can, but maybe that's just me! It comes in many different brands and colors. You can buy plain glaze and have them tint it for you in the color of your choice or you can buy a can of glaze and separate cans of paint (color of your choice) and mix it yourself. I usually prefer to do this because glaze goes a LONG way so it allows you to use multiple colors for different pieces of furniture. HOWEVER, if you're using black glaze you'll want to have them tint it for you! Why? Because the glaze is white so if you buy black paint to mix into it it will only go a charcoal gray. It's science :)

*Where to buy it: I usually get mine from Home Depot or Lowes depending on which is closer. It's in the paint section, ask someone if you can't find it. There are different brands, but so far I've been happy with this and this. And trust me, a quart will almost always be more than plenty!

So Now what?
1.
After your piece is completely dried and you've properly mixed your glaze if needed (4 parts glaze to 1 part paint) using a paintbrush or rag, wipe the glaze in small sections across your piece, making sure to get in all the crevices (man I hate that word!). If your piece has a lot of crevices make sure to use a bristle brush to make it easier.
2.
Using your rag, wipe off the glaze however you choose, leaving however much color you like. This is all personal opinion, but you usually don't want a ridiculous amount of glaze ... unless you like that kind of thing :)

If you're scared at first, try using a damp cloth to start out with, it's easier to control the glaze that way. I like to brush it on dry, wipe off, then use a damp cloth if I have to. I also keep a small bowl of water next to me just in case.
*And p.s. don't use colored rags, they always get little fuzzies on the piece.
3.
Continue in small sections until your piece is finished. If you need to wipe any glaze off, do it quickly using a damp cloth. Glazing in small sections is always best when you're getting used to the glaze because it's harder to work with the longer you let it sit. If it sits too long it will dry and get flaky.

*If you would like to see photos of the process, go HERE for a great tutorial on All Things Thrifty


** Did any of that make sense to anyone? And does it help?? Your comments are appreciated! :) **

Rocking Chair Re-Do

So I'm still posting about my mom's house! This was another one of our weeks worth of make-overs, just a random chair she had sitting in the guest bedroom with a blanket covering it:

So we glued a wooden applique on it, primed it, spray painted, and glazed it and now she looks like this:

p.s. Sometimes appliques are hard to find. I've found that a lot of store workers don't know what you're talking about, but you can find them in Home Depot or Lowes by the lumber section in accessories. Or if you're lucky enough to live close to a Hobby Lobby (which, I can THANKFULLY say that I do now!!!) they usually have a bigger selection for cheaper, but don't sell many big appliques. And, I apologize, but I can't remember which section they're in.

And again, I'm sorry, but more on glaze later. I've had a lot of people ask what it is and how to use it, so I'll get to that soon I promise!

A "New" Toy Box

My husband got me this chest a few years ago for blankets and what not, but slowly it just turned into a toy box... that's what happens after you have kids I guess :) ! Anyway, it was in major need of an update, and after considering just getting a new one I decided to be cheap and make due for now. So this is what happened...

About a yard and a half of fabric and 45 minutes later, she turned into this...

I know what you're thinking, the top TOTALLY needs paint, but I haven't decided on that one yet. My 3 year old likes to color on this and, let's be honest, isn't the best colorer (not a word, I know!) so it gets a lot of marker, paint, crayon, you name it marks. Sooo, until I decide what to do with the rest of it, or what to do with her, it will stay half ugly... and I'm ok with that.

So how did I do it? ...

1- Measure out your fabric to make sure it will fit!

2- Remove the top and handles

3- If your fabric will go all the way around, fantastic, but I just used some I had already in 2 pieces... so I folded the edges around the back and hot glued them (just to make a seam, without having to sew) and it ended up looking like this:
Look closely in the center of the picture and you can see the seam down the middle. If your fabric fits all the way around then just have your seam in the back of your chest or basket or whatever it is that you're covering.

4- Pull your fabric over the edges of the top and staple, making sure your fabric stays even and leaving enough room to staple it to the bottom also.

5- Staple the entire top, gathering the fabric a little on the edges, then once that's tight turn over your piece and staple the bottom, pulling the fabric so it's tight again.

6- Once you're finished stapling you can go back on your seam (where the 2 sides come together) and hot glue it shut if you need to. You might not have to, though, if you've stapled your fabric tight enough.

And wah lah! You're done! So easy!


Stuff Ya Need:

Fabric
Staple gun
Glue gun
Screw Driver (to remove the top or any handles)

*I now feel like my toy box is bearable, although my daughter did not notice at all. Should I be offended? :)

My Great Grandma's Chair

Some of you have probably already seen this on my family blog, but I had to add it to this one because it's probably my favorite favorite favorite thing I've done!

I was given this bedroom set from my sister (of my great grandma's) a few years ago and this chair came with it. It sat in my garage forever until I finally decided to put it in my kids bathroom and reupholster it with the same fabric I used to make my shower curtain. Took me long enough to decide, but I'm glad it did, I loved how it turned out...

What I Did:

1-Ripped off all the old nasty upholstery

2-Sanded with fine sand paper (since the piece was so old it didn't need a ton of sanding)

(no, I did not prime this piece)

3-Painted with Behr primer and paint in one
**P.S. I would not recommend paint and primer in one... Why? Well, I do hair, so I'll use this as an example- Shampoo & Conditioner in one?? Why mix them together for a mediocre result when, really, each of them has their own specific job that should be done separate?? ... Same goes for paint and primer (at least that's what I think, but I'm not a professional painter, so what do I know? :) ).**

4-Glazed
**more to come on glaze later**

5-After the paint dried, I bought new foam, covered it in fabric and used a staple gun to staple it to the bottom. Then we (my sister in law helped me with the reupholstering) stapled the back panel on, stuffed it as we stapled, and hot glued the decorative ribbon stuff (can't think of its name right now! ha!) around the edges.


You like?

Painting the Cabinets

I wasn't going to do this, but I can't stand it! This is my mom's kitchen, we started painting six of the cabinets while I was there last week and she's been working on the rest ever since. It's amazing the difference!! She's hated her cabinets for the longest time so I suggested painting them and my dad finally agreed to the task :) Anyway, there will be a much longer, detailed post to come on these babies, but for now, you just get to look at a few of them....

My mom will be embarrassed of the mess, but just know this is literally RIGHT before we started ripping them apart, so the mess is all refinishing stuff :)

We painted them a light and dark gray, it turned out fantastic, and put chicken wire on the insides of a couple of the glass pieces. I saw some fabric that looked like chicken wire and it was super cute so I thought this would look super cute in her kitchen too. They live on a farm so it's totally fitting :)

That's all for now. Sorry to tease you! More posts to come on the cabinet make-over later!

Refinishing a Cedar Hope Chest

I had our flights booked to go see my parents the beginning of October and when my mom mentioned how much she hated her china hutch I said, "Let's paint it!!" ... Long story short, the china hutch turned into that, 2 hope chests, a rocking chair, a nightstand, and kitchen cabinets. Yes, kitchen cabinets. Am I missing anything? It was a long week but I think the both of us had an absolute blast! Believe it or not!

Here's the first of many posts to come on my mom's new house make-over...

Unfortunately this is the only picture I have of this one, but it turned out BEAUTIFUL! And I can say that because my mom ended up finishing it :) She did an awesome job! She also ordered 2 knobs from Hobby Lobby to go in place of the other ones, which I think will end up looking saweet! Good job Mom!

What We Did:

1. Remove the top upholstered part & handles
2. Fill in handle holes with wood filler
3. Sand (just enough to rough it up)
4. Prime (Kilz spray primer)
5. Spray painted in Krylon Ivory (satin sheen)
6.Glazed

*My mom also added the decorative wooden scrolls in place of the handles... to do that you use wood glue to seal it to the piece after you've sanded and before you've primed. We decided after we had already painted to add the scrolls so my mom primed and painted them separate, then glued and glazed them over the top. It works either way, it's just best to add it before you paint.

New Beginning

So this is my first post on this blog... how exciting, I know :) Anyway, I wanted a place to post my furniture make-overs without having to put it on my family blog, so this will basically be a blog of all the fun, or not-so-fun, pieces I refinish. Hopefully it will end up being more than that if I can juggle other crafty things with two kiddos. They obviously come first so hopefully my oldest will keep taking naps for another year so I can squeeze in a couple hours of me time in a day :) Hope you enjoy looking as much as I'll enjoy posting!