My first year

Painting furniture has been the perfect hobby/obsession for me.  I retired from teaching at the end of January 2013 and plunged right into painting. I had first read about Annie Sloan chalk paint in a newspaper article that featured Katrina Barclay who owns Malenka Originals.  Here is a look back, more or less in order, at the things that I have painted.  It’s pretty obvious that I like colour.

Mahogany dresser painted in Provence with dark wax:

French Provincial coffee table painted in French Linen with a blue wash and gilding:

Pine dresser in a lightened Napoleon Blue and stained top:

Waterfall Dressers: The first one is Barcelona Orange, the second is a peacock blue that was a mix of Napoleon Blue and Aubusson.  I later repainted it in the 3rd photo.

Mahogany end tables painted in a lightened Provence with Old White and German Silver gilding:

Mahogany End tables.

Art Deco mahogany dresser in Provence with an Aubusson wash:

Mahogany Desk in Old White and Emile in the drawers:

Smaller Mahogany desk in French Linen, Old White and copper gilding:

Small dresser in Chateau Grey and Old White:

Two incarnations of a Mid-Century table:

Miss Mustard Seed Typewriter and Old White:

Coffee table in Graphite and Old White:

End table in Graphite and Silver Craft paint:

Drum table in Old White, with Graphite, Paloma and Gilding on the edges:

French Provincial Dresser in Pure White with Old Violet and Gilding:

French Provincial dresser with Old Violet and gilding

Teak coffee table in Graphite and Florence:

Washstand in MMS Tricycle and dark wax:

End table that was painted first in Tricycle then changed to a Provence/Florence mix:

Provence mixed with Florence to make a true turquoise.

Pine dining table refinished top and Pure White:

Round table with Provence and Old White base:

French Provincial table in Old White with walnut top:

Antique table in Chateau Grey with a white wash:

Table painted with Chateau Grey and a white wash

Vintage rocking chair in a Provence/Florence mix:

Maple dresser in Emperor’s Silk, Tricycle and Old White:

Antique mahogany dresser in Cream:

Oak desk in Graphite:

Antique dresser in Emperor’s Silk:

Antique dresser painted with Emperor’s Silk

Mid-century table in Provence/ Florence mix with MMS Typewriter and Emperor’s Silk feet:

Nesting tables in lightened Provence with Graphite and gilding on the edges:

I have also done a few custom pieces and various chairs and small tables which I haven’t included in this post.  It has been a very busy retirement so far.

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A tale of two chairs

These 2 vintage chairs are both considered Windsor chairs.  A Windsor chair has a saddle seat with drilled holes into which the legs and the back are fitted.  It originated in England probably some time in the 17th century but it first became associated with the town of Windsor around 1710.  English Windsors were usually stained and the seat was made from elm, a strong wood that does not split easily.  American Windsors were made with a variety of woods and often painted to disguise the different types.  In the 19th century, rustic chairs were painted with milk paint which was a mixture of buttermilk, turpentine and cow’s blood. There are a variety of styles that can be seen in this picture:

http://www.designsponge.com/2010/09/past-present-windsor-chair-history-resources.html

Although always available because of the simplicity of the design, Windsor chairs have gone in and out of style.  They are associated with the Colonial Revival movement of the late 19th century and are generally seen in traditional homes.  However, the eclectic mix and match fashion of the last few years has created a new interest in using Windsors ( usually painted) with other styles.  Look at this great photo from Houzz.com:

Photo by Jeanette Karlsen. See more scandinavian dining room designs

The chairs have been painted light pink and paired with mid-century furniture.  Or this one:

Photo by Neiman Taber Architects. See more contemporary dining room designs

                                                                                                                                                                                                                       You can find an excellent article with more photos of a modern take on Windsor chairs  here.

My two chairs were both bought at the same garage sale.  The first one is a 1930’s rocker which is an adult chair and the small size suggests it was marketed for women.  It is a good-sized child’s chair by today’s standards which is why I painted it turquoise ( an AS Provence/Florence mix).  I like the dipped look on hoop back chairs.

The white chair was someone’s painting chair and was covered in paint spots.  I painted the seat and back in purple ( AS Old Violet and Emperor’s Silk) then painted over it in Pure White.  I wiped off a lot of the white paint to reveal the undercoats.  You can also see some of the original splatters.  It’s not everyone’s taste but I love this little chair.  It’s very sturdy in spite of being old looking and I think it would look great as an accent chair somewhere.

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The weird world of Craigslist and Kijiji

Normally, I write my posts about furniture styles and the different pieces that I have painted.  However, lately I have been having some strange experiences with both Kijiji and Craigslist that I thought I might share.  I have now had 2 people buy furniture that they were going to repaint and one person offer me a low price because they were going to repaint it.  It’s hard to not be insulted but at the same time you want to sell the piece so I have been trying to be philosophical about it.  Here’s the first piece that was bought to be repainted.  It is an unusual Duncan Phyfe style coffee table that was originally maple.  I painted it with AS Florence, used dark wax all over and added gilding.

This is the second piece. It is an antique dresser that was in rough shape when I got it.  The drawers were missing pieces in the front, the bottom drawer sticks a bit and it needed new knobs.  It also had about 5 different colours of paint, probably lead based, judging by the undersides.  I painted it in AS Old White and Louis Blue.  I also painted the insides of the drawers because they smelt dry and slightly smoky,

I get that it looks like a baby’s room but that was the intention.  The buyer wanted to repaint it for her wedding, to use as a cake table. (?)

Finally this is the piece that I didn’t sell to the person who was low-balling me.  It is a classic French drum table painted in Old White, Paloma, Graphite and German Silver gilding.  REALLY!

I guess that’s what I get for trying to sell my pieces through the internet but since I have no other venue other than Etsy, I’ll have to grow a thick skin.  The other annoyance is the trolls that like to send you insulting messages about your ad.  Those are at least funny because you know what their object is.  I’m not sure the re-painters even realize that I have just painted these pieces.  How do I interpret that?

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