Sweet and Petite

My husband called me a few weeks ago and wanted me to come look at a tablesaw he found at a garage sale near our home. I have been wanting a tablesaw and he figured this one would meet my needs. He is so sweet to think of me. However, when I got there I found out the real reason he had called was because they had a signed Trailblazer basketball. "Oh I forgot to mention that," he said.
We ended up with the tablesaw, the basketball and quite a few pieces of furniture. I am sure he regretted calling me in the end. The good news was he was there to help me load it and he had his truck.

This desk was one of the pieces. It looked like it was from the 30s or 40s. It had a nice back on it that would allow it to be a floating desk in a room.

Upon taking off the hardware last night I came to realize this desk isn't as old as it appears to be. I think it is an 80s copy catter. The construction is sound, but not the same as an older piece.

I stripped the top and the wood underneath was beautiful in my opinion. I decided not to paint the top and to simply add a coat of poly to it. The roping detail was pretty dirty. After spending some time with a toothbrush and soapy water I realized there was no way I would be able to restain it without some major effort. I decided to paint it and use dark wax on it to bring out the details.

The desk is painted in Annie Sloan Paris Grey and the drawers are Old White. I top coated the rest of the desk in clear soft wax.

I have been so busy trying to get the yard and pool summer ready that staging my furniture for pictures isn't a big priority. Part of the problem is we simply aren't home during daylight. With both kids in baseball I come home and get things ready for the next day, clean up and then we head out to a game. We typically get home around eight, eat and  then I head out to the garage to work. Let's just say lighting isn't at its prime at 9:00 at night. Someday.

Grain Sack Table

A friend texted me and asked me if I was interested in a drop leaf table she was giving away. You already know my answer.

She is a tiny thing and the two of us loaded it into my truck (which isn't tall, but for my 5' 2" body it is), Shewoman style.

The table is structurally solid, but the finish was in rough shape. It got even rougher after it sat in front of my garage for a few weeks in the blistering heat.

Originally, I thought about sanding the entire thing and then restaining it. It has a simple shaker design to it. However, after sanding for awhile I realized in the words of Sweet Brown, "Ain't nobody got time for that." My mid century night stand stain job also helped dissuade me from my original idea.

I LOVE the grainsack craze that has been all over Blogland. I took inspiration on another table (a much smaller version) I spotted on one of the numerous Blog Parties I frequent. I painted the table with Annie Sloan Old White and  painted the stripes in Sea Serpent from Sherwin Williams. I love this color as it is not quite navy, but not a bright blue either. I top coated it with Annie Sloan Dark Wax.

 A major malfunction occurred at this point. The tape pulled off a ton of the Annie Sloan base color. Yikes. I went back and repainted those spots, but the paint was uneven. The result came out looking like this:

 I will go ahead and say I LIKE the result so I meant to do it.

I tried to stage some good pictures, but my husband wasn't home to help me move the table to another location. Also, with the amount of furniture I have in the garage, and in front of my house right now, I am not sure where this other location would be (#furniturehoarder).

I have this for sale on Craigslist now. I am not sure this is the best venue for it. Again, I am struggling with what my next step is. With summer approaching I will have a lot more time on my hands for sales and building up stock. I know this table would be gone pretty fast in some parts of town or in a shop. I LOVE the size of it. It is big enough for eight people when it is out all the way, but when folded it fits into a space of only 26". This would be a perfect crafting table. It sounds like I am trying to convince myself to keep it. Mmmm.

Mid Century Night Stands & Trading Up

I am not a fan of mid century design. I can appreciate it, but it certainly isn't my style. I do know that mid century is hot right now in my neck of the woods.

A few years ago I picked up this chaise lounge for free in down and out neighborhood near my home.

It had a Burberry looking cover/pad that came with it. I admit the chair was comfortable. It swiveled, rocked and was a great way to relax by the pool BUT I wanted matching chaise lounges. After seven summers in our home (this will be our eighth) I am ready for some matching pool furniture. I began to search on Craigslist for loungers, but kept finding singles. Finally, I began to search Target, Sears and even Wal-Mart for new ones. HOLY COW. A cheap, decent looking one runs at least $130 without cushions. Add a cushion and you are at around $200. I asked for friends opinions on Facebook and the split was 50/50 on going with a cushionless one or trying to buy used.

In the end I found two wrought iron chaises with pristine cushions for $100 on Craigslist. After researching I found my chair had value. Ones like it went for $350 on Etsy. I sold mine for $150. The base was a little rough and the person who bought it told me they would be sandblasting it, repainting it and selling it for much more. I didn't feel like I had the time or the patience to deal with that so I was happy to pocket the $150 and buy my new chairs. I even had enough to put away for an outdoor shower (more on that later).

Speaking of mid century I picked up two night stands from a teacher friend who is moving to China with her husband (also a teacher) and three kids to teach. She is adventrous and I admire their families need for new experiences. I could never do it. Anyway, she was selling a bunch of their old furniture and I ended up buying five tables from her. These two pieces were from her Grandma's house. The varnish was bubbling and they had seen better days.

I sanded them down. This took a lot more work than I like. There is a reason I usually paint furniture.

They were solid wood and the drawers worked perfectly.

I had some issues with the stain. I beleive it is because I didn't get all of the varnish off completely. This is the top of one. It looks worse in this picture than it does in "real life". I am suprised they have't sold yet. If they don't sell soon I may go ahead and paint them black or another color. I have seen some on Etsy that go for at least $200 a pair.

 

I realized that I don't think I will be spending a lot of time sanding furniture down unless it is an amazing piece I can make a lot of money from or I plan on keeping for a long time. Stripping, sanding and restaing is a lot of work. I don't like to work very hard. Just kidding.

Geography Lesson

I have done several map pieces lately. I picked up this night stand at an auction. I painted it with my new fav Peacock and decoupaged maps to the drawers and top. I posted it and it sold quickly.

I accidentally left a strip of wood showing...I did paint it before the customer picked it up. Crazy what you don't notice!

I forgot to pull this from Craigslist and received a few calls in regards to it. I  happened to have another night stand on hand. I ended up painting it a navy blue and adding maps to it similar to this piece. I have learned that maps are hot. I need to stock up on maps as my supply is beginning to dwindle.