painting

Painting Wicker Furniture

May 8, 2015 by Jessica 3 Comments

Summer weather is officially here for us and we are spending a lot of time outdoors. I have noticed that some of our outdoor furniture is starting to look a little rough and was in need of some love. I received some of that wonderful chalky finish paint c/o DecoArt and decided I would try using it to paint the wicker chairs we have. They have weathered many years out in the Florida and Louisiana weather. Originally they were green then I spray painted them yellow. Now it was time for them to have yet another makeover.

As you can see, there were many places where the paint had been worn off. We try to keep these under the awning but my kids like to drag them around and then they get rained on or stay in the sun for longer than they should.

I used the Americana Chalky Finish Paint in Everlasting as the base for my color then added some of color Treasure to get this blue color. I tried to make one chair darker than the other but in the end they look pretty similar.

I wiped down the wicker furniture and trimmed off pieces that were broken. You can sand down spots if previous paint is chipping off, but I didn’t feel the need to and it turned out wonderful. Once it was dry, I painted on one coat of the paint with a regular paint brush. I was really happy with the coverage after the first coat and only did a second coat on the edges that had seemed to get the most worn.

Lastly, I finished by painting a coat of Ultra-Matte Varnish to protect the paint from the weather.

I know that spray painting would be an easier thing to do to paint something like this, but I just love the finished look of the chalky finish paint. And quite honestly, I am starting to really love that hand painted look more on my outdoor furniture than a perfectly sprayed paint job. I feel like it adds more character. You can see other types of things I have painted using this type of paint here and visit the DecoArt Chalky Finish website for more chalk paint ideas and inspiration.

This post was created in partnership with DecoArt. Thank you for supporting the sponsors that support Happy Together.

DIY Chicken Wire Display Door

January 20, 2015 by Jessica 2 Comments

One of my favorite types of DIY are the kind where you take something that might not look of value to many and turn it into something new and useable. So I was super excited when DecoArt challenged me to use their Multi-Surface Acrylics on something that could easily be found at places like flea markets, etc.

I had a friend offer me some old doors a few weeks ago and there was one that I knew would be perfect for this project. Look at how beat up this door was!

It looks like it should go to the dump, but I saw that there was still some life left in it. In fact, I plan on using this as a garden door one day. I wiped down the door real good and took off the tape to prepare it for painting.

Here are all the supplies I used for this project:

Door with large opening
Chicken Wire
Americana Multi-Surface Satin acrylic paint(s) of choice. I needed almost 6 ounces to coat each side of the door twice. Amount needed will depend on how large your surface is.
Paint Brush and other supplies needed to paint (drop cloth, cup for paint, paint cleaner, etc)
Staple Gun and Staples
Wire Cutters
Pliers
Optional: Wood for inside of door, Glue, Clamps

I chose to paint each side of the door a different color. I used the soft jade on one side and coastal waters on the other.

The directions suggest at least two coats of paint, so I did two coats on each side. It has very good coverage. If this was a door that I would actually be using as my front door, I would have done one more coat just to really cover it well. I let it dry overnight. The good thing is this paint is self sealing so there’s no need for primer or separate sealer. And the paint is for indoor and outdoor use. Awesome right?

My hubby cut out four pieces of wood that I glued on the inside opening. This door’s middle was foam and I didn’t want that showing. I used a strong glue to glue the wood on and used some clamps to keep them in place while it dried. I let that glue dry overnight as well. Then I stained the wood with a natural stain according to instructions on the can. After that dried, I stapled on the chicken wire using a staple gun. Then I used wire cutters to cut off the extra wire. If you want, you can use pliers to twist the ends so they don’t poke out. I’m even thinking of going back and putting thin wood strips all around the back side to completely enclose the wire ends.

I love how it turned out! I’m still waiting to find the perfect vintage hardware to go on it (that is also in my price range!). I know that will add to this project even more.

And of course, once I have a garden area that I can make all my own, we will fix the side door crack and add this to the garden fencing. For now we plan on keeping it in the kitchen and putting photos and our children’s artwork on it. Always look for the possibility in things. They just might surprise you! See more Multi-Surface Acrylic crafting ideas and inspirations here. -Jess

I parterned with DecoArt for this post and received compensation for doing so. All opinions are my own. Thank you for supporting businesses that support Happy Together.

Painting A Vintage Scale

January 9, 2015 by Jessica 2 Comments

As renters, we live in a world of brown and beige. Every time the Coast Guard has moved us I really look hard to try and find a rental that matches my desires in terms of design, but I have yet for that to work out. In the meantime, I am always on the search to add some brightness and color on a budget to said brown/beige covered houses. I was cleaning up Christmas stuff the other day when I looked at this vintage scale I had sitting on my kitchen counter. I had always liked the scale but it added to the blahness of the counters/back splash. It was time for some paint to liven it up and add some color.

I simply wiped down the scale really good with a wet paper towel and let it dry. Then I used the Americana Chalky Finish Paint to paint it with a regular paintbrush. I started with a small amount (probably like 3 tablespoons) of the paint in Everlasting. Then I added a few drops of Treasure and mixed it up. It was too blue for me, so I added some Refreshing until I got this light blueish with a hint of aqua in it. I painted on a really thin coat at first and let it dry. I liked how some of the rust still popped through but wanted a little more coverage so I added another thin coat. I liked the coverage and yet could still see just a tad bit of rust through so it still had an old appearance (hard to see in this photo). I left the face of the scale alone and didn’t worry about painting the places that were too hard to get to and weren’t seen. I also didn’t add a sealer because this will be inside and the chances of it getting wet are very little. I have to say that I have really come to adore the Chalky Finish Paint because there’s no sanding, no priming needed, it can paint just about anything, and dries really fast.

I’m so happy with how it turned out and I’m happy to have been able to add some more color to my kitchen.

-Jess

Mini Clipboard DIY

December 1, 2014 by Jessica 4 Comments

I love putting together little gifts to have on hand. One thing I like to add in those type of gifts are mini clipboards with a cute printable on it. I sometimes can find them ready made, but they either sell quickly or are more on the expensive side (in my opinion). So I found some supplies at Michaels to make my own. Now I can customize them however I want and not be limited to what I find in a store.

To make your own clipboards, you will need (I found these all at Michaels):

Metal Clips (make sure they have a flat back)
Wood rectangle (I found these two sizes: 4.75″ x 6.75″ and 5″ x 6″)
E6000 Glue
Printables/Pictures (I find that the Project Life cards work well too)
Any other supplies to decorate your clipboard such as paint, glitter, stickers, yarn, fabric, fun papers, etc.

Start by painting and decorating your wood and clips as desired. I painted one clipboard white and left the other two plain. Then I painted two of the clips and added glitter to one of those.
Once everything is dry, add glue to the flat side of the clip and place on wood. I liked the top of the clip to hang off the top a bit myself, but you can put it where you like.

Let the glue dry and then add any other embellishment you want. I tied on fabric, yarn, and found some other little things to add like a glitter paper pendant and doily to put behind the main paper.

Now that you have some gifts made you can wrap them. I used some clear bags I found in the baking section at Michaels to package the clipboards in. I also grabbed a bunch of random stuff to use as wrapping decorations. I like to create fun packaging and the more supplies I have for that the better!

I stamped some tags as well (tags found here).

For this one, I tied a piece of fuzzy yarn on the outside. Then I cut a straw and used a mini clothespin to attach the tag to the straw.

I taped on a piece of streamer that I had ruffled on my sewing machine to this one first. Then I added some pom poms on top of that. I stuck a candy cane in the middle and then used a mini clothespin again to attach the tag.

This was the real simple one. I added some fake snow inside the bag, taped the tag on the outside, and tied the top of the bag with pop pom trim. And now you have made completed a clipboard diy.

Do you have any go to diy gifts that you make? Look below to see all the other gift ideas brought to you by the Michaels Makers. Happy Crafting!

-Jess

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This post was created in partnership with Michaels. All opinions stated are my own. Affiliate links have been used. Thank you for supporting the sponsors that support Happy Together.

Upcycled Drawer Plant Stand DIY

September 10, 2014 by Jessica 22 Comments

This post is sponsored by DecoArt. See below for disclosure statement.

You know how there are “cat ladies” out there? I think I might become a “plant lady” one of these days. I have fallen in love with plants and almost always buy one when I go to a store with a garden center. I especially love buying the “hanging in there” plants on clearance and loving them back to health. I get a good deal and feel great that I could nurture it back into its beautiful self. That being said, I needed a place to start holding some of my plants. The upcycled drawer plant stand has fixed that problem.

It all started with these three dresser drawers from roadside trash I salvaged. I really wanted to turn them into something. After thinking of what I could make using my very limited wood working/power tooling skills, I knew that a plant stand would the perfect project.

So to make this stand you will need a dresser drawer. Make sure it is sturdy. It doesn’t have to be perfect, but you want it to hold up.

You will need some Americana Chalky Finish paint and the ultra-matte varnish. I chose that varnish to be the finish because I plan on having this outside one day and it’s designed for indoor and outdoor use. I hope to try the wax one day though. I used carbon and everlasting for the paint colors, but check out all the colors and see the ways you can mix them to get all kinds of pretty shades. Americana Decor Chalky Finish paint is available in Home Depot, Hobby Lobby, Michaels, A.C. Moore and other stores. Visit the DecoArt Chalky Finish website for more chalk paint ideas and inspiration.

Grab a paint or foam brush too.

Clean up your drawer and remove any hardware from it. Sand if there are any uneven spots you don’t want splintering, but other than that NO SANDING NEEDED. Amazing. No sanding. My favorite part. Once all clean and dry, start painting. I used a regular brush and it went on so nice. Instructions say to do more lighter coats as opposed to doing fewer heavy coats. So I started with a very thin coat of paint. I painted the inside carbon and the outside everlasting. I only needed two coats to get the coverage I liked even with it being light coats. This was actually my first time ever using a chalky finish paint and I fell in love. I will no longer paint furniture with any other type of paint. It was just too easy. It went on great, dried so fast, and feels so smooth once dry. And remember that no sanding part? Yeah. That’s a big bonus too. Then, when all your paint is dry, paint on a thin coat of the varnish. I did one more coat after just to have extra coverage. It went on great as well and it says it can also be applied over acrylic paints too fyi.

For the bottom of the stand, I went the super simple way and bought a folding tray table for $8.99 (from Target). You can find these at many places though. If you can’t find one in the color you want, paint this as well. I lucked out finding it in black, but after having a failed attempt at trying to make legs for this stand with some scraps we had in the garage, I didn’t mind taking a short cut.

I first used some wood glue to attach the stand to the drawer bottom. I placed weights on top to help add pressure while it dried. Then I used our drill and added a few screws here and there. Make sure to use a screw that isn’t too long so it won’t come out through the top of the drawer. The drawer I used had this wood area in the middle that I put the screws through, but if yours doesn’t you can always drill them in from the top (meaning go through the drawer into the stand as opposed to going through the stand into the drawer).

Put back on the hardware if you like or add new ones. If you didn’t want any hardware at all, I would suggest using a wood filler or wood plugs/wood filler before you paint the drawer.

Place in a sunny spot and fill with plants. I even plan on using this for other things, like holding products at craft shows and such. I think it will come in quite handy.

-Jess

I parterned with DecoArt for this post and received compensation for doing so. All opinions are my own. Thank you for supporting businesses that support Happy Together.