Refinishing.... make something old new again....

This weekend's post will be on refinishing or painting old furniture to make it new again. Recently, my cousin purchased a house and along with it came rooms of old.. really old furniture... dark and not her "style" but she loves the "bones" so she decided to keep it. Good for her, right! Well.. now the weekend project begins! Here you go Wendi!

Supplies: 1 Gallon Bucket, Dishsoap, Soft sponge, 100 / 150 Grit Sandpaper, Liquid Sander, Tack Cloth, Plastic drop cloth or old sheet, Krylon Spray Primer & Krylon Spray Paint (all can be purchased at Home Depot or Lowes)

If the furniture is very dusty/dirty you want to wash it (outside) with luke-warm water and dishsoap, use a soft sponge and wipe it down with the soapy water, dump the bucket and refill with just warm water, re-wipe the furniture. Next, towel dry the furniture and let it dry completely, 1hr. or so (outdoors). Once dry, move the furniture to the drop cloth (my husband is not a fan of the multicolored driveway).

White and black are classic looks for any room, if you're feeling more bold go for a fun red or my personal favorite for a kids room, bright orange. The reason I love spray paint, is because it drys quickly and it's easy to re-paint if you don't love the finished color.

•  If refinishing a piece of furniture that has drawers, remove the drawers and all drawer/pull hardware\remove drawer pulls and other hardware. 
• Place the furniture on a layer of newspaper or a disposable drop cloth.

1. 
   
    
   Sand the piece of furniture until smooth with sandpaper or wipe with liquid sander. You may need to sand the furniture two or even three times, starting with relatively rough sandpaper (100 grit) and moving on to progressively finer grits (150). Wear gloves, safety goggles and a dust mask.
   
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   Remove any residual sawdust with a hand vacuum, brush or a tack cloth - you don't want to wet the wood.
   
3. 
   
   
   
   
   
    
   Apply a coat of either white brush-on or gray spray-on water-based primer (I like Krylon Spray Primer), depending on the size and area of the piece of furniture you intend to cover.
   
4. 
   
   
   
   
   
    
   Allow the primer to become dry to the touch; this usually takes 1 to 2 hours. If you're not sure, read the recommended drying time on your can of primer. (spray primer drys quickly)
   
5. If the primer coat looks spotty or thin, apply a second coat and allow it to dry.
   
6. 
   
   
   
   
   
    
   Sand any rough areas.
   
7. Add a coat of water-based paint. Brush it on with even strokes, going in the direction of the wood grain. With spray paint make slow passes with the can 8 to 12 inches from the wood surface. Allow the first coat to dry.
   
9. Add a second coat and allow it to dry overnight.
   
   Happy repainting! Bring old furniture into 2010, remember bold is IN!   Live Beautifully... Erin
   

Spring is my inspiration this week...

With flowers blooming, the scent of orange blossoms in the air and the sun shining, who wouldn't be inspired to start spring cleaning?! Yesterday I worked in the garage for a few hours to create a workspace for REiDesign. Boy do we have a LOT of STUFF! With no basement or attic space our garage has become the "catch all" for Halloween/ Easter/Christmas decorations, baby items (which I have resigned to sell), tools, camping gear... you get the picture.

Well, now there is a "woman cave" in one corner. I am inspired by artwork, antique mirrors, magazine clippings, rows of ribbon... I am ready to create, design, refinish, paint, sew, reupholster... you name it I can do it all in my own little workspace! Very exciting I know.

So, how did I do it?

I started pulling stuff out into the driveway and moved things around like a rubic cube. I relocated gardening tools, cleaned out old paint (10 cans +) - check with your city, every city has a hazardous waste/electronic waste drop off site, start w/ your city website under waste management. Next, items I am not going to sell on CraigsList, I put on Freecycle.org, where people will pick up items right out of my driveway.

Once you start cleaning out, it's amazing what you can get rid of! Happy Spring Cleaning!

Curb Appeal...

So the sun is shinning and the rain has stopped. This makes me think of cleaning up the front yard. Your front yard and front porch are the first impressions guests and potential home buyers will have of your home. If you have an untidy front yard, dead plants in your flower boxes or a bag of trash waiting to go out sitting on your front porch; it gives the impression your home is unkempt, even if it is not.

Go bold with plants and flowers out front. You can't go wrong with bright tulips in the Spring. I am also a HUGE fan of Azaleas,Hydreanga and Rhododendrons (mainly because I can't kill them :). But, they have nice big flowers and a long bloom season. These flowering plants/shrubs make a nice statement in a front garden. I also believe the $4 bag of redwood chips is the great equalizer in garden/yard; any problem area can be "fixed" with a few bags of wood chips. Not only are wood chips great at keeping moisture in your flowerbeds, they also look GREAT.
The bible of gardening here in California is this book. I use this exclusively when buying plants for my garden. Most plants can be found @ your local garden center and if you don't see them, ask if they can be ordered from a local grower. Better yet, ask them who supplies most of their plants/flowers and try to buy direct from the grower.


Aside from bold flowers, don't forget to edge your lawn and trim/shape your shrubs and trees. If you have large shrubs/trees right next to your roof-line, they should not exceed the height of the house.


Remember, a tidy yard and porch = a tidy house on the inside!


Happy gardening!

Choosing New Furniture... where to begin?

Choosing new furniture is fun and at times, frustrating. In an ideal world with no limit on funds we should buy new furniture every time we move into a new home; items specifically designed to "fit" our space. But, lets face it that's not a reality. When we moved from a very open apartment to our "cottage" I found that most of our furniture was too large for our space; then when our sons were born we had to accommodate baby "stuff". This left us to pick and choose what would work and what wouldn't.

What we did:
Kept the sofa, replaced the coffee table and over-sized TV Cabinet. (I once saw an interview with Nate Berkus, he lived in his apt. in NYC for over a year before he found a sofa he loved!)

Home Rules: Transform the Place You Live Into a Place You'll Love

We didn't replace everything all at once, but rather one item at a time. Items we LOVED, we saved $ to buy and purchased quality furniture that would stand the abuse of two toddlers and two Labrador Retrievers.

If you live in Southern California I highly recommend shopping for furniture at Larry St. John's in Los Angeles. They have in-stock items and everything can be custom ordered for a fraction of the cost of PB, Crate and Barrel or Restoration Hardware or Ikea. 

So, how to choose? Start by looking in magazines to see what styles you like, then, go to furniture stores and look at items in person. I find that most items are larger in person than they are in the catalogs. For example, a girlfriend of mine bought a new dining room set (from Pottery Barn) for her dining area, she too lives in a small cottage; which is not designed for over-sized furniture. When her table and chairs arrived she realized they were a bit larger than she anticipated and her buffet would leave the space over crowed. She ended up canceling the buffet, and is now on "the hunt" for something that will "work".

To avoid this problem, here is what I suggest. Look very carefully at the measurements and then use painters tape to mark off the areas where you are going to put the new furniture. You can also tape together pieces of newspaper and lay them out on the floor to give you a good feel for the space the items will take up. I find the newspaper taped together gives you the best "idea" for footprint the furniture will leave.

It's no secret I am a HUGE Pottery Barn Fan, I recommend the book below, I use it as a constant reference for organization solutions and decorating ideas. Although the book was published in 2005 it is still relevant for what we do today.
Happy Shopping!