Painting Metal Lamps with CeCe Caldwell Paints

Some of my favorite things to revive and restore with paint  are lamps.  So I was excited when I found this large, very heavy metal lamp base at an area thrift store.

It sat around in my garage for awhile as I waited for it to "speak to me" about how it should be painted.  Finally, I heard it loud and clear and painted on a base coat of CeCe Caldwell's Paint in Myrtle Beach Sand.  No prep, no sanding and no primer.  Yes, you can paint metal with CeCe Caldwell's Paints without using a metal primer!  Just start painting on the bare metal.  How easy is that?

 

 

 It looked so good that I considered just leaving it Myrtle Beach Sand.  But I proceeded with my plan. When the basecoat dried, I followed with a coat of CeCe Caldwell's Paint in Montana Blue Sky.  I'm not normally a blue paint lover but the lamp had "spoken" to me.  It turned out I really love this beautiful color!

 

 



When the Blue Montana Sky had dried completely, I wet distressed with a damp cloth to expose the Myrtle Beach Sand and the original brown metal.  Wet distressing is really easy on metal as the paint comes off very easily.  It's easy to overdo it, so don't distress as much as you feel like you should.  Using a small wax brush to get into all the little spaces, I applied a coat of CeCe Caldwell's Clear Wax to seal the paint and wiped off the excess.  See how the wax turns the paint darker so you can make sure you haven't missed a spot?   

 

 

This lamp didn't need Dark Aging Cream added because the metal was already dark and was showing through after distressing. After waiting a few hours to make sure the Clear Wax was completely dry (you can tell it's dry when it no longer feels tacky), I took a soft cloth and buffed to a soft shine.  



 

  

I found a beautiful, brand new pleated fabric shade a few months earlier at another thrift store.  When I find a bargain on something this beautiful I always buy it knowing I'll have a use for it one day.  And I'm so glad I did!

 

 

I absolutely love how this lamp turned out and am already on the hunt for another one to update with CeCe Caldwell's Paints.

 

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Painted Books



As a CeCe Caldwell's Paints retailer, I had the idea to demonstrate how almost anything can be painted with our paints.  So, when I stumbled across these old books from the 1940s and 1950s I knew what I wanted to do.    The books were only $.50 each and while I hesitated at first to paint the books, I knew I wouldn't be destroying them but perhaps actually keeping them from being destroyed.

 

 

 

The covers of these books were a type of fabric so I was anxious to see how they would turn out.  I placed a screwdriver under each end of one of the covers to hold it up off of the pages underneath while painting.  With a sponge brush I painted one cover and the spine with a coat of CeCe Caldwell's Vermont Slate.  When it dried, I turned it over and painted the back cover.  I did this for each of the three books. 

 

 

When the books dried completely, I played around a little with how I wanted to arrange the books.  Having a smaller one to put on the top would help make a more interesting display.  I stenciled the chosen designs on the books using CeCe Caldwell's Vintage White, keeping the arrangement of the books in mind so the stencil designs would show.  When the stenciled designs dried, I very lightly sanded them to give a more vintage appearance.

 

After binding them together with a little twine and adding an old skeleton key, the books were ready to be placed in my space at Old South Antique Mall.

 

I love how they turned out and can't wait to make some more - and hopefully make  a set for me to keep as well!

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Whewwwwww!

It has been like a whirlwind here lately!  CeCe Caldwell's Paints came in (yay!) and other new items for my space at Old South continue to come in.  My granddaughter's first birthday party is coming up next weekend and her mother and I are now in full, all-out planning and creating mode.  My grandmother is very ill and I'm trying to make the hour drive as many days as I can.  I have several cases ongoing in my "other" job as a private investigator.  And I try to squeeze a little time in to search for vintage treasures and furniture that need a little TLC and CeCe paint. So, you don't want to even ask what my house looks like these days!

But, I had to share this with you.  Hurry because you only have a little more than 18 hours to enter.  Go here to enter to win CeCe Caldwell's Paints.  Grand prize is 3 quarts of paint and a pint of clear wax.  First prize is a quart of paint and a pint of wax.  Contest ends at 12 noon EST tomorrow (Saturday). 

And in the middle of all the chaos, I just learned that I will be having a very special paint-related visitor in a couple of weeks.  I am so excited and will be sharing it with you very soon.  But in the meantime, go like Cece's Facebook page and enter to win some paint!

My K.I.S.S. Valentines Mantel

I always try to do a little seasonal/holiday decorating on my mantel by changing out a few pieces.  However, traditional red and white Valentines Day decor doesn't fit into my decorating scheme.  By adding a couple of items, this is what I came up with:

 

 

The wood rose wreath hanging on the mirror was pulled in from my kitchen where it hangs year round.  You may recognize a few items from my fall and Christmas mantels as they are my regular mantel pieces.  I needed to add a couple of items to make it seem more like Valentines Day so I added the porcelain cherub and the framed cherub print.  I picked them both up for a total of $3.00 at a thrift store.  I had found several cherub plaques but this cherub figurine was perfect because it would sit on the edge of my mantel.

 



The framed cherub print is one we see everywhere, but it was just right to complete my simple little mantel.

 

Kisses and Valentines go together, right?  Well, I absolutely love simple projects and that's why this is my K.I.S.S. (keep it simple, stupid!) mantel.  Quick and simple, just how I like it.  I hope you have a Happy Valentines Day and get some real kisses!

 

 

It's here!

I've been neglecting my blog again.  But I feel like I have a really good excuse!  This is what I've been spending my time on:

Yep, my first shipment of CeCe Caldwell's Paint has arrived!  While I still have things to do to "pretty up" my display and my brushes and some other items haven't arrived yet, as of today I'm officially a CeCe retailer.  The paint literally started selling before I could even get it priced and on the shelf at Old South Antique Mall.

I'm proud to be part of the CeCe Caldwell "family" and am looking forward to sharing soon my projects that I paint with this wonderful paint.

My Big News!

From the time I started my hunt for finding and painting mostly vintage treasures last year, I knew I would want to open a vintage, shabby chic style business.  The solution for me was opening a space at Old South Antique Mall.  That was just over three months ago and what a fast, furious and fun time it has been!  I also had another dream that I've been working on almost from the very beginning.  I've had to drive at least an hour and a half to get chalk paint for my projects. (Yeah, I wanted it bad!)  I also knew most people wouldn't bother to drive that far and that they would really be missing out on the fun. 

So, I started researching different paints and paint companies.  I eventually discovered CeCe Caldwell's Clay and Chalk Paint.  All products are made in the USA and the paints are "Naturally Green in the Color of your Choice".  The products can be used by anyone - those with respiratory problems, chemical sensitivities, pregnant women, even children!  The paints have no Volatile Organic Compounds, are non-toxic and have no odor. The paint contains NO acrylic co-polymers, solvents, formaldehyde, ammonia, ethylene glycol or toxic heavy metals.  The paints are made from clay, porcelain clay and chalk bended into a water based solution and the waxes are made from insect and plant sources.  And the paint and waxes are even packaged in recycled plastic containers.  With super adhesion, most surfaces require no priming or sanding before painting.  Just clean the project and start painting!  It's easy for both beginners and experienced painters!

Drum roll, please ...................... I am very happy and excited to announce that I am now a CeCe Caldwell's retailer!  My first shipment should arrive and be on my shelves at Old South in about ten days.  I'll also be holding painting workshops for teaching paint techniques as well as holding "bring your own piece" workshops in the very near future.  When everything is complete, I'll also have the paints available for ordering online.

There are some more smaller changes coming to my retail location that I'll share with you soon, but the paint and workshops are the biggies!  I'm looking forward to providing this wonderful paint and can't wait to start holding painting workshops. 

CeCe Caldwell's Paint is only about a year old and the company is growing at an unbelievable rate with new retailers being added across the country daily.  I'm excited to be a part of the CeCe family and look forward to sharing it with you.  If you'd like to learn more about this wonderful paint and finishes, please go HERE. 

Excitement Ahead!

You know how several times I've mentioned big things happening in the future for Shabby But Chic? Well, the future is NOW! For those of you who know me personally, try to picture me doing the Happy Dance. (Not a pretty thought, is it?)  In the next day or so I'll give you all the great, exciting details of what I've been working on. 

Give It A Chance!

Recently I was in one of my favorite thrift stores when I spotted this pitiful little table.

It had a cute, basic design but had been through bad times! The legs are made of  real wood but the top was made out of "fake" or manufactured wood.  Previous owners had apparently set glasses on the top without using coasters and the top had bubbled up because of the moisture. 

I walked by the table a couple of times but finally decided to give it a chance!  I hauled it home and a couple of days later pulled out my electric hand sander and worked on trying to smooth out the top.  I had never tried to sand down manufactured wood before/ but because I only paid a few dollars for the table, I knew I didn't have much to lose even if it didn't work out.

I sanded until smooth and paid special attention to the bubbled up areas to make sure they got smoothed down as much as possible.  I sanded the entire top to make sure the surface was even.

I painted the entire table with two coats of ASCP in French Linen and painted the hardware with a light coat of ASCP Old White.  After applying a coat of clear wax to both the table and the hardware it was buffed to a nice sheen.

 

 I placed the table in my space at Old South and it sold within two days!  Proof that sometimes things turn out better than you could have imagined if you just give them a chance.

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Making A Chalkboard Tray

There are lots of good things being planned for Shabby But Chic that are taking up lots of my time but I wanted to share this simple, fast project with you.  Thrift shops, yard sales and flea markets are a great source for "silver" trays.  

I found this one at a thrift store for 1/2 price for only $2.00!  It's a great size, is heavy and has built in handles.  However, you can use oval ones and round ones.  Unless you use a stand, you're going to need a way to to hang these trays.  So, instead of using ones with handles, you can find ones with little open spaces or holes made into the design around the edge of the tray.  

I usually prefer to use chalkboard paint in a spray can.  But on the day I decided to work on this project, it was cold and rainy outside so I chose to apply the chalkboard paint with a brush.  It's easy to decide what part needs to be painted and you can use painter's tape to mask off the outside border of the chalkboard paint area.  Just take care when removing to the tape to prevent the paint from being pulled off.  Or you can do what I did on this one and use a small flat paintbrush to freehand the outside edge before filling in the rest of the tray.  Coat the entire area well and let dry completely.

Apply another coat of paint (or two, if needed).  I cut a length of burlap ribbon with finished edges and tied each end to the built in handles.  Next, I took two smaller pieces of ribbon and tied simple bows onto the handles to hid the knots from the hanger burlap.

Freshly painted chalkboard paint needs to be "seasoned:" before using.  To do this, take the side of a piece of chalk and completely cover the surface as in the above picture.  Then wipe well with a cloth to remove the chalk.  Another tip for writing on chalkboards is to wet your chalk before using.  The chalk writing will be extremely light but will darken as it dries and you will have nice, crisp lettering.

These trays can be used for menus, memo boards and message boards and for writing sayings of your choice.   Check your china cabinet for forgotten trays or pick up one at a thrift store or yard sale and see how easy it is to transform and repurpose it.

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Sweet Little Graphite Nightstand

I found this adorable little nightstand at a garage sale and immediately fell in love with it.  It's at least half the size of today's nightstands (I think this one is vintage 1940s or 1950s from days when bedrooms were a lot smaller).  

Although the wood was in good condition, the original varnished finish wasn't, as over the years it had become dry and cracked in some areas.

With chalk paint, sanding and other preparation usually isn't necessary.  But in this case, I knew I was going to have to sand a little to get the smooth finish I wanted.  So, I used my electric hand sander to smooth out the rough spots before applying two coats of Annie Sloan Chalk Paint in Graphite.

 I knew I wanted to do something to make this little nightstand special so I painted the drawer with two coats of Annie Sloan Chalk Paint in Old White.  After it dried completely, I stenciled a design on the drawer by stippling on paint in Graphite.

 Annie Sloan clear soft wax was brushed on and the excess was wiped off.  Buffing brought the finish to a nice sheen.

This night stand is now at my space at Old South.

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Slowly Getting Back Into The Swing of Things

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas with family and friends.  I know I did but it's so hard to get back into a more normal routine without the shopping, decorating, planning and cooking.  It's seems like forever since I've done any painting so I'm proud I've at least completed a few new small projects.  I've got to get busy and restock my space at Old South!

You know how I'm always encouraging you to keep your eyes open for things that might not work in their present condition but with a little paint and/or attention can be turned into something unique?  Well, that's what the object in today's post is. 

I love painting candlesticks/candle holders but unique ones can be hard to find.  They are some of the things I always look for in thrift stores, yard sales, etc.  So, I was really happy when I found this large one.

It's unglazed ceramic or plaster but the gold color needed updating and it just wasn't working for me.  So I pulled out some paint that's a favorite of mine that I haven't used lately - Annie Sloan Chalk Paint in Provence.  I brushed on one light to medium coat, allowing some of the gold color to show through.

I didn't want a lot of distressing but I did want some, so I lightly rubbed a damp cloth in the areas I wanted distressed.

I finished by brushing on clear wax, wiping off the excess and then buffing to a shine.  I love the way it turned out and I will be taking it to my space at Old South real soon.