Refinished French Provincial

Monday's Featured Product

Seaside Cottage chest of drawers

The girls and I were heading out to yard sales a couple of months ago, "keep your eyes open for any French provincial furniture" I reminded them. We had received lots of positive feedback on the French provincial chest of drawers  that we painted in true PBC style and named the Seaside Cottage chest of drawers. (See photo at right)

Before we started PBC it seems French Provincial furniture was plentiful at yard sales, estate sales, and thrift shops. This year we hadn't found any except the one chest of drawers. Weeks went by and we were not finding any good pieces. Then one Saturday afternoon as Marci was taking a walk around her neighborhood she came across a yard sale we hadn't even known about. The family was beginning to pack it up as Marci's eyes skimmed the few remaining items strewn about the driveway. And there it was, one lonely little French provincial night stand / end table, and since the man was ready to call it a day he made Marci an offer she couldn't refuse. It was sturdy and well built but drab and boring with worn faded yellowy cream paint and Marci knew what potential it had.

So, with some ASCP in Graphite, some of our own mix of chalk paint in pink, and a little AS Clear Wax to top it off, we gave an old drab nightstand some punch and pizazz. This color scheme would be great in a little girls room, a pre-teens room, or even a young lady heading off to college would enjoy the updated look as well. The ample storage for personal items and books and the spacious surface for a lamp, alarm clock, and cell phone charger make this a great piece for the dorm as well.

We really hope you like the gray and pink, slightly distressed look as much as we do, it's a fun, versatile piece!

Friday Inspiration

This morning I want to share a special piece that I did serveral months ago as our Friday Inspiration. The inspiration for this adorable chest of drawers was my dear friend Kara, who was expecting her first child. Once Kara found out she was having a sweet baby girl, she asked me if I'd be able to redo an old chest of drawers, that was her moms and then hers, for the fast approaching baby girl.

Of course I said yes, I'd love to! I had to start by stripping the paint off of the old chest, which was probably the hardest part of the entire project. You see, having belonged not not only Kara, but her mom too, this piece had been painted over several times with several different colors. After 3 or 4 episodes with the Citristrip, the chest was finally ready for it's ReFabulous makeover!

By this time, Kara had picked out a beautiful name (Savannah) and a precious color scheme for her room (lavender and green). Originally, she wanted to stain the wood on the chest to match the crib she had purchased for Savannah, but once we got down past all of the layers of paint, I realized that it wasn't going to be possible. Too many years of paint had soaked into the wood, making it impossible to get a good, clean stain. So I purchased a can of Valspar Buckeye Brown paint, which was pretty close to the stain color she wanted, and got to work.

To finish off the chest, and give it a special, customized look just for Savannah, I decided to decoupage the inside of the drawers with a lavender and green flower print and a purple on the base of the drawers. And we also purchased faux crystal knobs in lavender for the drawers. It turned out so precious! Leave us a comment and let us know what you think!