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Rethought and refinished vintique loveables.  Emphasis on, but not limited to, antique and vintage furnishings and decor to grace your home.

Scrumptiously Shabby Chic with Old Fashioned Milk Paint

7/27/2016

2 Comments

 
I am delighted and honored to bring this post to you as my first in a series as an official brand blogger for Old Fashioned Milk Paint.  My grin stretches sea to shining sea.  This paint has my heart all bundled up in its paper bags of green, natural, powdery perfection.  OFMP sponsored this project by providing me with the product to complete it.
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I would like to share the process of creating a beautiful shabby chic dresser using OFMP's milk​ paint and a touch of adornments.  But first, let me offer a bit of history which you may also review here, http://www.milkpaint.com/about_hist..., and description of this brand of milk paint.  They are the original company to bring the modern day powder formula to market as genuine milk paint.  It is a true milk paint, all natural, green and non-toxic.  OFMP has a lovely palette of their standard colors to choose from, and then by mixing and playing with combinations, one can create a host of shades and tones.  Speaking of shades and tones, because of the natural pigmentation in milk paint, it covers with beautiful shading and has a very authentic ambiance to its finish. 

Also, being true milk paint, it must be mixed with water in equal parts of paint to water ratios.  It has exquisite characteristics as it coats and dries.  It can stick fully to porous surfaces, or chip and crackle on non-porous surfaces.  In order to ensure adhesion to non-porous or shiny surfaces, they have a great product called extra bond which gets blended into the premixed paint for the first coat.

Milk paint is self-leveling so it sets smoothly on your surface.  I am telling you, this paint is the way to go.  It is mesmerizing to watch as it dries and graces your piece with a unique finish unlike any other paint.

​It does need to be topcoated as it is extremely matte.  If you want your piece to gather household and everyday, how shall I say it... grime for patina...then you can opt to leave it to collect memories of life around it.

I chose to refinish a very old and excellent quality tall chest made by Union decades ago.  Here begins this piece's journey from marred and abandoned in its homeliness to all dressed up and waiting for somewhere to go in its new country chic finish.

​Here it sits bare and beat:
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And here comes my paint hero, OFMP in Sea Green and Buttermilk to rescue it from all that dull brown:
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​As I stated above, the powder must be mixed with equal portions of water and then stirred very well to diminish any lumps and release the full pigment.  It will end up smooth and maybe some little bubbles from stirring as you see here.  I press the lumps against the side of my container to break them down and mix in well.  I am using a yogurt cup which I make several small batches of paint as I go, and then I can rinse and recycle when I am done.  Keeping all things green here.
Because my surface was a bit shiny after a light sanding and wash, I added the extra bond for improved adhesion of the paint to the wood.  I was not looking for chipping at this point.  This is a breeze to add.  Just follow instructions on the bottle.
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Paint time.  Here is the dresser after my first coat of the Sea Green.  I was doing two coats of this because I wanted it to show through the Buttermilk after the crackling process.
​Do not be daunted or deterred after your first coat which may look disastrous.  There is a little milk paint miracle which occurs with the second coat.  My heart dropped to my ankles when I first used milk paint.  I had never seen it nor used it on anything and was devastated when I applied the first coat and saw streaks and bare spots and a shady texture.  But then.  Then the magic happened when I persevered to paint the second coat.  Heed my words, do not give up.  It will be beautiful.

Next I scrubbed and left my handles to sunbathe while they waited their turn to be coated in OFMP's paint and then the antique crackle medium.  
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The crackle medium is very thick and sticky.  It is pretty easy to layer on the paint and you can see the sheen so you know where you may have missed coverage which is great for being thorough.
After a two hour drying period, I began to paint the top color of Buttermilk that would activate the crackling.  This was really cool to observe.  The paint begins to dance right before your eyes.  Luscious crackles and breaks travel along a moment after each stroke of paint.  Be sure to follow the directions on how to apply the paint over the medium.  It can be a little tricky at first, but not difficult.
I salivate.  

I let this set for a few hours and then I began adding some decorative detailing to the drawers.  For the shallower top drawer, I applied a raised stencil which I would then brush over with the two paints alternating layers to get the tone I wanted.  The first step is to measure your stencil to center it.  I like to use the pull holes as a guide. 
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Once you have your stencil in place, tape it down with painter's or frog tape.  I use spackle or joint compound to create my raised stencils.  I use a credit card to smooth it over the entire stencil.  Once fully covered and fairly leveled, let sit for just a minute and then​ slowly lift tape and pull back the stencil.  
Pretty nifty, right?  Now be patient and let this fully dry to hardness.  Then you can paint it and topcoat it.

I was also using some tissue paper to decoupage the centers of the rest of the drawers.  To achieve a tattered edge which is more complementary to a shabby chic appeal, I use a small paint brush and dab water along the edges pulling them away.


​After all the crafty fun, here is my scrumptiously shabby country chic dresser made perfect with Old Fashioned Milk Paint products.

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Crackles, chips, shades and tones...perfection.  

Though OFMP provided product for me to complete this project, all opinions are sincerely my very own.

‪#‎oldfashionedmilkpaintco‬ ‪#‎DIYGreen‬ ‪#‎OFMP‬ ‪#‎truemilkpaint‬‪#‎OFMPbrandblogger‬ ‪#‎OFMPblogger‬
​
2 Comments

Antique Chippy Tall Chest

9/29/2014

2 Comments

 
This antique tall chest turned out perfectly shabby-dreamy and with a cozy cottage feel.  The simple lines and structure of this piece struck me immediately because it is refined yet casual and homey.  I knew milk paint would be a great complement to the simple charm it has, so I blended my own custom color using two of Old Fashioned Milk Paints base colors to create what I had in mind for it.  I love it.  The pale sea green body plays nicely off the harvest yellow stained top.  This was a fun piece to do because I layered the milk paint over a coat of white.  Where the milk paint did its magic of crackling and chipping I left it alone and then distressed other areas so that more whispers of white would show through along with the bare wood spots. My driveway slants, sorry for the tilt.

A custom mix of sea green and buttermilk milk paint layered over a white base and then heavy distressing brings the cottage chic feel to this precious tall chest. Harvest gold stain over a white base top off this lovely antique piece. It sets on its original wooden casters. Clear wax protects and enriches the body while dark wax coats the white handles giving them authentic antique appeal. Polycrylic protects the top. This chest is quaint and casual but not at all understated. It will sit pretty and refresh any area of your home, providing not only great character and sea breezy charm, but great storage function as well.  Think outside the drawer of clothes - how about linens, towels, soaps...?

47 1/4" H x 33" W at top x 17 3/4" D

Available

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Before:


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Linking up with:
1HDcaa1
p3gI3C-5my
http://www.milkpaint.com/  

PAINTERS - If you are interested in participating in The Fab Furniture Flipping Contest, please send an email to info@anastasiavintage.com  or info@eveyscreations.com

Before & After Wednesday - Week 34
furniture feature friday | favorites & link party
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Chippy Antique Roll Top Desk

9/22/2014

0 Comments

 
The bare before:
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I snatched up this little desk in its bare state from a family selling it at the end of their driveway.  With all of the tagsalers out roaming and scooping, it was meant to be mine.  I spied it from a hundred yards out and whipped my blinker on as I yanked the wheel to slip my van onto the tree belt.  There it sat perched on the pavement trying to be brave instead of crying out to not be orphaned curbside.  Its sad little furniture pout was too much to resist.  It had no reason to fear, I had every intention of tucking it in my van and bringing it home.  It was dirty, dinged up and raw looking.  But I love that.  Using milk paint was the solution to give it a nice sprucing while playing up the time worn markings from being a loyal desk to families down through generations.  The family I purchased it from told me they had purchased it in Pennsylvania about forty years or so ago.  Now it will move along to another fine home.

Buttermilk was my color of choice in order to perk it up and contrast with the wood's stain which would show as distressing transpired.  Milk paint is an amazing but finicky thing.  It can be very temperamental on certain surfaces, and you must be prepared to accept the consequences which are unpredictable but usually awesome.  You do have some control if you apply it as appropriately as possible given the item and its prior finish, but there is still a margin for milk paint's personality to shake up the outcome.  The thing to remember is, it's paint.  It can be sanded back off or painted over.  Deep breath and sigh of relief. 

So, I slapped on the first coat and it looked pretty awful (normal).  This stuff dries super fast which is perfect for we almost-instant gratification kind of people.

I was anxiously inspecting for the signs that milk paint was doing its thing: self-distressing or soaking in.  After two hours, nothing.  After three hours, slightly more than nothing.


After four hours of intermittently scanning every surface and nook, what to my wondering eyes should appear but a little crackle here and a chip chip there.  Hand swing up to the heart.  It was love.  Milk paint antics had been delayed, but finally arrived in all its luscious, crackly chippy glory.  I slathered on the s
econd coat and it looked way better (normal).  Now all I had to do was sit back and observe.  Yes, I like watching paint dry.


Section by little section, the paint pulled and peeled and picked itself perfectly apart.  

Hand sanding smoothed out the process.  The warm, creamy yellow buttermilk color was perfect against the red-brown tone of the wood which was busting out in fragments all over.   The little roll top desk now had a chipper chippy furniture smile. 

As my first experience actually using milk paint, I must say I thought it to be wonderful.  I like the edgy mystique it has.  I like the drama and suspense of see how it will act or react on different surfaces.  I love to await the peeling, crackling and burrowing in it chooses.  It won me over.

Mixing it with water to get the right consistency was not too intimidating to me.  Maybe because I like the challenge of doing it right or maybe because I have learned that again, its just paint.  Added too much water? Mix in a bit more paint powder.  Too little? Splash in another dash of water.  Do I like to make mistakes and clean up my own mess?  No, I much prefer to get it pretty close to right the first time around, but if not, I won't let that stop me from testing the waters (literally here) with different techniques and products.


The adorable after: 

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