Red Adirondack Chairs

The other day, one of my favorite clients/people ever found some seen-better-days adirondack chairs on the side of the road in a nice neighborhood. Sara is one of those scouters - she finds the coolest antiques and vintage scores in little junk shops or on the side of the road ALL THE TIME. And her house is a perfect mix of vintage and new. Seriously. I beg her to start a blog, because it would be amazing, and the world needs to see her casa. 

Anyway, she didn't have a need for the chairs, and thought that I might want them for my new house, so she inquired and I accepted. Woo! When we move, our house will feel so empty, and there will be so many new things we'll need to purchase (yay), so it'll be nice to have at least something to sit on outside as soon as we move. 

The chairs were nice quality, but had some chipping, peeling paint:

I used my electric hand sander to flatten and smooth out the paint chipped areas:

excuse the veiny man hand. That's what happens when I'm workin'. 

I decided to paint them a bright orangey-red. I knew getting the paint in those slats would be annoying with a brush, so I used some leftover red spraypaint that I had at the studio to paint the slats and hard-to-reach places:

Then, I rolled on some outdoor oil based paint:

After that first coat dried, I could see where I would need to go back and prime a few areas -- where the wood was showing through. I just went back with my white oil based primer and covered those spots. The reason why, is that when you have raw wood, the finish of your paint is going to seal and dry differently than the rest of the area on your project that is painted. This way is easier than priming the whole chair (though, that would've probably been a good call. I was working on little time here, so i did it the faster way)

(brushing paint onto the little areas that needed primer)

there's the chairs after they got their spot treatments.

Now, I just let that dry, and come back in with my second coat of red:

ta da! I love 'em. 

Thanks a million Sara! I love the "new" chairs!

___

PS My star ceiling project is being featured on Little Green Notebook today! 

Star Stenciled Ceiling

As you know, last week, I worked on a star stenciled ceiling for a nursery project. My client wanted the feel of Osbourne & Little's star wallpaper, without the hassle of actual wallpaper. I have to admit that I was a little nervous about the painstaking part of this project (back aches! Neck aches! Math!), but it actually wasn't bad at all. I think that I have figured out how to tackle these types of projects at this point (after my ceiling striping from a few years ago!), so things come a little quicker to me now. Live and learn, ya know!?

I made a stencil:

and got to it:

The actual stenciling part wasn't bad at all. The measuring for where the stars should go was the hard part. I made a grid on the ceiling with measuring tapes and a yardstick, and was able to place my stars precisely that way. It took me about a day and a half/two days to finish. 

in this photo, you can still see my lines: 

in the works!

and, done:

What do you guys think? I have to say - I really like it, and I am trying to decide where I can do this in my own new house :) 

Photo Dump

Hi!

I hope you all had a great weekend. I just thought I'd throw some photos at ya from the ol iPhone and my life, lately.

I've been so busy with working, but I need to upload new photos for you guys to show you what I've been up to. We are still living with my friend, but set to move into a new home two weeks from today. I can't wait to share more about it with you guys soon. I'm really excited!

This  was a project from last week. Stay tuned for more pics of this project, but it was a fun one for a bedroom of cute little boy/girl twins who are around 3. They were so cute to work for, and they loved their new tree. Couldn't have asked for better reactions from them. It makes it so much more fun when you have nice clients that love what you're doing!

This was from a store up in Roswell that I visited when I was headed to a paint supply store last week. I thought these salvaged piece light fixtures were so cool! 

I feel bad because I don't remember the name of the store I saw them in. It was near downtown Roswell (Georgia), and it was in a space that was half gallery (With some really, really beautiful pieces of art), half home decor.

This photo, I stole from Jennifer Baggett  who I helped out a little with her project from Room Service Atlanta. I just wrote out some inspirational quotes for a gallery wall she and her partner are doing, and they framed and hung them last week. I can't wait to see how their room turns out!







These were a couple of rings I picked up yesterday at Madewell. I'm a sucker for unique jewelry. I love them!

last but not least, it wouldn't be a photo dump without a picture of my cat. Here he is, saying his morning prayers:




Oh! And I'm now working with Pfister as a personal style assistant, to help with kitchen design. Visit their contest for a chance to win $1000 from them!

the end! i'll be back soon with paint-y projects and new-house pictures!

Progress on Ceiling Stenciling

I am in the middle of painting stars on a nursery ceiling, and I thought I'd share a few photos of the progress so far... I'll finish it up today. 

Here is the Osbourne & Little paper that my client loved. She thought about papering the ceiling, but knew that with the time put into that, it would be really difficult to get down when she eventually tired of it in the future. Plus, with paint, we are able to customize the colors for her baby's nursery. 

Here's my stencil making process...

On the ceiling, ready to start:

In progress:

What do you think so far?

The nursery is looking so great. I wanted to show you a couple of pictures of pieces around the room. The room is being designed by my friend and designer, Heather Hogan Roberts. 

(obviously, all the furniture is pushed to one side of the room, because I am painting on the other side, but you can get a feel for the prettiness.

and you know these Jonathan Adler sconces are my favorite part!