I found this darling little vintage desk a few months back. 

However, the top could not be salvaged. I thought about scraping it (way too much work) and painting underneath, but I found out it was particle board. So rather than scrape and redo another laminate top, 

I though why not just make a solid wood top??!

So thats what I did. I went to the lumber yard and found some solid cherry "shorts" for a song!

You can see where I started to scrape off the top. Fugettibout it! 

 Here are the 3 boards glued and jigged together getting sanded. 

The edges were also routed to smooth them out. 

 I think I used a combo of stains. I know I did a gel in dark walnut. I might have thrown in some
                                red mahogany just to brighten it up a bit. Cherry is beautiful!

And here is the desk all put together!

Yes, I painted the "Union Jack" as well! 

Oh, and the chair too! 

Would this not be adorable in a boys room????

I love the new top better than the original! 

If I never have to paint a "jack" again, it will be fine with me! LOL

This beaut is for sale!!
UPDATE>>>>>>I repainted it in BLACK

Linking up to all my faves below plus: betweennapsontheporch.net , my uncommon slice of suburbia, The Dedicated House , new house new home new life, Coastal Charm, The Shabby Creek Cottage, From my front porch to yours, House of Hepworths

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How did this picture frame get used in the seaside cabinet?

Ive shared the graphics used for the seaside cabinet here

Ive shared the demolition and rebuild of the upper hutch here

Now its time to show you the story behind the lower cabinet.

The legs seen in this photo are not original, just a set I was trying out and didnt use.

It started as a TV cabinet,

the kind that we have all had in our homes before for our big fat CRT TVs.

Big shout out to the inventor of the flat screen ...

I can be an independent woman now cause I can move my own TV.

With a little trimming in all the right places it became the perfect platform

for this project and I have extra bits for something else.

This is the photo my daughter originally sent to me asking if I could use it.

My only question was "Is it solid wood?"

She knows my motis operandi but even I get tricked by that sneaky MDF.

It was solid plywood which is not bad to work with.

Next came the legs, these came from an octagonal side table

that had 8 posts between the base and the top.

The table was ugly but the posts were fabulous and just what I needed.

This is another great example of where to find furniture legs.

I took this turquoise frame to the compound mitre saw and cut the

corners on a 45 then joined 2 together to create this fun detail for the front of the leg.

I used glass knobs with vintage hardware plates

and the star on the middle of the apron is also a hardware plate from a kitchen cabinet.

Mother swears she has more of these which I would love to get my mitts on.

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BORN IN A BARN sliding barn style doors

There is one element I didnt have time to share in the original post about the guest room make over

New sliding doors we purchased and installed.

The plan was to hang a vintage door weve had for a while

so off to home depot to get a track.

I had built a pocket door for my daughters room years ago so I wanted to use this same method

again but on the outside of the wall.

We found the track and were heading to the cashier when we started to gaze at all the different

sizes, shapes, colors, and designs doors come in these days.

and before we knew it there we were standing in front of a clearance trolley with

a set of tempered glass doors with all the hardware marked down over $160.

The mark down price was $100.

We were already willing to pay $30 for the track and these were gorgeous,

not to mention they would let light into the hallway.

The only thing we had forgotten was we were 45 minutes from home and in the smallest.

vehicle we own. GREAT FUN was had on that drive home.

The track they came with was for a pass by closet door so we asked my welder fabricator father

if he could cut it into 2 to make 1 single length and luckily he could.

I fashioned guides for the door bottoms from long corner brackets using the vise and a hammer.

They are attached to the wall behind the doors.

Eventually I will make a valance to hide the mechanism at the top to give it a finished polish look.

What do you think?

Sharing with:

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Dunno if I can finish in time

I am way behind on the picture frames. When I started them I had hoped to have them all wrapped up by now. No such luck. It has been so cold that my shop time is minimal.
I have drilled, countersunk, and installed 90 of the 100 pennies that hold the inner frame into the outer. I hope to finish the other 10 today, plus sanding. That leaves staining and finishing. I dont think that can all be done on Saturday. I may be able to finish them on Christmas day. After that I will be going out of town for a few days.

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THE WOODS IN FLORIDA

For those of you who know about our vacation we thought we would

share a few pictures of us on our sunny beach in Florida.

 I want to send out a special hello and thanks to some of the fabulous ppl I have met

in my furniture adventures who support me and provide me with encouragement regularly.

My dear friend Lisa reminds me how much I appreciate common sense.

Carrie who is there when I need to step away for a break.

Bliss who is a wonderful character and great supporter of 4TLOW

Catherine my alter ego south of the border.

Shelly keeps me thinking out side of the box with color.

Karen teaches us that dumpster diving is nothing to be ashamed of.

Leigh finds a way to ground me and make me soar every time we talk.

Pink Pam one of my biggest fans that continually lets me know it.

and lastly Jen and Oli who will never be last in our book.

I also wanted to let you know that I have added a new page of

popular questions which can be found here

as well as a convenient FAQ tab at the top of the page to view when you like.

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Empire in Peacock

I picked up this cool empire style dresser in tiger oak and it sat around until I figured out what

to do with it. It barely hits me at my hip. Were people super small 100 years ago or what??

This is a perfect piece for a little person. 

 The wood wasnt in the best condition and I ended up replacing one of the drawer bottoms. Plus, the top is not solid. Its a veneer tiger oak. (Did you know that tiger oak and quarter-sawn is the same?)

Anyhoo, Since its so low, I thought about doing a cool peacock mosaic on top. I must have a 

bazillion mosaic tiles in every color. 

I used two of my favorite colors of milk paint; peacock and the wonderful turquoise color (labeled as cobalt) from the Real Milk Paint Co. 

I am partial to their paint because it mixes so easily and the colors are beautiful. 

Ive tried another make, and I found it to clump way too much. 

I layered on the turquoise first and then painted over that with the peacock. 

Sanding just melds them all together.  And of course the tung-oil just makes the colors

pop! 

Look at how the beautiful the "tiger" shows through! 

Heres a cool close-up of the detail in the corner. I love how milk paint accents the wood.

I thought about replacing the knobs but just painted the originals instead. 

Obviously the far right is the finished one! Tung-oil makes it shine!

Had to stage it with my peacock photograph!

Linking up at my fave parties!! :

Kammys Korner - Trash to Treasure Tuesdays

Domestically Speaking - The Power of Paint Party

The Shabby Creek Cottage - Transformation Thursday

Miss Mustardseed - Furniture Feature Friday

Redoux - Friday Link Up Party

Homespun Happenings - Rustic Restorations Weekend

Funky Junk Interiors - Saturday Night Special

1929 Charmer - Sundays Best Party

Knick of Time Interiors - Knick of Time Tuesday

Elizabeth and Co., My uncommon Slice of Suburbia,

Savvy Southern Style. Weds, Beyond the Picket Fence, PJH Designs

From my Front Porch to Yours,  The 36th Avenue,

Between Naps on the Porch                                                   The Dedicated House,-Mon                                         Redoux

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Retro in Black and White

Lately it seems all my work is being done on mid-century pieces. I went up a few decades and 

wandered into the 70s.  Ah yes, the wonderful 70s.  Great times. 

But dreadful clothing and furniture! Behold the common dresser:

                   At least its wood and not laminate. Veneer is just barely one step up.

But these do clean up nicely!!!

I would like to give a shout out to Dionne over at The Turquoise Iris for this inspiration. 

I saw one she did in black and white that was just beautiful! She always does such unique work.

                                 The body got primered in gray and the front white.

I used a semi-gloss in both the white and the black.  But I had the hardest time getting the top

to smooth out. I used a Sherwin Williams acrylic and painted at least 3-4 coats. Was not happy.

I sanded between coats but just could not get his smooth. So I completely sanded it off and started over.

This time I used a BM black. Much better. 

The handles were sprayed with carbon mist and highlighted w/gold gilding wax.

          And of course there always has to be a little surprise detail when you look behind the door.

Viola

Linking up at my fave parties!! :

Kammys Korner - Trash to Treasure Tuesdays

Domestically Speaking - The Power of Paint Party

The Shabby Creek Cottage - Transformation Thursday

Miss Mustardseed - Furniture Feature Friday

Redoux - Friday Link Up Party

Homespun Happenings - Rustic Restorations Weekend

Funky Junk Interiors - Saturday Night Special

1929 Charmer - Sundays Best Party

Knick of Time Interiors - Knick of Time Tuesday

Elizabeth and Co., My uncommon Slice of Suburbia,

Savvy Southern Style. Weds, Beyond the Picket Fence, PJH Designs

From my Front Porch to Yours,  The 36th Avenue,

Between Naps on the Porch

                                                   The Dedicated House,-Mon

                                         Redoux

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