So it’s no secret I love old furniture.  And thrift stores.  And the paint department.  The three combined bring me great joy and make my world complete.

Like so many of you, I love to fix up older pieces with stain or paint, and give them cool new hardware.  You know, bring them into this century.   Which is why I wander around local thrift stores and spend hours on Craigslist when I should be folding laundry.  Yet again, I was out ‘shopping’ yesterday, and found a few gems I really want to bring home.

Especially when I see this sign when I walk in.

This antique dresser just needs a little love, but I’d never paint it.  The burled wood is just too pretty.  And a glass top too!

I can hear these end tables whisper, ‘Please paint me antique white, distress my edges, and replace my knobs with some crystal bling instead’.  I may just have to heed their call, since they are only $15 each on sale.

I love the lines on this piece.  It seems everyone knows someone with this style of dresser.  Dark stain or light paint (cream or gray) either way, it’s lovely.

Even more beauties.  Such potential!

How cool is this hall tree bench?  Don’t you love that hutch!  Wouldn’t it be stunning in robin’s egg blue?

Today, I’m loving this midcentury style credenza for my office to replace the ‘pretty but not storage friendly’ sofa.  It’s weathered and the top is *gasp* Formica, so I see it painted in pewter gray with nickel pulls.  Plus momma really needs some file cabinets.  I’m kinda liking that lamp too, it’s tall and has a gorgeous shape.  It would be stunning in glossy black.

And the crème-de-la-crème.  Be still my heart.

I’ve spoken to several local antique stores and boutiques who are wanting to sell my pieces.  Which is why I’m in the market for one of these.

Or one of these.

Just as soon as I epoxy the garage floor.  And just as soon as I can convince my hub his parking spot in that same garage may become my new ‘shop’.   Notice how I said his  parking spot.   

What’s your latest thrift store find?  Got any recommendations on a professional grade sprayer?  Do share!

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There’s really very little reason for me to stalk the furniture department at the local thrift store since my house is already full of pieces I’ve dragged home and refinished.  But I can’t stay away, much to the chagrin of my poor husband.  He can’t even park in our garage because of the half dozen pieces I have yet to turn my attention to.  I can’t help it !  I have some sort of addiction – a crazy soft spot in my heart for rejected objects.  

Today, I couldn’t drive past the parking lot, I just had to pull in.  Some people window shop high end boutiques.  Me?  I get my kicks exploring the furniture department at the thrift store, and dreaming of what things could become.   

Like this headboard.  I would pop out the four inside frames, they are a little too busy for me.  Then I’d do one of two things.  I’d add pretty appliqués to the four remaining sections and paint it distressed cream with a hint of the dark wood showing through in spots.  Or I’d skip the appliqués and go in a different, bolder direction.  Perhaps paint this baby in a semi gloss indigo shade, then attach nailhead trim to the outer framing and place it in a master bedroom up against a wallpapered accent wall and hang a bold metallic starburst mirror above.  So glam !

Or this little cabinet.  Someone emailed me the other day about making a wine cabinet, and this is the perfect little candidate.  I would retrofit the bottom with diagonal shelving to hold wine bottles, then attach chrome hanging glass racks to the top.  I’d repaint its damaged surface in black, replace the hardware with some blingy crystal knobs, then add a mirrored tray to the top.  Ready for entertaining !  Trés chic. 

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Last week, I picked up a pair of dusty chairs at a thrift store.  I loved the classic cottage shape and the cheap price, but the finish was so grungy.  I brought them home and sanded them down to the raw wood, removing all the dirt and grime.  Then I gave them a fresh coat of spring green paint ! 

Here they are Before . . .

. . . and After

All it took was half an hour of sanding and and an hour of painting to give them a fresh new look with some paint and a little distressing !

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Again I found myself stopping by the local St. Vincent de Paul today looking for great pieces of furniture.  This thrift store can be hit and miss, but today, it was a definite hit.  I was just so excited about all of these finds, I had to share.  Call me strange, but scouring a thrift store on a treasure hunt just makes me giddy. 

Look at these two beautiful honey tone dressers – they could be stained darker or painted.  Perhaps given some new modern hardware.  I visualize an asymmetrical art gallery or statement mirrors above them ! 

I fell in love with this chair !  If it’s still there tomorrow, I might go back for it.  All it needs in new modern fabric and it would be fabulous ! 

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I’ve been reflecting on my master bedroom, and its décor and I’ve concluded it’s pretty nice so far, but in need of some modern upgrades.  I’m really seeking to take the bedroom to the next level.  You know, add some elegant wainscoting, change up the art display, add some dramatic sconces, some upholstered seating, and perhaps a glitzy mirror above the bed.  Really glam it up a with a hint of that Old Hollywood style.

Our master gets morning light, but becomes really dark in the afternoon and evening.  For the longest time, I was looking for a mirrored buffet like this one from Z Gallerie to put under the front window to pull light into the space.  Plus, I have a storage issue in my bedroom.  I have several dozen half finished books that I’m committed to reading, so they simply cannot leave the room.  And a ton of magazines piling up again.  Yet all of those books and magazines were collecting dust and I really needed a storage solution for my bedtime reading material.

Enter this downtrodden substitute from the local thrift store.

A beautiful piece of cabinetry in my eyes, but sad too.  I can tell that someone wanted to fix her up, but gave up.  Perhaps because the top and side panels are veneer and not real wood.  Or perhaps because this piece had taken a lot of abuse.

I saw so much potential here, and also a storage solution!  So I paid $25 dollars at the local St. Vincent de Paul thrift and brought it home.  As you know from last week’s ode to Opulence Pearl paint, I got to thinking that I could refinish the piece in a cream color, then glaze it with my new found best friend.

With my newest fixation on metallic finishes, I must tell you that I came so very close to giving it an antique silver finish. I even considered silver leafing it.  But then I realized I had a bronze thing going on in the master bedroom space.

See?

As tempted as I was, I decided this cabinet refinished in silver in this space might be too Vegasy (is that a word?).  So I live to silver leaf another day.

I have absolutely no use for another wood tone in this room and the existing linens are cream.  Besides, I like to mix painted pieces with wood furniture.  So I opted to paint it in a cream color, and give it a  pearlescent glaze.  Here are the three tools I used to transform:  Zinsser primer, Rustoleum’s ‘Heirloom White’ latex in a can (can you believe it?) and Pratt & Lambert’s Opulence Pearl, all purchased from Orchard Supply & Hardware (OSH).

Plus some new knobs from Anthropologie.

Love !

I sanded, then primed with Zinsser.

Then I gave it two coats of Heirloom White in latex.  The final third coat was a blend of one part Heirloom White to three parts Opulence Pearl, both latex paints.

Here she is After:

The existing linens in the room are a cream damask pattern.  Hmmm.  Then I really got to thinking.  Why not play off this pattern ?

So I had a crazy clever idea.  I really like this etched look on these panels, like on these pieces that I featured yesterday.

I really love this carved detail.  It separates these pieces from the crowd and really makes them one of a kind.

On my piece, the inner panels of this cabinet separate from the door.  So I had this paintable patterned wallpaper that I plan on using in another top secret project to be revealed whenever I get around to it.

Available at Lowes:

Excuse me, but whomever invented paintable textured wallpaper, let me kiss your ring.

I clipped off four sections, painted and glazed the wallpaper, then attached it to the removable inner panels to give it that etched panel look.

Cool, huh.  Reversible panels.  Two looks in one.

Seriously, they reverse with just a few tiny screws.  Takes five minutes.

I had the finished edge mirror custom made to fit the top of thsi cabinet for $60 dollars.  Pricey, but worth it since it pulls so much light into the room, and gives off a really beautiful reflection.

Whether it’s crystal and costume jewelry.

. . .or blooms and colored glass.

Here’s a peek at the pearlescent sheen up close.  Keep in mind this is three parts Opulence Pearl to one part Heirloom White paint.  I know it’s called ‘Heirloom White’ but it’s really a cream color in my eyes.

I thought two coats of the Opulence Pearl on top of the Heirloom White was too shiny for this piece, so I mixed the paint with the glaze to arrive at the perfect subtle pearl sheen.

Plain panels:

‘Etched’ wallpaper panels:

So which look did I settle on?  I remain undecided.  In truth, I like them both.  One little voice says “Oh, the plain panels, they’re so elegant!” and the other voice hollers back “You wallpapered the inside panels ?  You go girl !”

So as you can see, I am torn.

What say you?

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