4 the love of wood

1988 MOTOR HOME MAKEOVER II - converting bed

Last week we shared the interior makeover

BEFORE & AFTER photos of our older

motor home. Many of you have asked for

more information so let me try to tell you

some of the highlights. First let me say I

had one month to do the entire makeover

and no time to take photos before we left.

That means all the AFTER photos were

taken after all the wear and tear from our

trip across Canada and back.
She held up very well!

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1988 MOTOR HOME MAKEOVER - georgie boy cruise master

The interior makeover of our 1988 motor

home started this summer. It was time for

us to take a vacation and I wanted to make the

motor home super comfortable for our adventure.

The plan was to hit the road on a cross Canada

trip that would last for more than a month.

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OLD WHITE - a cabinet rescued using ascp

I remember that morning, we were

running late because someone slept

in. It was one of those Saturdays I

enjoy so much, spending time with

George, getting out to all the yard

sales and finding other people's crap

I can make into something wonderful.

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PAINTING BEDROOM FURNITURE - using annie sloan chalk paint

It took my husband some time before he
agreed to let me paint our dark wood
bedroom furniture. Like most new
couples we went out and purchased an
expensive set of matching furniture as
our first thing together. I quickly found
it difficult to decorate in the style that
made me happy when all the furniture
was so dark and heavy.

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PLATE WALL DISPLAY - shabby chic style

"BUY IT WHEN YOU SEE IT BECAUSE YOU LOVE IT"

I have always found the key to creating successful
& wonderful wall displays has always been
to use the things I love and have collected over
time. But more importantly when I want to get
to work building a display I look for items that
have been stored out of sight and out of mind,
like these plates stacked in a pile in the back
of a cupboard. I don't plan a shopping trip to
find new things, like everyone else I have
plenty of things I love right here at home. How
many things do you have stored away that you
could display?

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WHITE SECRETARY DESK - vintage wood working

The only thing to suffer during

the making of this secretary was

the house work. This project was

actually built from many pieces

headed to the landfill.

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WHITE NIGHTSTANDS - painted with ASCP

I have created a pair of bedside tables similar

to my own so someone else can enjoy them

too. They each have 2 drawers with great

storage. The color is a creamy white with

edge distressing creating a perfect shabby

chic finish. They have long legs and have

some beautiful detailing.

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RECYCLED DINING CHAIR LEGS - shabby chic bedside tables

There are so many unused and unwanted

dining chairs out there. Every thrift store

and charity shop I go to have a selection.

Most people have a chair or two in their

garage. There are some great up-cycle

projects out there already on Pinterest

and I would like to add one more to the

list with the help of Annie Sloan Chalk
Paint.

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SHABBY CHIC TALL BEDSIDE TABLES - painted with annie sloan chalk paint

I built this lovely set of matching

beside nightstands by adding legs.
They were finished in a creamy
white creating the perfect shabby
chic look.

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SANDING OR WET DISTRESSING diy chalk painted furniture

TO SAND OR WET DISTRESS .....
Recently I worked back to back on two similar

piece of furniture because I wanted to compare

these two distressing techniques. One of the pieces

was an antique desk, and the other was an antique

vanity, but both had the same dark finish. I brush

painted each with Annie Sloan Pure White and when

it came time to distress I used sand paper on the vanity

and a damp sponge on the desk. I have compiled some

photos showing how each piece look in comparison.

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SHABBY CHIC WHITE DESK - painted with annie sloan chalk paint

This is a beautiful shabby chic

antique desk with matching stool

that I painted with Annie Sloan
Pure White.

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HACKED WALL ART - recycling vintage objects

I enjoy taking unwanted and broken items

and finding a unique way to combine them

with another vintage piece to create a unique

piece of wall art for your home. Below I have

a few examples of a few of these projects.

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SIGN PAINTED ON GLASS TUTORIAL - vintage french graphic

This was a big graphic project to undertake

as the size of this glass panel is about a foot

and a half wide by another 2 and half feet tall.

I hand finished the french typography right

onto the glass door of this Annie Sloan

painted cabinet. This DIY project is not for

the faint of heart, and takes patience and

determination to complete. Now with that

established let's get to the details ...

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WHITE PAINTED ART DECO DESK & SHABBY CHIC SWITCH PLATES

I am not a real fan of art decor style furniture.

But I do have to admit it is all made with nice
solid wood which is great to work with. When
I started working on this DIY paint project

I never dreamt it would turn out as good as

it did. Let me know your thoughts.

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FRENCH TYPOGRAPHY CABINET

This could be a great shoe cabinet!
She looks and really is a true vintage cabinet
turned into an amazing shabby chic statement
piece with a vintage french advert on the
glass door. Long legs and 3 authentic
antique glass knobs.

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HOW TO PAINT AN UPHOLSTERED CHAIR FROM TOP TO BOTTOM with annie sloan

I have painted many upholstered chairs with

Annie Sloan Chalk Paint but this is one of my

favorite DIY PROJECTS to date. This chair has

been with me for a long time and it took years

before I would commit to paint it. I knew how

good it could look but it was still so hard to put

paint on it for the first time. Are you thinking

about doing it too? Maybe some of the answers

you need are in this post.

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HOW TO CREATE A FAUX DRIFTWOOD FINISH

Are you looking for instruction to create a faux driftwood finish with paint? I have written a how to on creating a grey wood grain type of look on a piece of furniture. This is really a simple project but can get a little messy.

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HOW I PAINTED MY FRIDGE with annie sloan chalk paint

The day finally arrived that my shabby chic

fridge was finished, and this DIY project didn't

cost a lot. I was just trying to solve what to do

with some rust stains and broken handles

before it escalated into something bigger.

Check out my SHABBY CHIC FRIDGE ...

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VINTAGE FURNITURE REPAIRS - leg supports

Thank you to a couple of ladies who offered their
solution in the comments of my last repair for fixing
saggy drawer bottoms. Every tip and trick is welcome
in the hopes that it will help the next person. If you would
like more information on FLIPPING drawer bottoms as an
option to fix your drawers I wrote an article about that here.
Now on to today's repair ...

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VINTAGE FURNITURE REPAIRS - broken drawer joints

Recently I worked on a buffet that needed
major repairs. I photographed most of it
to share how I fixed each problem.
I'm hoping it can help a few of you to
take on a repair or two of your own.

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VINTAGE FURNITURE REPAIRS - saggy drawer bottoms

I took on a furniture project recently that turned
into about 8 hours of wood working repairs.
I photographed a lot of it so I could share it
with you and how I fixed each problem.
Let's start with the first problem ....

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CANDLES, BOXES, AND A LOOK AROUND THE HOUSE - UPDATES

Hello February 2017,
and Hello readers!

I took it slow in January and did not blog. Boxing
day I injury myself to the point it was hard to do
many tasks so that set the tone for awhile. I started
puttering around the house as most of use do in
January getting things organized again and finishing
off old tasks. It was all at a much slower pace than
usual but I still got a lot accomplished.
Check it out ...

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BUILDING LIL BOXES - recycling Christmas cards

The first time I made one of these boxes was
when I was quite young. And truthfully I have
never stopped. They are perfect for hiding small
presents in, or safely storing a small ornament
while packed away for the year. They can also
be used for an advent calendar, hiding a small
treat inside and hung from many different
places in your home.

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PAINTING AN ANTIQUE DINING TABLE

Our first dinner at this table ended up being
rather nice. We had been working all afternoon

getting ready for the first snow fall of the year.

Rolling up hoses, readying the walk ways for

a fresh covering of snow. I had also started a

pot of chicken soup earlier and in between

tasks I would find my way back to check on

it. Sitting down to a nice warm bowl after a

long day is always great but for me it got even
better when GG told me he found his ring
while cleaning his vehicle. It is not of
great value but for us it hurt deeply when
it went missing.

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SHABBY CHIC TV STAND - long legs & gold paint

Our TV stand is completely unique and a
one of a kind creation I made from an old
2 drawer chest a friend gave me. The piece
needed a lot of attention in one way or
another but little did I know this is what
the end result was going to be.

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TO PAINT OR NOT TO PAINT - french country cupboard

Many people go through the struggle of whether

they should paint wood furniture or not. I do

struggle sometimes with the decision as well.

I have had many pieces of beautiful wood furniture

that I have re-home because they didn't fit in here.

This dresser and cabinet to the left have been

with me for several years enjoyed as is but I have

wanted to paint them for awhile now. It just took

some time for me to jump in with both feet.

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BUILDING MINI EVERGREEN WREATHS - tutorial

The smell that these wreaths bring into the house for

the holidays is priceless and I make a few every year.

Supplies for these wreaths are as follows:

flexible wire

strong utility scissors

live greenery

gloves (optional)

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PAINTING PINE CONES - snow kissed pine cone tutorial

It must be that time of year again cause the erg

to create tons of holiday decor is upon me. Over

the weekend I took some time to build a few

wreaths for friends and family. And I wanted to

share a simple and easy trick to embellish pine

cones so they stand out and make a statement

on my wreaths.

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HOW TO GET THAT PRETTY TURQUOISE LOOK - sewing project 5

Annie Sloan Chalk paint is perfect for

creating distressed and layered finishes

so I used it when I wanted to create a
layered color effect on a thrift
store jewelry box.

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BUILDING WALL ART WITH A VINTAGE MAP

This is my DIY map wall art I built from discarded
items and also PART TWO of the convertible
workstation created for Janome Canada in their
MAKER's SPACE series. For those who

have not been following these projects, I was
challenged to re-purpose several second hand
items to use in a makers space and this project
can be made for decoration or for function.

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BUILDING A SMALL SPACE WORKSTATION

Do you need a dedicated work place but live
in a small space with little extra room? I have
built a convertible workstation for exactly
that, small space living. I used thrifted items
and transformed them into beautiful decor.
This is the next project I did for
Janome Canada in their MAKER's SPACE
series. This will be a two part "HOW TO",
with this first article showing you how it

works and how I started by building and
painting the base cabinets.

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REPURPOSING AN OLD SPOON RACK - with krylon spray paint

Janome Canada tasked me with repurposing several thrifted items, including an old spoon
rack. I thought this should be a fun DIY project.
I have seen more than enough of them sitting
on thrift store shelves so I figured start with
some Krylon paint and see what happens.

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RE-PURPOSING A FRAME INTO A MESSAGE CENTER

When you live in a small space like
I do, it is great to have things that are
dual purposed. To help with organizing
the work space I overhauled a picture
frame into a message center and I enjoyed
this DIY project that included making a
chalk board.

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UPCOMING PROJECTS

I used my creative skills for the fall launch

of Janome Canada's next machine series.

It is called the M series and the machine is

designed for all the MAKERS out there.

The LOOKBOOK for the launch has been

released and inside you get to see pages of

creative ideas from Canadian artists including

several of my projects. I was tasked with

repurposing everyday items for use in a

MAKER's space. Come check it out!

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PAINTING A COUNTRY STYLE DESK and new shabby chic switch plates

Last time I showed how to change the style of a

piece of furniture with trim and appliques but

there is something simpler to use as well. A

new coat of paint has such a strong ability to
change the look of old things. It can breath

new life into a something you wanted to throw

away and create a completely different style.

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PAINTING A SHABBY CHIC TALL DRESSER

I run across many dressers from this era but this
pieces was one of the nicer ones. It was made with
real solid wood, top to bottom. MDF is usually hidden
somewhere in most pieces of furniture built after 1968.

I knew I could take this COLONIAL style and work
some magic on it to get a nice COTTAGE feel in the end.

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HOW TO PAINT A SMOOTH FINISH - using annie sloan chalk paint

Anyone who owns a piece of my work

or has visited and touched the finish on my

furniture usually comments about how smooth

it is. There are many different things you can

do to get a smoother ASCP paint finish when

using a brush and I am sharing some of

the secrets I use.

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PAINTING A LONG SHABBY CHIC DRESSER

I've been enjoying my summer holidays more than usual.

We took off early in the season to visit with GG's family

and once we returned home I spent more time relaxing.

The school year is going to be here soon and with that will

come the falling leaves and the need to get back to work. I

have already started with a big shabby chic makeover.

Take a look and see what you think.

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PAINTING RUSTIC RED FURNITURE

Have you ever seen a piece of bedroom furniture

made from plywood? There are lots of them out

there and they are probably home made by someone's

dad or grandfather back in the day. Plywood is great

to work with because it is super strong and you can

treat it just like solid wood, but have you ever wondered

how to paint it???

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NO SEW BED SKIRT - my french bedroom

Two more areas of our new French Country
bedroom I haven't shared yet are GG's bedside
and the bed itself. This room is all about using
unique found pieces I love to make an oasis.
I have also offered an insight to how I built
our bed.

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YARD SALE MAKEOVERS BEFORE AND AFTER

This spring we had a yard sale to clear out many

pieces of great furniture that were not going to get

the attention they needed from me. I have a few

kind ppl who have sent photos back of the

makeovers they performed on the treasured
pieces they found at my yard sale.

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ANTIQUE WALL HOOKS - more bedroom reveal

Sometimes I look at other blogs and see photos of
beautiful homes that make me question if they are
real or not. I wonder how could I ever achieve that.
The finishes cost a fortune and my fortune is
dedicated to more personal things like groceries.
I bet many of you also feel the same way. I hope
when I offer tips and decor photos that it feels
more doable and affordable.

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JACK & JILL FARMHOUSE STYLE - burlap nightsands

I purchased a pair of pretty classy
late 1960's nightstands only
to find out one was a knockoff.

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SHABBY CHIC AND FARMHOUSE SOFA TABLE

GG started to question me right after I stopped to pick these
awesome wood things up off the roadside. They were heavy
bed posts that I knew I could use but in that very moment I
wasn't sure what my plan was. So I made up a cute story about
turning them into lamps and he was content at that. Conclusion,
even the most supportive partners still needs reassurance that the
junk coming home with them will be used one day. So girls
be as creative with your stories as you are with your projects.

Now let me show you what I did with them.

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A BENCH MADE FROM CHAIRS and more shabby chic switch plates

If you are thinking of creating a bench from

a pair of chairs I'm here to offer a tip or two

on how it can be done easy by steering you

in the right direction.

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USING APPLIQUES ON FURNITURE - rustic french bedsides

There they were sitting one on top of the other on

the side of the street, two little wood boxes covered in

banged up black paint. I was heading the opposite direction

when I first saw them and had to make a uturn to get

back to them. Destined for the landfill yet made of wood

they had to be saved. Each had a drawer and an open space,

to display cherished things. They had great bones for

upcycling into something new but I would need some

other important pieces to transform their look completely.

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NORTHUMBERLAND BATH CABINET - repurposed glass door

One warm spring evening I was inspired as I passed by

a salvaged glass door I had leaned against the boxwood

hedge. It had been pulled out of storage while I was

looking for something earlier in the day. It came from

a weather beaten mahogany cabinet I found years ago

that was only good as parts for other projects. I wanted

to start creating something around this lonely pane of

glass right away.

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MAKING FRENCH BEDSIDE TABLES - wood working tips

Once upon a time someone spent time and money

to build this little black cabinet, and actually they

built a pair of them. They were definitely built to

last however I thought they could benefit from

some improvements. A color change for sure,

maybe add some interest on the drawer, and

potentially lift them up higher with new legs.

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BEDROOM CORNER - Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day to all you wonderful woman who inspire,
nurture, and go way beyond. Today is the day you should do
NOTHING. Rest, relax, rejuvenate, and relinquish the reigns
to someone else today and see if the world does explode.

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