Painting & Antiquing Techniques Archives - Page 13 of 33

accessories, Aged, Before and After, copper, painting, Painting & Antiquing Techniques, ReNew, sander, Spray paint metal, Trash to Treasure, Tutorial, Upcycling

Upcycled Plant Cart Saved from “Above the Rim”

Upcycled Metal Rolling Cart Plant Stand | Pretty Handy Girl

This past summer I spied a metal cart in a dumpster. To be frank, I have never truly actually participated in dumpster diving. The thought of actually climbing inside a dumpster has never been on my acceptable things to do list. But, this metal bar cart was floating on top of the trash pile. It was (to quote a Seinfeld episode) above the rim! And it was begging to be upcycled into a beautiful plant cart.

So, I convinced myself it was okay and wasn’t officially dumpster diving. Feel free to debate this fact in the comment section.

I brought it home and knew I could do a quick makeover with some spray paint. But, first it needed a good cleaning and some prep work. The tops of the shelves were very rusty:

Upcycled Plant Cart Saved from “Above the Rim”

And the undersides were filthy. But, the end product was worth it! Here is how to upcycle your own little metal rusty bar cart into a beautiful plant stand!

Materials:

1 Discarded rusty bar cart (rescued from above the rim)
Socket set
Hammer for coaxing rusty bolts loose
Can of Rustoleum Heirloom White spray paint
Can of Krylon Copper Spray paint
Sander/sanding block
Fine grit sand paper
Wire brush
Rag and/or damp wipes
Painter’s tape
Drop cloth
Scraps of wood to elevate while painting
Optional: Drill

Upcycled Plant Cart Instructions:

Loosen corner bolts with a socket wrench or drill and socket bit. Hammer out any that are too rusty to budge. Read more

March 31, 2014/36 Comments/by Brittany Bailey

Before and After, Contributor, decor, DIY, Do It Yourself, Goodwill, habitat ReStore, Home Decor, Painting & Antiquing Techniques

How to Stain a Basket

I admit it, I’m a basket addict!

Baskets are one of the best ways to organize and accessorize your home but they can be very expensive when purchased new. Thrift stores are a great source of affordable baskets but they are often out-of-fashion colors and can have missing or broken pieces. Today I’m going to show you how to take those old, thrift store baskets and make them a beautiful accent piece for your home.

Materials:

super glue
hand broom
stain
paintbrush

Instructions:

The first step in fixing up an old basket is to clean out any dirt or debris using a hand broom. Be thorough on both the interior and exterior.

Next inspect your basket for any broken pieces. Use super glue to repair any areas that may need it. Read more

March 26, 2014/2 Comments/by Melissa Riker

Build It, chalk paint, Decor Adventures, DIY, Furniture, Painting & Antiquing Techniques, Tutorial, Upcycling

DIY Unique Wine Rack

Hi everyone! It’s Jessica from Décor Adventures, back again and ready to show you a furniture makeover project I’m just in love with. This isn’t just any furniture makeover. This is how to turn an old dresser into a rack to hold your favorite reds and whites – wine that is!

One of my favorite things to do is redo furniture. Chairs, mirrors, tables, dressers, you name it. A while back I found this dresser at a thrift shop for only $10 and took it home only to find the drawers didn’t work well at all. I had an idea to ditch the two large drawers and turn this piece into a wine rack. If it doesn’t work for clothes, why not make it work for wine! Here is how to make your own unique wine rack from a dresser.

Materials
Many of these materials are based on how I painted the dresser and how we cut the shelves. We cut them ourselves with a table saw, but if you don’t have one, you can have them cut at the home improvement store or use a circular saw.

Dresser with a few drawers removed

Paint:

primer, paint, stain, paint brush and roller;
Furniture wax or sealant/polycrylic (or whatever you might want to use to finish the dresser)

Racks/Shelves:

Two 2’x4’ sheets of ½” MDF
Two pieces of quarter round to finish fronts of shelves;
Several feet of ½” square wood dowels {they come in 36” pieces}

Tools:

Table saw {unless you have the shelves cut to size at the home improvement store};
Nail gun
nails
air compressor
Random orbital sander {Optional if you distress the dresser}
Miter saw or hand saw

Supplies:

Wood glue;
220-300 Sand block or sand paper.

Instructions
These instructions will be in a three sections, so you can easily see how this project comes together. First you will paint or stain your dresser, {or maybe you love it as is and will leave it}, second you will prepare the shelves and put them together to create the wine racks, and last you’ll put the whole dresser together.

Preparing the Dresser
This was a piece I bought at a thrift store and it was already painted but I had to fix it up. The back was not painted and didn’t look very pretty so I ended up painting that too. You can see in this picture how wonky the bottom large drawers were.

Simple Vases using Radiant Orchid {Lowe’s Creative Idea}

Radiant Orchid Vases from Recycled Cans & Jars | #upcycling | Pretty Handy Girl

There I was digging things out of the recycling bin again. Pretty Handsome Guy gave me a raised eyebrow, but he knew better than to question my motives. I had that idea bulb flashing over my head, and I was ready to transform some jars and tins. With Springtime just around the corner, it was time to force a little vibrant color into our home. I introduce to you the cheapest way to bring Radiant Orchid color into your décor! If you have recycled jars and tins, you are set!

(I’ve included affiliate links for your convenience. I earn a small percentage from a purchase using these links. There is no additional cost to you. You can read more about affiliate links here.)

Materials:

Kilz Primer
Paint brushes
ScotchBlue Painter’s tape
Sample pot of Pantone Radiant Orchid

Optional: Gold vinyl stripes or washi tape

Instructions:

Clean out your jars, bottles or tins.

Coat the exterior of your recycled vessel with primer. Allow to dry.

Paint each bottle and tin with radiant orchid paint. Allow to dry. You might need two coats depending on the coverage. Read more

February 28, 2014/13 Comments/by Brittany Bailey

Build It, Chalk marker, chalk paint, Chalkboard paint, Contributor, Decorating, DIY, Home Decor, kids art, Painting & Antiquing Techniques

How to: Build a Wall Chalkboard with a Chalk Ledge

Chalkboards are popping up everywhere (like Brittany’s DIY chalkboard calendar from last week) and you can easily make one, but how about upping the usefulness by making a chalkboard WITH a chalk ledge? Jaime here from That’s My Letter to show you how easy it is to add a chalk ledge to your chalkboard.

You definitely need a place to put all that chalk (or chalk markers like we prefer). This chalk ledge protudes a minimal 1 3/4″ from the wall but still has space enough to hold lots of chalk.

I also attached a galvanized pail for more chalk markers.

I installed this chalkboard near our back door mudroom area. Unfortunately the key pad for our alarm system is nearly smack in the middle of that wall. I simply cut out a square in my plywood using a jig saw to accommodate the key pad. My kids love their new chalkboard and somehow the key pad isn’t quite so obvious once they start drawing around it.

Supplies:

1/2″ plywood (cut to desired size)
1×2 pine board (cut to length of plywood)
1 3/8″ x 1/4″ thick flat trim moulding (cut to length of plywood)
black chalkboard paint
blue painters tape
stain
polyurethane
foam brushes
drill
Kreg pocket hole jig (not necessary but definitely easier if you have one)
1″ pocket hole screws
wood glue
3/4″ trim nails
countersink bit
2 1/2″ toggle bolts
5/8″ spade bit (check toggle bolt requirements)
pencil
level

Instructions:

Step 1: Cut your plywood to size, using your Kreg pocket hole jig make pocket holes every 8″ along bottom edge of plywood (on back side). (I used the portable base with automaxx clamp here, much easier that slipping a large piece of plywood into the jig.) Read more

February 19, 2014/8 Comments/by Jaime Costiglio