Shabby Chic; Volume III

Athome1

Am a bit of a lurker but wanted to share my latest project - sorry about the size.
Here's my summer house ...

meames_2

Lovely Athome1

Cacran

fairy3 wrote: »

Hey all, after lurking for so long I have my first piece to work on! It is an oak bureau and in a bit of a sorry state and I probably paid over the odds at £50 but have been wanting one for ages. inside the fold down bit smells very musty so have left it open but any tips for removing odour?
It is well made with three drawers and brass handles. I am planning to paint it mint green with a stencil on the sloping bit in cream from the 'graphics fairy' although haven't chosen one yet.
I plan on cleaning it with a soft cloth and warm soapy water to remove the grime and then to make my own chalk paint using advice from here. Would any of you advise a light sand?
The leather writing bit is fairly knackered and curling away so hope to replace it - any ideas what I could use? Was thinking either trying to use a thin piece of leather from a CS purchase or a piece of oil cloth?
Will try and post a pic if I can get my DS2 to show me how!
All advice gratefully received

F x

Try putting some bicarbonate of soda in a little container inside it. It is supposed to absorb smells.

chalkysoil

re the musty smell, you could also try lining it temporarily with scented drawer liners, or putting lavender stalks, mint, etc in it. I had a smelly glazed crock that I buried in the contents of a tub of dried herbs which certainly helped. I think musty comes from damp and airless.




re the summer house - it's gorgeous, I want to live in it!

supersaver1000

WOW Athome1 WOW

emma_kate

You can seal nasty niffs in with shellac from Zinsser. It also acts as a primer.

Athome1 - can I come for a holiday? It looks fantastic!

I think that woodworm treatments are oily so you sometimes have to wait a few months before you can paint a treated piece. When the smell is gone you should be okay. And Chalky is SOOO right. When the dealer tells you it's 'old' woodworm that's been treated, NEVER take their word for it and always do it yourself!!! I bought a french bed from a reputable dealer, The French House, in York and the woodworm he had 'treated' was live.

Gingernutty

Gingernutty wrote: »

I wanted a new COD as my other donated one was too small and the bottom drawer was coming apart.

I found a lovely 5 drawer chest in BHF, paid £45 for it including delivery and set about filling the gouges in the top, sanding it all down (weird auburn stain on it), painting the top to hide the filler, varnishing the entire thing and putting on new drawer knobs.

The first knob sheared and I needed to get another one (Homebase, I know, I know), the sander died on me after I realised I had to sand the sides of all the drawers to get them to go back into the carcass (varnish made them too thick) and the paint came out lighter than I hoped, but in the end look what I did!



I'm really pleased with my little self....:)

No. I don't know why the top drawer has a routed finger pull and the other four drawers have knobs.....

Putting the drawers back in, I found a small makers plaque on the back of the first drawer.

A Younger Ltd.

I'm really proud of my little self now.:D

Athome1

Thanks for the nice remarks!
I've had this summerhouse for about 20yrs and I was inspired by the very clever people on this thread, so a big THANKS to you all. I've learned about chalk paint, up-dating furniture and the best place to bag bargains plus a zillion other things on here.:T

Catriona_P

Another lurker here - but I do love seeing all the photos of how people are getting on!

Major envy at your beautiful summerhouse Athome! And that chest of drawers is gorgeous gingernutty - wonder how much it would be worth now?

Quick question of my own - I found a lovely pine blanket box in a charity shop a few days ago that I want to repaint into dressing up box for my daughter. Obviously she wants bright colours! What brand of paint would be best/easiest for this and how do I need to treat and prepare the wood? I have looked online but it's a bit confusing. Thanks!

Gingernutty

Catriona_P wrote: »

And that chest of drawers is gorgeous gingernutty - wonder how much it would be worth now?

Er, nothing. The original knobs are gone, the original finish is gone, the damaged surface is unsympathetically filled and painted and it's the Younger sideboards that are actually worth anything.

On the plus side, I got a solidly made piece of quality furniture which looks nice to me and is still useful.

Who needs sideboards these days?

Many of us have sanded the original surface, used wall paint (vinyl silk or matt) and then gone over it with clear varnish.

The benefit of that is you can use remainders of paint you already have in the house - the bright colours your LO might want could be one of the feature wall colours.

You could mix and match using tester pots - "pastelling" down with white paint as required.