Tuesday, August 31, 2010

The Distressed Hutch



Ha! I have to laugh at this project every time I look at it! It was a joy to do... and alot more than I really asked for at this time in my life.
First of all, I decided to do it in the middle of our move. You know, when I thought it would be easy to just take everything out, pack up and paint it with two little ones on the run. Ya. Muuuhahaha!
Second, I ended up NOT liking the yellow I originally picked. (mustard yellow... my hubby hated it! lol. I wont even tell you what color he called it!)
And finally, it took alot longer than I expected... because of my crazy life and moving our family.
I LOVE IT THOUGH and wouldn't change a thing!
So you wonderful individuals out there who are looking for a way to spruce up some old furniture, take a look at this distressed look!

Materials:
Paint (2 colors semigloss), paint brush, screw driver, sand paper, cloth, SOS pad

Step 1. The Color
Originally I chose yellow. A country yellow. So I went to the hardware store to pick it out. LOVED IT!
RECOMMENDATION: Get those tiny test paint jars of a couple colors you like. Paint them on your project to see which one you favor. And viola! No headache.
I didn't like the yellow when I was done but it worked out to my benefit as I painted blue over it.



Step 2. Take Off Hardware

Take your drill and remove any hardware. Door knobs/hinges etc.


Step 3: Sand lightly and Rough it up
In order for your paint to stick, your going to sand the outside. It won't take much so don't worry about putting your back into it or taking layers off with sand paper. It's not necessary. Just a little sanding will do the trick.
Now, to rough it up you need your bag of screws and hardware. Remove the hinges from the bag. Seal. And start banging on your furniture with the bag of screws. This "ages" your furniture making it look distressed. It leaves little dents to add character.
Bang on edges where desired.



Step 4: Wipe Down
It's simple enough. Wipe off sawdust with cloth so it's ready to paint.


Step 5: Paint
Simple enough. Don't forget your paint cloths (it will get everywhere!) And don't forget to pretend your Karate Kid painting Mr. Miyagi's fence. I know Im crazy but I kept saying to myself, "Danielsan, it's all in da wrist....uuppp.... down........ verrry good!" to get me through hours of painting. Make sure your strokes are smooth and have no clumps, or drips. Don't let it sit very long if your working on making it smooth either.



Step 6: SOS
Once your paint is dry, take your SOS brillow pad (steel wool) and rub it all over the painted surface to remove any blemishes. Wipe clean with cloth.

Step 7: Paint Again with Second Color


Step 8: Sand Until it Pop's
Yes! You want to sand the edges until you see that yellow (or what have you)"pop." Where ever you want your first color to come through, sand it until it does. This is called distressing. Mmmmm... love it. I think this was my favorite part.


Step 9: Wax and Polish
Put a coat of this on it and let it sit for an hour or two. With an old towel or cloth polish it into the wood using circular motions. It should shine once its all rubbed in.

And that's it! Your done! Finally! Have fun distressing... and don't stress over your project... sorry for the bad photos...






Tuesday, August 24, 2010

Tie Dye Spider




Hello! So sorry it's been a while. Between packing up our entire house, playing with my babies, vacationing, hubby, living out of a suitcase, moving, unpacking, and adjusting to our new life away from everything we have known, I have had little time to blog. Scratch that! I have had NO time to blog let alone see what is going on out there in the world today. Well, Im glad to tell you that Immmm baaaaaack! So let's get started shall we!

Today Im going to show you how to do a spider tie dye! Ooooooooooooo! Get excited! It's oh so easy and oh so fun! This last camping vacation we all tie dyed so I took some shots! It was fun.... in a non-tree-hugging sort of way. :)
If you missed the first tie dying post, I recommend you click HERE

Materials:

-Dharma dye (your desired colors, you need at least 1 dark color for the spider)
-Soda Ash Fixative
-Dust Mask
-2 buckets (one for soda ash and one for rinsing water)
-8 oz squeeze bottles
-Cooling rack
-Old metal pot
-Paper Towels
-White shirt (onezies, T-shirt, kid shirt, whatever you want)
-Latex gloves (to protect your hands from being dyed)
-Rubber bands or string
-Gallon plastic freezer bags
- 1 Wooden Cloths pin
Now your going to follow all the necessary instructions as you did in my first tutorial (Mix dye, soak clothing in soda ash, and prepare a work surface).
The only thing you are going to do different is: tying the clothing and squirting the dye.

1. Tying the Spider:
After your material has soaked in the soda ash, ring out excess and lay on work surface.

Fold in half.........

Take your handy dandy cloths pin, clip the center of the shirt and roll it in a circular motion until you reach the end. (I used my fingertips, but a cloths pin works best!)

Once you wrap your circle in rubber bands or string, it's spider time!
2. Dying the Spider:
Now this is the fun part! Your going to grab your darkest color and work from the center until you get to the outside. Think Cinnamon rolls and you'll do fine! ;) See picture below for details.





Fill the empty white spots with a lighter color or two. Flip over gently and repeat the same dark pattern on other side (yes the dark lines should be the same or close to it on each side) Fill in with lighter color again.
Place in zip lock and let sit for 12-24 hours. Wash and tada! Spider Man! Or baby! Or what have you. Happy tie dying!

Tuesday, August 10, 2010

Oh My Nelly!

Oh my Nelly! It has been a while! Don't worry though. I'll be posting soon! (My Hutch and Tie Dye! Yay!)
If you didn't know, we have been living out of suitcases for the past few weeks. Im not complaining! I love vacationing! But moving in the process of vacationing is not so fun! We are basically up in the air right now. So, I apologize for the lack of blogging! Give me a little more time to settle down from our move this week and we will be golden! Until we're settled I hope you are all well out there!
More to come soon!!!!! Loves!

Rachel

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