A FINISHED ROOM.....well almost

I have been working on the styling of my back bedroom for awhile and other than hanging some shadowboxes, which aren't done yet, I have finally finished and this room no longer gives me anxiety.  We all have those rooms that need to serve a multitude of purposes and this is the room for me.  When I started I really didn't have any budget for re-doing things in this room, but with a little "garage and fabric stash" digging and some paint I am very happy with the results.

I have shown in previous posts the shades I made for the windows and the auction furniture I brought in.

 

Last year was my first attempt working with chalk paint.  I had been given a little dresser, one of those unfinished pine pieces that were so popular many years ago.  This one had been burnt in spots then many, many layers of shellac covered it.  I took my sander to it and brought it back to the bare wood, then painted it with chalk paint and finished it with wax.  It needed a little repair and some new knobs, but after the work it turned out really nice.

 

 

With this piece in mind I set out to match the desk and little side tables I had brought in, this time opting to not do any prep work on the pieces.  That's right, no sanding at all.  I just mixed up a batch of chalk paint and put two layers on each piece, then finished them off with a coat of wax.

 

I mixed a tangerine paint with plaster of paris and water and gave each piece two coats of paint, then waxed the pieces, which stained and sealed them.  I am so excited about the no sanding thing and know I will use this technique in the future.  So much fun to learn something new especially when the new knowledge saves me work.

I gave the two little dressers the same knobs as the larger and not wanting to spend any money on my re-do I painted the drawer pulls on the desk. 

I found a piece of Styrofoam to hold the drawer pulls and a box to put them, then outside I went with a can of metal primer, giving them a good coat, once dry I followed up with two coats of a glossy white spray paint.

Once I had my furniture painted and completed, it was time to find a chair for my desk.  Again, digging in the garage I came up with a chair that was the correct height for the desk.  I have had this chair for several years and it only needed repairs to the seat, so I took it apart and started the refurbishing process.



 

The Before and After

 

The larger dresser in this room was a freebie for me, the desk was purchased at auction for $2.00, the little side dressers were part of a three piece set I had purchased at auction for $5.00, the chair was another $2.00 auction buy, the knobs I used were some saved ones from a kitchen re-do in another house many years ago.  The fabric came from my fabric stash and the paint used was in my stash of paint.  I purchased nothing new during this makeover and this room now makes me very happy.

 

 

A fresh room to hang my shadowboxes, do computer work and a fresh clean place for guests.  This room now serves all the purposes I had hoped for.