More Americana Chalky Decor Paint Makeovers

Sink cabinets before painting

Linen storage cabinets

Given how pleased we were in the difference the china cabinet makeovers and how easy it is to use the Americana Chalky Decor Paint and Wax, I decided to update my guest bathroom. The cabinets were the original finish and have 30 years of wear and tear. This bathroom is an interior room and narrow so it is impossible to get an image of the full room.

I was also inspired by some cabinet makeovers I'd seen on Hometalk where they had added decorative wood appliques to the doors. I found the larger ones at Lowes and the ones for the sink cabinets at Michaels.

ArtMinds Decorative Wood Appliques

Doors with 3 coats of Americana Decor Chalky Paint - Lace

Wood Applique glued to center of door

Medicine Chest

Crackle Detail

Bathroom Upcyle with Decor Chalk Paint

One of the great things about this paint is that you really do not have to sand! I found it actually worked better not to sand.  It takes 3 coats of paint to give the coverage that I liked. American Decor Chalky Finish Paint  dries quickly between coats so you can finish your project in a day or weekend. Once you have the coverage you want, brush on the antique wax and wipe it off. Too dark? Simply spritz with water to wipe off more. Allow wax to dry and either brush or rub on clear wax to seal. I prefer to rub it on with an old sock. Buff with a soft rag and stand back and admire your piece. Want a more distressed look? You can sand either before or after the antique wax coat. I choose not to distress. I'm not sure why, though I think it has something to do with a reaction to the varnish, but the paint on the medicine cabinet crackled. I left it, as I love the crackle look. It was strange that this was the only area that crackled, as all of the cabinets and finishes are the same.

Detail on Linen Cabinet

Antique Birdcage Makeover for Home Office
My friend, Jo Pearson had a fabulous garage sale earlier this year and I picked up a very unusual and large vintage birdcage from her.  

Vintage Birdcage

When I bought it, I wasn't sure where I would use it, but I found a perfect spot when I was planning my home office makeover. I needed to update the color from the federal blue to match my color scheme, Martha Stewart Crafts Vintage Decor Paint in cantaloupe and terra cotta.

Paint Supplies

I wanted to leave the metal bars, as they have a nice aged patina to them, but needed to paint all of the blue - it was a challenge getting into all of the crevices. Luckily the bottom of the cage was removable. You can't see in the picture, but it isn't solid, just wooden bars. I'm saving it for another project.

Painting over the blue

I painted the birdcage with the terra cotta chalk paint and the roof with cantaloupe. I used the antique wax over the whole piece. The roof was stenciled with cantaloupe in a scallop pattern to add more detail.

Stenciling

I dry-brushed cantaloupe on the piece to give it more dimension. It was finished by rubbing a coat of clear wax to seal and protect. 

Vintage Birdcage Upcycle for Home Office

DIY Office Decor

Succulent Palette

On my schedule this year was a home office makeover. I choose a palette based on a Design Seeds post. I ultimately just used the first three colors as my accent colors and went a bit more on the blog side with the feather palette for the walls.

Feather Palette

Martha Stewart Crafts had the perfect colors in their Vintage Decor Chalk Paint, Cantaloupe and Terra Cotta. Chalk paints are great for painting on multiple surfaces. They are are easy to use and don't require sanding, are quick-drying and have amazing waxes in both antique and clear to finish your pieces.

Martha Stewart Vintage Decor Supplies

 I painted several accent pieces for my home office decor makeover.

Office organizers bought on clearance at Michaels

Office Organizers painted & stenciled

Accent Table Painted & Stenciled

The organizers were bought on clearance at Michaels. They were a fabulous buy and perfect for office desk organization, but they weren't a color or design that I liked. No problem! Simply paint with the Martha Stewart Crafts Vintage Decor Chalk Paint, stencil design (using the darker shade of chalk paint), add a coat of clear wax, then wipe with the antique wax.
The table was an unfinished table I bought years ago at a white elephant sale. I didn't take step out photos while I did it, but I just painted with the terra cotta chalk paint, stenciled with cantaloupe. I sanded to distress and then applied clear wax mixed with antique to antique. Once that was dry, I dry-brushed cantaloupe on the piece to give it more dimension. I finished it by rubbing a coat of clear wax to seal and protect.

One Good Turn

We loved the china cabinet upcycle so much, we decided I should do the big cabinet we inherited from my mother-in-law. As this one was so much heavier and didn't come apart in two pieces like the previous one, I just painted it in place. I did learn from the first one not to sand - it really did work much better. It still took 3 coats of paint. American Decor Chalky Finish Paint is so easy to use - simply paint your piece, no sanding required. It dries quickly between coats. Once you have the coverage you want, brush on the antique wax and wipe it off. Too dark? Simply spritz with water to wipe off more. Allow wax to dry and either brush or rub on clear wax to seal. I prefer to rub it on with an old sock. Buff with a soft rag & stand back and admire your piece. Want a more distressed look? You can sand either before or after the antique wax coat. I choose not to distress.

Supplies Used

China Cabinet before 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Painting in place with drop cloth

See how the antiquing brings out the detail?

Finished Cabinet

Both upcycled china cabinets

Updating the China Cabinets

After redoing the ceiling, the room was darker and seemed very mono-toned. We have 3 china cabinets in the room, all given to us when they didn't work in other's homes. I use them to display art. I've seen all types of furniture upcycling on Pinterest and Hometalk using chalkboard paint and I decided to do the china cabinet from my sister-in-law. I felt it would also bring some lightness into the room. Michaels sells the Americana Decor Chalk Finish Paint.

Paint - I used Lace, Antique Creme Wax & Clear Creme Wax

China Cabinet Before - nice, but outdated

Sanded & taped before painting. I learned it is best not to sand first

It took 3 coats of paint to cover as I wanted. Due to sanding, I had to spray water on the piece to get the paint to move right for me.

Left side is antiqued, right side hasn't been yet. Love how it brings out the detail.

Finished china cabinet back in place. After allowing antiquing wax to dry, applied 2 coats of clear wax.

The Year of Remodeling/Renovating

Our home was built in the middle 80s when popcorn ceilings were in every single house. For the last 15 years, I've hated those ceilings and have removed them in some of our smaller rooms. The den is very big and has vaulted ceilings. For years we couldn't come up with a good way to take care of it that didn't cost a fortune, take a long time or make a huge mess. We finally found a DIY solution - old recycled barn tin!

Recycled Barn Tin

 The recycled tin has such a great rust patina on it. My husband got permission to remove the tin from an old barn that is being torn down. He used a power washer to clean the tin. I gave it a final wipe down before applying 3 coats of polyurethane to stop the rusting process.
We stood on scaffolding to hold the first piece up so my husband could drill and screw it into the wood rafters. Since it was just the two of us, that really didn't work. We quickly saw that we would not be able to hold it, so he devised a tool to use to hold the tin up while he attached it to the ceiling.

Ceiling in progress - notice that ugly popcorn?

Ben attaching the tin to the ceiling

Area between paneling and ceiling is painted with Ralph Lauren Metallic Paint

View of other side of the den

Fireplace (which we no longer use) and mantel

 Finished ceiling looks so much better and the nice thing was we were able to put it up right over the existing and didn't have to deal with the mess of scraping. Since there are no windows in the room, the lighting for photography isn't the best.