The Painted Hive

Distressed White Cabinet

November 19, 2010 17 Comments

Remember this little cabinet from my bedroom reveal?

I reckon this early 1900’s cupboard was originally some kind of kitchen dry store or food safe though I picked it up for $60 off eBay knowing it would be a perfect new house for all our shoes.

This was the simplest of makeovers. I really wanted to retain the chippy, shabby appeal of the finish and although it might look fine as is in the before pic it was actually kinda dirty and cruddy. All I did to enhance its charm was give it a thorough once-over with the palm sander. Easy! I didn’t even bother sealing it. The old paint was worn and flaky so it distressed beautifully.

To finish I simply attached a couple of new el-cheapo tear drop handles from the hardware store.

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Filed Under: Before & After, Furniture Rehab, Master Bedroom, My Hive

Chalky Washed Armoire

November 11, 2010 61 Comments

Thanks so much for all the lovely comments about my bedroom revamp.

One of the most mentioned and asked about items was the armoire. Well, ‘armoire’ is perhaps a tad too fancy, it’s just a plain free-standing robe really.

It was funny to read all the different comments eluding to its colour. Most of you thought it was a shade of blue, others blackey-grey and one of my friends who saw it in person was convinced it was actually green! Well, one of those is kinda right. I used a black base and a french grey wash so technically I guess it’s a shade of grey.

I picked this robe up for $90 off eBay. It was basically brand new and perfectly sized for the little nook in my bedroom. It was just a tad too “piney”.

Remember my inspiration board…

Even though the armoire I included was charcoal I ummed and ahhed for ages about what colour to finish my robe in. I eventually decided to stick with black to play off the white bedding and cream walls and add some depth and drama. So, after two coats of acrylic black and one acrylic seal coat I popped the robe in my bedroom…and hated it! It looked far too crisp and contemporary for the soft, relaxed feel I was going for.

Enter plan B. I carted the robe back outside and sanded it down hard all over, paying extra attention to the edges, then popped it inside again…arghh, still not right!

Plan C. Stuff taking it back outside again! I diluted some french grey acrylic paint with water (about 50/50) and working in sections – yes, right there on my bedroom carpet (I did put an old towel down) – used a cloth to wipe it on paying special attention to any nooks and crevices. I then wiped it back off again with a damp rag in the direction of the grain.

And it worked! After three or four coats I achieved the level of lovely soft chalkiness I was after (oh, and a very fashionable french grey palm too – mental note, wear gloves next time).

I had never attempted a faux finish like this before and kinda just made it up as I went along though it was super easy and the result is awesome (if I do say so myself :-) so I highly recommend just giving it a go!

To finish I simply added some new antique brass hardware and hey presto…

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Filed Under: Before & After, Furniture Rehab, How To, Master Bedroom, Most Popular, My Hive

The Painted Hive Master Bedroom

November 8, 2010 155 Comments

Update: Check out how my bedroom has evolved! View more recent posts here.

Some interesting wall angles and the need for tonnes of storage really dictated the design for our master bedroom. Function and budget were high priorities so I decided to work ‘pretty’ around ‘practical’. The neutral palette combines loads of natural texture with vintage elements for a relaxed yet fresh feel. While there are still a few additions I’m considering I’m pretty happy with how it’s coming along. I’m also waiting to put some finishing touches on the built-in robe doors and will share the after pics of them soon too.

So, here’s the floor plan just to give you an idea of the room’s weird shape (BED 1)…

And here’s the space before (cringe!)…

Well, that was after we already simplified the canvas by painting out the green walls and brown trim (Dulux Chalk USA on the walls, Dulux White Watsonia on the trim), replacing the dirty old carpet and removing the completely translucent ultramarine blue curtains!

If you’ve been following this makeover from the beginning, aside from being incredibly patient), you should also recognise a fair bit of the decor.

Pretty much all of the furnishings have been thrifted, bought on clearance or hand-made and every piece of furniture in the room is second-hand. To avoid a massively lengthy post I’ll cover each refurb in more detail in separate upcoming posts.