The Painted Hive

Antique Farmhouse Table

July 16, 2010 15 Comments

After a bit of a break I’ve finally found some time between private client requests (and real work) to be able to offer some new pieces through eBay.

This antique farmhouse table was a wonderful find. I was told it’s full colonial cedar though whilst I have a love and passion for vintage and antique furniture, sadly I’m no expert, so really can’t say for certain. I am, on the other hand, pretty sure of its age which is circa 1870′s! How cool is that?

It wears the most beautiful, original patina and has definite primitive charm.

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Filed Under: Miscellaneous

The Makings of a Dining Room

July 14, 2010 18 Comments

Thanks for all the lovely comments about my little dining space.

As promised, here are the item origin and cost breakdown details.

DINING TABLE
I found this vintage Kauri farmhouse table on eBay. Unfortunately, someone had roughly lacquered it so to get the natural rustic finish I was after it needed a strip and light sand back. Luckily, the character of the timber remained and to retain its integrity I just sealed it with beeswax. The drawer handle and porcelain castors are original.
$80

DINING CHAIRS AND PADS
I had always loved the styling of these IKEA chairs and after seriously considering buying them brand new I eventually found a used set for sale on eBay for a quarter of the price. When I went to collect them, the seller mentioned she also had the matching chair pads (which had never been used!) and I could take them too if I liked – need she really ask? YES, please!

If I’d bought the chairs and pads new from IKEA it would have cost me $420, which isn’t too bad, though with a little time and patience it’s amazing how much you can save.

$85

SIDEBOARD
It took me a while to find this piece. Once I brought it home and put it in place I wasn’t quite convinced though. Its subtle deco lines seemed a little too masculine. I played with the adorning vignette until I found the balance I was after and now I absolutely love it! I found it on eBay (surprise, surprise) and chose to retain its original patina with all the character bumps and bruises.
$50

SINGLE CHAIR
Although our table’s a standard four seater, you can always squish a few more in so I like to have some chairs nearby. This vintage blackwood chair is one of my great grandma’s old kitchen chairs.
$0

MIRROR
I bought the massive mirror as is from a local country market. I got $10 off just for asking!
$40

WINDOW TREATMENT
The roman blinds are the same as those in our living room. They weren’t particularly cheap though we needed blockouts (for light filtering and weather reasons) and I certainly wasn’t going to make them! I had seen these ones at a homeware store and knew they’d be just right so waited until they went on sale. The day I chose to buy them there was also a storewide 20% off everything including sale items so I ended up saving quite a bit.
$180

DÉCOR
Vintage Fan – An eBay find - $25
File Drawer – Found at a local antique store – $30
Obelisk – Birthday gift from Mum – $0
White Jugs – Found at local charity stores. The large jug was bought as is though I spray painted the smaller one white – $8 (for both)
Little Box – I’ve had it since forever and it’s been reincarnated a few times. Originally a gift from Mum – $0
Terracotta – I found all three pots when I shopped the backyard. I already had the spanish moss, the twine is from the local hardware store and there are tonnes of pinecones waiting to be collected from the reserve behind my house – $2
Breadboard – A recent purchase from Kmart – $8
Wire Lanterns - I LURVE these. Found them recently at a local homewares store and bought the twine from a hardware shop – $35
White Urn and Hydrangeas – I’ve got a vast collection of white ceramic ware. This urn is from a local thrift store and the faux hydrangeas were bought from a furniture shop – $20
Gallery Wall – Some frames were gifts, others are from thrift and dollar stores. All the pics are black and white family shots. The baby is me! – $15

Overall total $578.00

The next room on my list of reveals is the master bedroom. It’s been sorely neglected since we moved in and is in serious need of some love (which is funny because given the personal, possessive nature of bedrooms you’d think it should be one of the first spaces to concentrate on making your own).

Anyways, given its current sad state, rather than wait til it’s finished to blog about it I’m hoping to take you guys on the whole messy, fickle journey with me.

You in?

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Filed Under: Dining Room, My Hive

The Painted Hive Dining Room

July 12, 2010 56 Comments

More a nook than an actual room, our little dining area forms the southern end of our living room.

The neutral palette combines loads of natural elements and character-rich texture - with nothing too pretentious - for a relaxed, yet fresh space. So, whilst it’s nothing super special, it’s warm, inviting and very much me!

Here it is just before we moved in….

And here’s the floorplan to give you an idea of the layout….

As per our living room, we painted out all the dirty apple green walls in pale cream and all the timber trim in gloss white. Taupe linen romans were also added in place of the heavy green drapes.

The previous owners had already installed the faux timber floating floor which, whilst it wouldn’t necessarily have been my first choice, is nice, clean and neutral.

Pretty much all the furniture and decor is either second-hand, thrifted or gifted.

The big mirror, with its pale frame which makes it almost undistinguishable from the wall, really helps create an illusion of space.

I’m a sucker for pretty, earthy vignettes and for now, to tie in with the living room, there’s loads of terracotta and twine plus white ceramics and some vintage finds.

I’ve been too slack to add pics of my own wedding to this photo gallery yet though it’s the perfect sentimental filler for this narrow little wall space and I’m looking forward to watching it grow!

I’m still searching for the perfect light fixture at the right price (vintage gal pendant or wrought iron chandy) and am contemplating painting the chair frames white and mirror border dark…..we’ll see though.

So again, just for comparisons sake. Here’s the space before and after….

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Filed Under: Before and After, Dining Room, My Hive, Room Makeovers

Glamorous Wardrobe Makeover

July 10, 2010 42 Comments

Confession: Because I’m a naughty blogger I forgot to take a real ’before’ pic so the above robe is just a comparable one I found on-line. The actual robe I madeover was in way worse shape than this one though and didn’t have any mirrors or a head plinth but you get the idea, right?

Having come straight from the tip the finish on the robe was weathered almost dry (not in the nice silver coastal way though, more in the cruddy “I’ve-been-in-landfill-for-the-past-two-months” way) so it was pretty easy to take it right back to raw timber with a light sand.
Having a raw base gave me a few finishing options so rather than just paint it black, I instead chose to apply two coats of an ebony timber stain.

The rich semi-transparent stain allows the timber grain to peek through here and there which gives the robe a rustic, antiquated elegance.

To compliment the commanding black base and add a unique touch, I highlighted the corners and grooves with a genuine copper pigment paint which, after first trying to apply with a brush, I eventually figured out was easiest rubbed on using my finger.

I rarely use gloss sealers though in this case, to create some extra impact and formalise the rusticness of the transparent stain, it works perfectly.

Finally, the handles, escutcheons and key were coated in the copper pigment paint for that finishing touch.

TIP: Painted metal can scratch easily so for some added resilience bake it in the oven after each coat. The heat helps set and bond the paint and, whilst not fool-proof, will strengthen the finish some what.

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Filed Under: Before and After, Furniture Rehab

Our Fijian Honeymoon

July 8, 2010 21 Comments

We had an AMAZING time.

We spent our first week on the main island, Viti Levu, down on the Coral Coast. Snorkelling, scuba diving, foraging for hermit crabs, drinking cocktails, cheering on cane toad races….you know, all the stereotypical islandy stuff!

We travelled up one of the inland rivers on a long boat to visit a traditional village and primary school where we took part in a kava ceremony and had a lovo (Fijian earthern oven) lunch.

We also went on a rainforest hike to some volcanic hot springs. It was a beautiful walk and, let’s just say, interesting experience - unbeknown to us, the road to the start of the hike was a muddy 4×4 goat track navigated in a dodgy old ute with us in the back on makeshift timber stools being advised to “just hold on to whatever is available”, getting bounced around like popping corn then ending up bogged in the mud!

He, he, it makes for a good story though.

Our last few days were spent on one of the islands in the Malolo Lailai group.

It was beautiful and relaxing….my favourite part of the holiday. Snorkelling (again), bike riding, sunset gazing, basket weaving, drinking cocktails (again!).