Painter Girl

Quick Fix for Medicine Cabinet

I do not have a before photo of my medicine cabinet, but it was very similar to this one pictured, except the mirror had a small crack in the bottom right hand corner. I looked around and could not find a replacement cabinet that a) would fit in this recessed space and b) that I really could get excited about, so I decided to give mine a little makeover.

 

 

Here is the finished project and a closer look:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I wanted a mirror that would coordinate with the lighting.

 

 

 

 

To make the frame, I used some yardsticks I've had forever in my studio.  I cut them to the lengths needed, lightly sanded, and painted with gray paint.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I cut four smaller pieces to cover the seams in the four corners, sanded and painted.

 

 

 

 

Next, I applied a sizing and some silver foil to all the painted wood pieces and sealed for durability.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I cut four strips of wire mesh, from a sheet of WireForm I bought at an art store.  I then glued these strips onto the four frame lengths with spray adhesive.  As soon as I did this, I decided I did not want the mesh on all four sides of the frame, so pulled off the mesh on the 2 longer frame lengths. This left the impression of the mesh, which I liked!

 

 

I added these cap nuts to each of the 4 corner blocks with glue.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lastly, I used Liquid Nails to adhere the wood pieces to the mirror and gave the entire frame another coat of sealer.   This was a quick and inexpensive fix for this mirror!  The crack is covered by the new frame and the design goes well with the new lighting. 

 

Buffet Makeover

In December, I told you about the little huge, renovation project going on upstairs at my brother and brother-in-law's apartment.  You may recall, a few of my walls had to be opened up to insert some support beams.  Since my dining room was already trashed, I decided to give it a little makeover.  Today, I'll start by showing you the buffet/server piece.


The only "before" pic I could find was from when I first painted this oak bureau with black chalkboard paint.  The hardware is off, at the moment.  The bottom drawer was broken, so I removed it and painted the bottom shelf orange, which went with my dining room at the time.  I also had a little lime green band around each leg.  Note my black and white diamond floor, which is long gone and about to be repainted for the 4th time, probably this weekend.  I did like those diamonds!

Here it is today, with a sneak peak of my new board and batten in the background.  I kept the black chalkboard paint and added a distressed silver foil finish to the top, framing, and bottom shelf where I keep my wine.  I did find some wooden wheels that are original to this bureau, which I will add, after I paint the floor.  This floor, paint job #3, did not work like I had hoped, so it has got to go. 

 

 

 

Here's a closer look at the top.  The top is sealed with C-500 so it can take some wear and tear, as I use this piece as a server when I have company.

 

 

Here's a close up of the framework and wine shelf.  The piece is a little dinged up, but it adds to the distressed look of the silver, so luckily seems to work.  Next week I will be showing you more of this room's makeover and maybe I will be able to complete the new floor over the weekend.

 

 

 

 

 

My inspiration picture for this black and silver buffet project came from this photo, which I found on Pinterest.  I spent quite a bit of time trying to find the original" pin" and who created this beautiful piece, with no luck.  If anyone does know, please advise, as I would love to give the proper credit.  Even though I used chalkboard paint on my buffet, I am not going to write on it.  I just like the look of the paint and the color.  I want to keep the look simple in my dining room, at least for now.

 

Metallic Silver Ceiling

I see I have a lot of catching up to do here on this sad little blog.  I will start with the job I just finished today, and work backward for the next few posts.

This week's job was to put a silver finish on this white ceiling.  The ceiling had just been painted, but unfortunately with a flat white ceiling paint.  To start, I rolled a clear coat on, called it a day and returned the next to begin glazing.

This is a finish I have done before.  It's fairly quick and easy and looks a bit like galvanized steel.  It can look more like galvanized steel, with a bit more texture and another layer, but the homeowner wanted just a soft textured look.  I used a mix of 2 Modern Masters silvers, plus Ben Moore's White Pearlescent for the first layer.  Once dry, I sponged on Pearl Palette Art. 

Here it is all done.  I wish I had a picture where the room was all put together, but I was not about to haul in all the heavy furniture for a few pics!

 

The walls are painted a deep gray and this, soft silver ceiling really warms this large room up. I'll see if the homeowner will snap a pic or two and email to me.

Working in the City

Some of my clients live in areas in and around Boston that are just impossible to find parking.  When it's anywhere near downtown Boston, the Boston Common parking garage I usually use costs $22/day.  If I'm very lucky, I will find a Visitor Parking space, which allows parking in such residential areas for up 2 hours, but a minute after the 2 hour time frame, you will find a ticket on your windshield.  The streets are all one way here and very narrow.  When I have a lot of supplies to unload, I have to park in the middle of the street, blocking all access, and quickly unload to just inside the door, jump back in my car and go park somewhere.  Everyone is very used to this system and patiently wait if they should get stuck behind such a vehicle as mine. 

I had to return to a Beacon Hill residence to do a two day repair job.  A bathroom ceiling I did a few years ago had sustained some water damage and needed to be redone.  I bit the bullet and parked in the expensive garage after unloading, because it was just the easiest and quickest way to get this job done. When I returned the second day, I needed a few small supplies, so I just put them in this handy little tote on wheels.  I always feel like I'm in the the PBS series "Upstairs/Downstairs" when I work on Beacon Hill.  There is clearly a class system.  You see a bevy of services providers like myself navigating these very narrow streets with their specific tools of the trade.  We all pleasantly nod at each other in passing.  Then, you see a lot of government officials and politicians all suited up, making their way to the State House, which occupies a prominent space on top of the hill.  

The first day I arrived, I saw the area that had been patched.  I had already decided that since this was a metallic finish, it would be more time and cost effective to repaint the whole ceiling than trying to blend in a good match.

 

I love this bathroom.  The walls were done with a soft iridescent pearl glaze and the ceiling is a brushed aluminum finish.

Here's a closer look at the border, with a screw heads that have been painted on to look like the border is pieced.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Final Pics for Somerville House

With this project now complete, I returned to take some pics of the foyer.  Of course, metallic finishes are very difficult to photograph, so........

The ceiling panels are a soft, metallic green and the same paint was used for the "squiggle" designs on the wall. 

 

A close up of the design, which was repeated on five "panels" in this foyer.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here is the lighting, which I absolutely love!  There are 2 of these, one in the center of each of the larger ceiling panels.  The first, smaller ceiling panel has recessed lighting.

A Busy Summer for Paint It!

It has been an unusually busy Summer for Paint It!, with several fun projects back to back. I can never predict how busy or slow I will be during July and August.  There are Summers where clients are all away and just not thinking of home improvements, and then there are Summers like this one, where many want the work done while they are away, so they can return to a freshly painted and decorated home.  One of the jobs I am currently working on, is just such a case.  I love all the architectural details in this grand home.  It's a typical two family found in Somerville, MA, but rare in the fact that previous owners left all the beautiful woodwork intact, and all the original stain glass windows are in great shape.

 

When I first arrived at this home, all the walls in this foyer had very old, dark wallpaper and some terrible lighting.  The wallpaper has now been removed and the walls have been painted a soft white.   The ceilings also had that terrible popcorn texture, so were changed out to smooth panels.

My job is to paint the three ceiling panels a light metallic green and add a custom designed repeat pattern to 5 areas on the walls.  The design was adapted from a wallpaper pattern the homeowner loved, but felt it would be too much to have all the walls covered with this wallpaper.  Instead, she opted to have me adapt the design and hand paint it on the walls, like art work.  The design will appear in 5 different areas in this foyer, and will be painted with the same light green metallic paint as the ceiling.]

 

 

Initially, I was going to just transfer the design I drew on paper to the walls, but when I did some samples in my studio, the graphite from the transfer kept blending with the light green metallic paint, making it very dirty looking.  The design was such that a traditional stencil could not be cut.  I ended up transferring the design to a large piece of mylar and cutting small dashes, outlining the design.  This actually went much quicker than it sounds and since I was repeating this design 5 times, plus each panel would have 1 full repeat in the center, and an half repeat above and below that, it was worth the effort.

 

I marked my template with horizontal and vertical center lines, and did the same on each of the 5 wall panels, using a watercolor pencil.  Now it was quite quick and easy to just tape up the template and mark through the cut out dashes with a watercolor pencil.  Once all my patterns were on the wall, using an artist angle brush, I set about painting the designs.

 

 

 

 

 

None of the lighting has been installed in the ceiling yet, as I still have to do my thing there, so I only have a utility light set up.  I will photograph more of this foyer when it is complete.  I love this very contempory look against the old woodwork.

 

Cape Kitchen

Finally able to get back to writing a few posts!  My Physics class officially ended on Friday, so now I just have to wait and see how I did.  It was definitately a challenge, so not so sure I'll be holding onto that straight A average. :-( 

In the meantime, I had a little trip to the Cape to work on a kitchen project.  Although the kitchen itself was large, there was not a lot of wall space to really work with.  My clients wanted to go with more of a seaside living feel, since this is their second home.

Here's the "before" shot.  The base color on the walls and ceiling is Linen White. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I used the Fishscale stencil from Cutting Edge Stencils, stenciling with a peach toned metallic.  (The columns were done several years ago by someone else).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I did the fishscale pattern all around the kitchen and in the breakfast area.

 

 

 

 

Work in progress!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The hardest part was above the refridgerator.  If only my arms were 6" longer, it would have been a breeze!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Because there was so little wall space, and what there was, was broken up with doors, windows, cabinets... I decided it would be a good idea to put something on the ceiling.  Now this ceiling stretches into the family room, so I concentrated on something just above the island.

 

 

 

 

 

 

More work in progress!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here is the finished project.  The rope border is a tried and true border I have been using for years from Royal Design Studios.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here's another angle, where the Swarovski crystals show up better.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

...and here is a close up of the carp.

 

 

 

 

All and all, it was a fun job, the client loved it, it was pouring rain 2 of the 3 days I was staying on the Cape, and my neck was killing me by Day 3.

Front Entry Hall: Wakefield

Continuing on (finally) with the recently completed projects at the Wakefield home, today we visit the Front Entry Hall. In it's previous life (left), it was a lackluster off-white.

 

 

 

 

 

 

There's not a lot of wall space because of the large opening to the living room off to the left and the stairs to the second floor, on the right.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I started out with a soft, orange/gold toned glaze.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Next, I used Cutting Edge Stencils, Anna Damask pattern.  This was a stencil design I had not used before, so was eager to try. What I always love about their stencils is the "topper" piece included with these all over repeat patterns, making the ceiling line much easier to stencil.  This short topper piece eliminates the experience of the larger stencil folding over and resting on your head while you attempt to stencil right up to the top of the wall.  My hair truly appreciates being glaze free!

 

 

This stencil works up quickly, as it is a one overlay.  I used a gold metallic paint, mixed with a little glaze.  Well, to be honest, I mixed it with Bella Magic, which is one of my favorite products.  I have been mixing it in with just about every product I use these days.  I may even try it in my coffee.  No, just kidding... but it does greatly improve the application of plasters when troweling and paints when stenciling.  I buy it from Kathy Carroll over at Faux by Kathy. It does not seem to be listed on her site anymore, but if you call and ask for it, they will help you.

A little side note... While I was stenciling these walls, I was very, very close to running out of the gold paint.  I kept thinning with the Bella Magic because I needed to finish these walls that day and there was no source anywhere near for the gold I was using.  By the time I finished, the jar was so clean it looked like I had washed it out! Don't do as I do.  Buy more paint than you need.  I tend to do this with gas too.  I rarely fill up until the light comes on in my car, and even then, I'll drive for quite a few miles before pulling into a gas station.  I guess I like living on the edge.

This picture really does do the finish justice, as it shows the metallic paint with it's subtle glow.  The glaze underneath is also very subdued, just giving the walls a little depth and movement.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There are two large door openings on one side, so I wrapped the pattern around onto the face of the each opening.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Now, when you enter this home, you are greeted by warm and welcoming walls, vs. the previous look.  It makes you want to come in and see what else is going on in this house!

 

 

 

A Little More Progress With the Shades

 

 

I'm using a combination of metallic paints and foils to further embellish these shades.  I know I showed you how these foils work at least once, but I thought I'd give another quick overview.  Here, I have already applied the sizing and it is ready to go.  I've placed my sheet of foil over my designed and burnished with a stiff brush, so the green foil comes off the sheet,transferring to my canvas shade.

 

 

 

 

 

Here is what is left on my shade...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

...and here is what the foils sheet now looks like.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I'm using a little of this "Extreme Glitter" from Plaid.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I applied it over a stenciled scroll with a liner brush.  It goes on white...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

...but dries clear, just adding a little more sparkle.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The cast of paint characters I used for these shades.

 

 

 

 

 

With the painting piece is done, I will glue on some Swarovski crystals and attempt to adhere these pieces to the shades.

 

 

 

A Little Help

So what I basically did for the Peacock and Butterfly room was to stencil the silhouette shapes of the peacocks, vines and leaves.  I created all the large silhouette stencils for this room myself because all I needed was the basic shape, no details.

Here are the 3 peacock silhouette shapes I used:

 

 

 

 

 

 

After I had the silhouettes on all of the walls, I knew just who to call to add the details!

Chris Smith to the rescue!  Chris spent 3 painstakingly days embellishing all the peacocks and leaves!  Using a variety of small scale stencils and freehand techniques, the flat silhouettes came to life.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Don't you just love the blue tape all over her top?

Here are some of her creations:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                    

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lastly, I added the gems.  I went all out for the peacocks, but because I had already put about 1,000 (literally!) gems on the butterflies, I decided not to gem the individual leaves.  I just added sets of 3 gems to each stem.  I ordered 1 gross (1,440) of each of the three colored gems I would use  for both of these rooms, so that's 4,320 gems! In the end, I probably had 500 left.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

        

I loved the way this room turned out and truly appreciated Chris's patience with all the detailing!

Tomorrow we will look at the Tropical Room.