Once upon a time I painted my dining room three times in a weekend. Two of those times were in the same day. One of those colors was lilac. I make mistakes.
Enter: A chifferobe. This chifferobe started out in a cherry finish. And, well, no one wants cherry furniture right now. So since Ken and I were newbies to refinishing furniture, we sanded it. I can't believe we did, but yes, we sanded it. Entirely. It took a lot of time. And then (embarrassingly) we used a vinegar barn wood stain on it. It was horrible.
After that the pig needed some lipstick, so we painted it white and put it in our antique booth. And there it sat. And sat. It got lots of compliments. And there it sat some more.
So we brought it home and put it in the garage. And one day I decided to slap some antiquing glaze on it, which was also horrible. It was so bad that it might as well have been cherry finish again. I cursed the chifferobe and spat on it (in my head) and turned my back on its ugliness for months.
Then last week I had a thought: Gray. And then I had another thought: Flat Spray Paint. Valspar sells some fantastic colors of flat spray paint at Lowe's. So I picked up three cans and brought them home to introduce them to the chifferobe. But...gray is relative, apparently. And this wasn't my idea of "gray" as much as "bluish ugly concrete primer color."
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| So glad I quickly realized that the gray spray paint wasn't the color I was looking for. |
So, doing what I do best I went to Home Depot and picked out a nice shade of gray and mixed up a batch of "chalk" paint. And even though there was nothing wrong with the long mirror, I took it out. (hold the hate mail) I replaced it with some natural linen fabric.
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| We added a knob to the door after this picture was taken. |
And now finally, finally, I love it. So I'm going to do what I do with all of my favorite pieces. I'm going to keep it (because I love it). At least for a few months until I decide that I love a paycheck more. And then I'm going to let one of you love it.
Mistakes are okay. They aren't sins. They're learning opportunities. I've made so, so many mistakes in my life. But I've also learned so, so much. I'm thankful for my learning opportunities.
Ephesians 4:22-24
To put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.
XOXO,
AbbyLabels: antique, DIY, ideas, old, paint color, Refinish, vinegar stain, wood
