HAND PAINTING STRIPES ON FURNITURE

HAND PAINTING STRIPES ON FURNITURE

For me, the hardest thing about painting stripes on furniture is drawing the stripes.  I always use a ruler and a soft pencil so unused lines can be erased or painted over.  I do not use tape because I want the stripes to look hand painted and not perfect.  I decide the width of the stripes on the front, top and sides.  The width of the stripes can vary.  I use the edges of the furniture for guidelines.  A level is not useful to use on furniture because your floor might be uneven or the furniture not perfectly in line.

This chest was going in a nursery for a baby girl  My client wanted stripes, ribbons and flowers and told me the colors she wanted on the dresser to match her nursery decor.  The base coat is white.  I drew the stripes and painted with one coat of pink.  Then, painted the ribbons and flowers.  When I'm finished with a piece I always seal with two coats of a dull or satin sealer and a third coat on the top flat surface.

For this sofa table, I painted a tan base coat.  Then, painted a denim blue on top of the tan, dry brushing so the tan would show through.  Next, I drew and painted the turquoise stripes, dry brushing so the denim blue would shadow through.  You can see I lightly sanded the edges, then sealed with two coats of clear sealer.  On the table top I painted a third coat of clear sealer for extra protection.

My client asked me to paint black stripes on her antique cabinet.

When I purchased this pine armoire they told me it was from Stratford, England.  The outside had been waxed, but the inside looked very old and had old blue shelf paper on the shelves.  I didn't remove the shelf paper.  On the outside I painted over the pine with a greenie beige color.  Next, I painted the tree then, drew and painted the stripes.  I painted one coat of black and let the beige shadow through.  A metallic gold paint was just the right touch for the black and beige colors.  Then, two coats of clear sealer.

PAINTING BARBRA & FELIX'S KITCHEN VENT HOOD TO AN "ANTIQUE COPPER" FAUX FINISH

PAINTING BARBRA & FELIX'S KITCHEN VENT HOOD TO AN "ANTIQUE COPPER" FAUX FINISH
Barbra and Felix were doing some re-decorating in their beautiful home.  They saw pictures of my "antique copper" faux finish and asked me to paint their kitchen vent hood.

The "antique copper" finish looks so nice with their dark cabinets and granite.
They replaced the three light fixtures in the same color tones.

To emboss the scrollie designs I used modeling paste and stencils.
Felix added the decorative wood trim.  It really made a difference with the new finish.
Last picture in this post you can see there were no wood trim pieces before.

These new mercury glass globes are so beautiful!

Barbra found these unique chairs already covered with the leopard print.  They were stained brown and I suggested painting them black.  She liked the idea so, Felix painted them black. They love the new look.  This room looks out over the hill country.  Very, very beautiful view!

The warm copper tones are perfect for Barbra's kitchen.

Getting started.
Primed vent hood, used paste and stencils to create the design.

Her vent hood "before".  Light fixtures "before".  No decorative trim pieces.
Barbra and Felix were so, so nice to work with.
Thank you!

PAINTING KITCHEN CABINETS, MANTEL & NICHE IN LIZ & RICK'S NEW HOME.

PAINTING KITCHEN CABINETS, MANTEL & NICHE IN LIZ & RICK'S NEW HOME

Liz and Rick were moving into a new home and asked me to do some painting for them.

Their color theme was going to be shades of gray throughout the house.

This mantel surround was painted white with red bricks around the fireplace opening.  

They replaced the brick with this gray and rust tile.  They asked me to paint the mantel to match the colors in the new tile.  I used grays, rust and beige colored paint.  For the top part of the mantel they asked me to paint it a darker brown to match some of their new furniture. 

You can see a picture of the mantel "before" at the bottom of this post.

They installed same tile in entry niche and asked me to paint niche walls with the same colors as the mantel.  Rick loved the way you could see the niche and mantel from the front door.

Their kitchen cabinets were tan stained oak and asked me to paint them a medium gray that their decorator picked out.  Don't you LOVE those new handles!  I really like their decorator!

These new light fixtures look so good with the gray cabinets.

And, look really good with the new black handles.

They asked me to paint the cabinets in both bathrooms the same gray color.
 The baths did not have handles on the doors and drawers.  The decorator asked me to paint the old kitchen handles and knobs to match the existing towel racks in the baths.
They used to be a brass color.  The carpenter drilled the holes.

The light fixtures were replaced in both baths.  In this picture you see the old fixtures.

Mantel "before".

Kitchen cabinets "before".

The walls used to be that dark tan and were painted a lighter gray/beige.

Thank you Liz and Rick!

TOUCHING UP PAINT COLORS IN A SUNFLOWER PAINTING FOR A LAKE HOUSE

TOUCHING UP PAINT COLORS IN A SUNFLOWER PAINTING FOR A LAKE HOUSE

Several times through the years clients have asked me to change specific colors in a painting.
I have been asked to paint a boat a different color, clothing, backgrounds, more green in a tree, etc.  Once I was asked to change a hair do.  

My client found this sunflower painting and wanted to hang it in a bedroom at her lake house.
It had a purple background which didn't match her bedroom colors.
She asked me to paint the background blue.
Using craft paints I painted blue, blended with some white.
I lightly touched up some of the leaves and sunflower petals, too.

The purple was nice, but blue was better for her bedroom decor.
You can change colors in your paintings, too.