Introductions - faux bois
Do you all remember this chair?
Well.....she has totally come full circle now! My buddy Dale did a bang up job on the upholstery work.....and even though the wood frame was a total bugger to paint {since it is a recliner and there were so many nooks and crannies!} I am thrilled with how she turned out! Take a look...
Isn't she a beauty?! I hate to give her up, but her owners are ready for her to grace their space! Woot!xo,Barb
Introductions
Well, there certainly has been an evolution process in the design of this chair! I loved it when my client brought it to the studio looking like this:
and I used it in several shoots until it was time to tear off the upholstery and freshen up the paint job.....and then it looked like this:
tearing off the fabric and foam proved to be more monumental than I had previously thought.....but it was done, and I moved onto the painting part. {woot!} I painted the frame in a medium gray and used a small brush to add some bronze details to the trim. Then, It was time for little miss to head off to the upholstery shop, and she came back to me looking like this:
For goodness sakes she is even more of a beauty now! I want to say thank you to my client "A" for trusting me with her treasure...and for bringing this beautiful chair back to the studio so I could photograph the end result!Meet Aletta......and believe me...she is charmed to meet you as well.xo,Barb
Introductions
I think every time one of these giant pieces enters my studio I can almost hear the angels singing. I swear it. In my painting career I have had the privilege of transforming several of these gentle giants, but this one is extra special for a couple of reasons:1. It belongs to one of the sweetest couples I know and I am truly honored to be trusted with their treasure.2. It was such a mess with all of it's white paint splatters and chipping veneer, so the prep work was intense, but that made the end result all the more rewarding.I know there are those who look on these types of pieces as useless, victorian era, gaudy, yucky.......but seriously, in my opinion you can't find a better statement piece that not only commands the room it resides in but also offers multiple storage and usage options. Painting these types of pieces brings them into the modern era and gives them a fresh and new aesthetic that surprisingly crosses multiple decorating styles. The detail on these pieces can't be beat, and truly shines with a coat of paint. I also love painting the insides a bright and eye catching color so that it is always a pleasure to open the door. {wink}Meet Berchelea.xo,Barb
Introductions
There are projects that come along, and even though I have purchased them because I love something about them..... I get stuck trying to decide how exactly I want to take them to the level of frabjous. I started painting this little armoire with one plan in mind...I was going to paint the entire thing with milk paint and leave it pretty plain....but for some reason I felt like I was just rushing to try to get the piece done and check it off my list. I want to fight against that mentality...so I literally put one coat of milk paint on the entire thing, rinsed out my brushes, and went back to the drawing board and spent a day drawing and planning out my design.I looked through magazines, fabric and wallpaper combinations, and stared out my front window mulling over colors and patterns....but the thing that finally got me going in the right direction was a beautiful mexican blanket that I borrowed from a friend to use in a photo shoot. It was lying there just staring at me and the many different colors and different sized stripes totally caught my eye. Immediately the light bulb came on in my head. I knew the stripes would be hard, and a bit tedious but I had plenty of Frog Tape on hand and I crave a good tough furniture challenge. I knew if all went well, the pain would be so worth it! I went back to the studio the very next day, executed "my plan", and this is what came out! Meet Tallulah! I am telling you.... with the turquoise, purple, yellow, cream, red, pink, orange, blue and green stripes.....the turquoise insides, and the pistachio green knobs..... Tallulah is a party waiting to happen!I'm here to tell you it was indeed worth it to stand back and enjoy this little beauty!xo,Barb
Introductions
As I was telling you on Friday....I am so thrilled to be working on several really fun custom jobs for sweet clients over the next several weeks, and this chest of drawers is the first off the "assembly line"! This chest of drawers is as solid as they come and a real beauty with its bowed front drawers and carved detail. I love painting pieces like this!The Storm family is expecting their first little one, and his name is Sam. I wish I could show you the fantastic nursery that little Sam will grow up in...it is so clean, modern and very well done. I am stoked that a little piece of Knack will get to be a part of such a happy place!Congrats to the Storms! I can't wait to meet Sam! xo,Barb
Introductions
This piece was truly "my pleasure" to makeover. I purchased this little piece at an estate sale a couple of weeks ago and seriously had buyers remorse when I went to load her up. I was beating myself up for buying a piece with green linoleum on the top .....and a "really nice" metal strip to secure that green linoleum mind you! It was a done dealio though and so I started coming up with design plans in my head, and trying to take the easy way out. I was going to cover the top with paper, use metal leaf to hide everything, etc. Then, I came to my senses and knew that I had to remove the linoleum and do this job the right knack way. I was totally prepared for a mess....and it is a good thing because this is what it looked like when I peeled the linoleum off:
...after over 24 hours of soaking with a thick coat of Citristrip {the best stripping agent out there in my book!}, and then lots of sanding, cleaning, painting, and papering.....This is what she looks like now! Meet "Perley".
After all the work I did to expose the top, I thought it a crime to cover up the personality of the wood....so I gave it a good rub down with Danish oil and left it completely raw and unfinished....and for this piece, I totally dig it!
xo,
Barb
Introductions
Well.....today is a really, really exciting day for me! Not only do I have a brand spankin' new blog and web page to introduce to you all......but I am also thrilled to introduce you to miss "verla" !First, lets talk about miss verla. I purchased her at an estate sale and she was in really great shape with only a few scratches here and there. Because of this fact, I struggled with what to do with her since I really did not want to cover up the wood completely but at the same time knew that she needed a little updating and freshening up. I also knew from the get go there would be a stripe "situation".....I just wanted to be sure that the color and placement were exactly what my mind pictured or it could all go very wrong and then I would just be mad maddie maxwell ! I am here to say that design plans came together and I love her, love her , love her....so much so, the little platform bed in my master bedroom is in a heap o' trouble.....I may just decide that verla belongs to me and never needs to leave my side. I am struggling with loading her in the etsy shop.... just struggling. I mean seriously....
Ok, now that you have met miss verla..... lets talk about the new site a bit shall we?! It looks exactly like my current website, so for those of you who had already checked out the new website several months back you will see basically the same format with a few new updated pictures and such, but the main difference is that we combined the website and the blog and everything is all under one roof now. I am the proud owner of my very own wordpress site and I could not be any more excited. This has been a really long time coming and lots of hard work so I am super, super stoked about today! There will be additions and tweaks along the way so you may notice a few changes here and there as we learn the new layout and all of its possibilities and capabilities! What do you think so far? I hope you love it, and that you will continue to visit me regularly! I appreciate each one of you taking the time to make knack part of your day!xo,Barb
Introductions
GIVEAWAY WINNER: The fabulous Thomas Paul plates are going home with Anne! I think it is very fitting that her name was drawn.....here is her comment:
- Okay, do count me in! (You know how to make an admirer go from lurking to commenting!) ;)"
If you did not win these plates and you really would like to have some for your home I have two more sets available! Email me: barb@knackstudios.com .