2014 Annie Sloan Chalk Paint Projects - an Update!

This great set of chairs was redone in a clean (not distressed) cream color with clear wax. The color was chosen to offset the rich brown color (sold).

I have been using Annie Sloan Chalk Paint (ASCP) for over two years and it continues to be my go-to paint whenever woodwork needs redoing. link to company site.  I have acquired a number of colors but have been using mostly Old White, Old Ochre, Cream and CoCo this year.

I closely follow the work of others - an ever expanding group from all indications - and try to keep a good set of ideas and images on my pinterest page - link.

This posting highlights projects completed in 2014. I will summarize my lessons learned over the years below.

This set of four vintage chairs was purchased in tony Buckhead (city of Atlanta) and needed everything. The woodwork was redone in CoCo to match the taupe and cream woven fabric selected to redo the pieces (professionally reupholstered by my go-to shop - Sun's Upholstery of Norcross, GA).  

I choose the fabric, a traditional green and dark cream toile, before choosing the chalk paint color. The Old Ochre color matches the background so well that is was an obvious choice. I also had to do the rusk seat platform since it had previously been painted. If it had been left natural, I would not have covered it (sold). 

These chairs had such nice woodwork that I wanted to enhance. I choose the Duck Egg Blue to set off the cream fabric - I loved how these turned out (sold). 

This great shaped chair was purchased in New Orleans on a January visit to the city. Once I chose the pale neutral and chocolate linen fabrics, the choice of Old Ochre was easy to make (sold). 

This vintage chair has great lines but the woodwork was awful. I choose the cheery fabric which made the choice of  Old White perfect for the piece. I did distress it (perhaps a little too heavily - I may go back and reduce the level of distressing on this piece).

These pieces all had woodwork and was no longer in good condition so I had to find a good color to coordinate with the fabrics selected. Three ended up with CoCo and one with Old White. The two wingbacks are still available.

So, with over two years and LOTS of projects under my belt, here are my primary lessons learned:

• Clean the woodwork and remove piping or other obstacles to getting as close to the fabric as possible.
• Do the first coat with the piece turned upside down so that you can adequately paint the hard to see and get to places.
• If some brown or red continues to show through the paint after one or two coats, it means that some of the original stain is coming through (and will continue to come through with more coats). Use a clear shellac finish to seal the areas and resume painting.
• Let each coat dry fully to the touch before adding additional coats - I have used up to four coats on some pieces but two are usually adequate.
• Let the final coat dry overnight before applying clear wax. Buff once it has dried.
• Before using dark wax (with some exceptions) use a clear wax coat first. This gives you the ability to moderate the amount of dark wax remaining on the piece. The only times I do not do this is when I am using graphite (dark grey) and want it to look as black as possible or another shade like CoCo for the same reason.

That's it - enjoy!

Shopping in Historic Franklin, TN

Two weeks ago, my husband and I handled a furniture delivery to two clients near Nashville, TN. We spent the night in nearby Brentwood (Nashville itself was inundated with country music fans there for a huge set of outdoor concerts in the downtown area). While visiting (and avoiding those same crowds), we traveled to the town of Franklin, TN - south of the city.

Fourteen miles and 100 years from Nashville, Downtown Franklin, Tennessee is an oasis of Southern hospitality housed in a 16-block National Register district of antique shops, gift and book stores, art galleries, boutiques, lovingly restored homes and more. It boasts an award-winning Main Street, brick sidewalks, a stunning collection of Victorian buildings and a host of “Best of“ accolades–including Garden & Gun magazine’s 2014 “Best Southern Town.” link to website

We were charmed by the city! Its historic area and main street were vibrant with pedestrian traffic and quite a few shoppers for a downtown area. We were impressed and plan to go back when we have a little more energy and time.

Relocation of Local Chalk Paint Store!

I have been using Annie Sloan Chalk Paint (ASCP) for over two years and loving it! It is my go-to product for refinishing woodwork on my refurbished upholstery pieces. ALSO, it is the part of the labor process that I do myself - the actual upholstery work is done by my go-to shop Sun's Upholstery of Norcross. I love the ease of application and the soft finish.

My local shop, Chalk It Up link to website has moved their Norcross, GA, store (just down the street and around the corner in Historic Norcross) and Lynn, the owner, has opened up a second location in Buford, GA. Yesterday was my first visit to the store to return one of the special brushes my husband had bought me for my March birthday. I had been lusting for the pricey round brushes that are directly sold under the ASCP label - they are reputed to be the best, fastest, easiest to use! He bought me two sizes and I've been using the smaller one ever since. I am finding, however, that I don't really need the larger one and was returning it and buying a can of the clear wax. Lynn was traveling in Europe (I LOVE to travel and just returned from the UK myself) so I wasn't able to swap my latest chalk paint stories and compliment her on the nice new shop. I thought, however, I would share photos in this blog and send her a link! Nice job, Lynn!!!

Storefront of new shop - 127 South Peachtree Street in Historic  Norcross. The placard by the door indicates that this is the 1925 site of the Ford Automotive Agency.  

Mad Men Decor with an Edge!

Exterior of Contemporary House in North Atlanta.

On Friday, my husband accompanied me on the morning estate sales and we found some very interesting ones!  The one that stood out most was in a contemporary style house (probably built in 60's or 70's) - a style that is not particularly prevalent or popular here in the South. As we walked in, we were informed there were four floors and the layout was scattered. The sellers also suggested that this would be the perfect house for Don Draper (Jon Hamm) of Mad Men fame. I, of course, would not mind AT ALL running into Jon Hamm in any setting. That did not, however, happen!

The house had some very vintage pieces and decor fully intact - like nothing had changed since it was built.

These bright yellow cabinets were in pristine condition - just needed a stylish couple mixing a martini and putting out the cheese and crackers. 

Shag carpet ... and it's popular again.

I did put a bid on a set of Erwin Lambeth loveseats/settees in great but (of course) dated condition - link to website. I was not familiar with the brand and looked it up immediately.

A lot of rich history here:

Settees purchased

The story of Tomlinson / Erwin - Lambeth began over one hundred years ago with two different companies only eight miles apart. Both companies were family owned and operated and began within months of each other. The Tomlinson family started the Tomlinson Chair Company in High Point, North Carolina in 1901.

Also in 1901, the Lambeth family started The Standard Chair Company in Thomasville, North Carolina. In 1947, a new plant was built to create furniture specifically for the design trade.

The sellers wanted $795 for the pair but that is way beyond my cost point so I bid $200 for the two. On Saturday, I got a call indicating they were mine and I had to beg my sweet husband to return with our van to load the two - a tricky proposition I will not go into here.

Initially, I planned to redo the woodwork but it is in very nice condition so I choose to keep the original. I have two fabrics I plan to use - one is a clean neutral and the other a woven fabric which includes a hint of the wood color. They were dropped off this morning and I cannot wait to see how these turn out!

Another great day of estate saling!

Normandy Revisited

Today is the 70th anniversary of D-Day - the Normandy Invasion which turned the tide of WWII. Two years ago, we visited this site as part of a one-week stay in this lovely area of France. Here is the posting from that trip!

link to posting - Normandy

Anticipation is Half the Fun of Travel

Edinburgh - my pinterest board

My husband and I are leaving soon for a two-week trip to the United Kingdom - half in London and the other half in Scotland. Every other year, we travel for a week with four other couples to some European destination and rent a cottage, house, chateau, villa, castle - you name it! We have been adding an additional week since we're already spending a fortune on airfare. The location for the extra week is often based on airport used or other considerations. In this case, we are flying in and out of London and since we were last there in 1989 when our son was less than a year old, we felt that a follow-up trip was definitely in order.

Planning a trip is half the fun and, according to some sources, the greater source of happiness since the actual event may be fraught with issues like traffic and/or weather delays, lost luggage, and other unanticipated problems. Planning is filled with idealized visions of famous sites to be seen; shops and restaurants to check-out; experiences to pursue; and, companionable people to engage with - only the best of the best!

An article this morning in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution entitled "Planning a Trip is Half the Fun" by New York Time writer, Stephanie Rosenbloom, describes the psychology behind this phenomena.

"Social scientists have been saying for years that we get an extra happiness boost if we consciously delay any type of pleasure ... Doing this allows us to build up positive expectations, to relish how enjoyable the experience might be.

Scottish church - see pinterest link above

While in Scotland, our group will be staying in Winton Cottage - part of a larger estate about half an hour from Edinburgh link to website. It looks wonderful!

We LOVE to travel and I must agree that the planning and anticipation are a particularly pleasurable element of the experience. I usually start intensive planning for international travel a year or more out and that includes some of the things mentioned in the article; reading books about the locale; talking with fellow travelers/friends about their experiences and recommendations; collecting photos and images (via pinterest) to help me envision the location and identify "must sees"; and, reviewing apartment and bed and breakfast options for our trip. In our division of labor, I am responsible for our accommodations and my husband is responsible for the transportation - usually airline and car rentals.  He is also the first to clip articles and buy travel books.

I hope to have some great photos to post here soon! I am already planning next year's big trip - a whole month in Paris, France. Ah .... that anticipation!!

Street in Edinburgh - see pinterest link above

Thinking of Mother's Day at Scott's Antique Markets

This is the second weekend in May and, therefore, Scott's Antique Markets weekend - link to site. This large market, held in two separate areas south of the city of Atlanta, is heralded as the world's largest flea market. I try to go each month usually accompanied by my friend, Bette. We have developed a visiting strategy that culminates with a double-scoop of ice cream at the end ... after all that walking and work!

When attending the markets, I am always on the look-out for those special refurbished (or refurbishable) upholstered pieces that would add to my collection. I have several vendors that I check with each month, most of whom are at the North building site.  I also try to plan my observations and attendant photo shoots around a theme for this blog. This also helps me look at the market offerings through a different prism. Yesterday, I chose to look for items that remind me of mothers and motherhood. It proved to be an interesting challenge. 

Here are some of the images:

Finding good mother's day reminders was a little more challenging than I thought it would. I loved the sweet baptismal  /christening dresses and the European style baby stroller. Those kids do grow up fast!

The silver service is the same pattern that Bette's grandmother had (and now in Bette's possession). The dishes were her mother's every-day dishes. Such memories!
My mother came of age during World War II in The Netherlands and had a lovely cream and gold pattern china that my daughter now proudly displays on special occasions. She also had the more commonly found blue willow pattern as a tea and coffee service.

I couldn't resist this one. I have for many years collected pigs and  have a sweet Lladro pig mother with babies. This reminded me of that special piece.

I was easily distracted at the market by the usual hunt for upholstered furniture and ended up finding a number of pieces to bring home. I always stop by to see Sharon P. and look at her fine refurbished pieces (always in distressed lacquer finish and usually with neutral linen fabrics). I sell her items as part of my "European Linen" collection. She does such fine work! I bought four Century French-style chairs and a settee. I also ran into a woman who runs estate sales in the are (The Turnage Company). Her sales are generally high-end (and a little too pricey for me). She also happens to be the aunt of my next door neighbor - small world. I bought a very nice three piece set of rusk chairs and ottoman that I plan to have reupholstered in a largish blue and cream/white print. 

It was a great and nostalgic day at the markets!

My purchases from yesterday - coming soon to my sales sites!