Crafting a Colorful Home
Kristen Nicholas
I stumbled upon this book at the library. After thumbing through it at home I was so excited I ordered a copy for myself. Believe me that doesn't happen often.
Although not really indicated on the cover, much of the home decoration is in what is known as the Bloomsbury style with lots of painted walls and original art. It is a look that really appeals to me. I had already decided I wanted lots of color and this book shows color everywhere.
Here are some paint samples I picked up to play with.
The house has white walls with high ceilings and what looks like miles of beige carpet. It needs some color. I have a couple of pieces of furniture on standby to be painted. I'm not sure I'm up to painting murals on my walls but who knows once I get started.
Have you painted any furniture? If so I'd really appreciate any tips.
P.S. Thanks to everyone who sent well wishes for DH yesterday. The surgery went well and we feel the recovery will do the same.
Glad the OP went well, I hope his recovery goes as well as mine did! Love the idea of your colourful house. Have fun with the decorations! Hugs, Valerie
ReplyDeleteMake sure that you sand the furniture a bit so that the new paint doesn't flake off!
ReplyDeleteThat author has a great blog, Dora - have you seen it? http://getting-stitched-on-the-farm.blogspot.com/
Love the thoughts of a colorful house! Want to come to Ohio and do mine????
ReplyDeleteGlad to hear the OP went well! Yes, I have painted tons of furniture. Both with chalk paint and regular paint. Clean the piece well first. If it is a dark stain, you might want to put a coat of Kilz on it first then paint two light coats of your paint color.
ReplyDeleteHope your DH is recovering well.Love all your colour samples,looking forward to seeing your Bloomsbury home:).
ReplyDeleteI have white walls at my home, but I have tons of color on my walls. Adding color to the walls would seem contrary to the way the rooms in my house flow together, because each "room," although separated by furniture only, has its own color scheme. Because my walls are white and my furniture is oak, I have a secondary color in each room, then a tertiary color that is picked up in the candles and accents.
ReplyDeleteAs for painting furniture, OVER MY DEAD BODY. I paid thousands of dollars (that is NO exaggeration) for authentic antiques, so please don't ask me about painting furniture. I painted some metal chairs that sit outdoors, but that was using outdoor spray paint. So, I'm not much help at all.
I can tell you from experience of painting my kitchen cabinets, that you need a good primer regardless. Even the best paint soaks into wood that's been sanded.
BTW, when you left your comment this morning, I was out mowing my yard. Just finished and plan to shower as soon as I cool down a bit.
Forgot to mention that I was delighted to read that your husband's surgery went well.
ReplyDeleteGlad the hubby's surgery went well.
ReplyDeleteI love color! Paint and accessories are a cheaper way to add bursts of color that are also easy to change if the mood strikes you. Have fun!
I have painted tons of furniture! First off, wash the piece down to get any grime off. We used to use TSP, but that stuff's nasty on the hands and isn't good in the waste water stream. Spic n' Span or even a strong dish detergent works.
ReplyDeleteThen sand it. Imperfections show more with paint than with woodgrain. Don't bother to fill holes or cracks yet; it'll all show up better once primer is on it.
Use a primer. It sticks better than paint, and paint sticks better to it than to other paint or finish. I like to tint the primer, either to the color going on top or to medium or light gray. For some reason, gray covers other colors best and other colors cover it. When I painted all the paneling in this place in deep colors I put mid-gray primer on it all first.
Sand the primer. Dust it off, and look for imperfections, and fill them with spackle. Sand that when dry; cover the spackled spot with primer and when that's dry sand that so there are no raised edges to the patch. This is also when you talk caulk to the joints. Make sure caulk is totally dry before putting finish coat on.
I'm not a fan of using water based paints on furniture (I've done it and regret it) but most people will want to go that way because of the stench of oil based. Oil based paint lasts longer and goes on smoother. If you use oil based, spring for some Penetrol to thin the paint even though the can will say do not thin. It will help even out any brush marks. (of course, I'm not even sure if you can still get oil base in California!) If you use latex, Floetrol serves the same function. Even though it's solid paint and not showing wood grain, you still brush with the grain of the wood. The brain knows how furniture is made and objects to seeing the 'grain' run the wrong way (it's true!)
Use a good brush. It's worth the investment as they leave less marks.
That's all I can think of. Oh, use a tack rag to get every last speck of dust off before painting. Set the piece up on blocks so you're not painting right down to the floor.
HTH
I'm glad to hear your husband's doing well. Speedy Recovery!
ReplyDelete