a table refinished... a first!

Done awhile ago, just now posting!  I needed a better side table for the guest room and wanted to experiment with refinishing and antiquing.  

Inspiration tables:

from Richard Tubbs

above...

from Interiors and Antiques in Vestavia Hills

and below....

The find:

The process (compiled from several you-tube videos):

Sand down the table, paint with a base coat (I chose Ben Moore's Coastal Fog, 976)

 

Put a coat of lighter-colored paint on top after base is dry (Waverly Snow White and Cottage Linen), and wipe off in line with the woodgrain with a rag.  You will be removing lots of the paint, and can do this many times.

Water down your lighter paint and continue to use the above technique to apply depth and the illusion of woodmarkings to your surface.

Sand down the edges in a subtle way to make it look less "new".

The end result:

Did that make sense at all??  I'm not the best explainer.  Maybe you should just you-tube it like I did...

Striking a balance

I love love love the greys, whites, and neutrals that are gracing the blogs of today, and stores like Duh. Perfect example to the right. I think everyone can tell.... I also have a little shabby chic, French country, Hampton, and Southern traditional style in me....and, I keep finding myself leaning towards the neutrals and whites. But, I have recently realized that I am somewhere in between all of these in terms of my design aesthetic --- all neutrals can sometimes be TOO stark and dull!

A great post by Rhoda at Southern Hospitality perfectly describes this struggle to find a balance between the blogworld house envy and one's personal style. While my style is a bit more contemporary than hers is, I identify with everything she said!

For example, I find this room, from Traditional Home this month, a bit too muted and matchy-matchy for me, even though I like each component in it individually and its color palate (love celadon!). It is missing pizzazz or something!! Later in the issue I found this home from California. I think... this is a perfect match for my style (at least for now)! It finds the perfect balance between antiqued greys and whites and hardwoods, pops of color, without looking "decorated" or modern. Maybe is this "transitional" design aesthetic? I need to get myself an interior decorator and a dictionary! Nice, but too neutral??

House and Home

Just right??

Per HGTV:

Transitional style is a marriage of traditional and contemporary furniture, finishes, materials and fabrics equating to a classic, timeless design. Furniture lines are simple yet sophisticated featuring either straight lines or rounded profiles. Fabric can range from graphic patterns on overstuffed sofas to textured chenilles on sleek wood frames.

Colors - This transitional palette relies on a lack of color to evoke a clean, serene atmosphere. Dark brown adds depth to the neutral balance of taupe, tan and vanillaAccessories - A minimalist approach is taken with carefully-selected accessories.

Fabrics - The lack of color makes room for interesting textures, like the olive-colored corduroy found on the sofa and a smooth creamy white cotton used on two of the side chairs.

Furniture - Curves combine with straight lines in a transitional-style interior. The look balances both masculine and feminine attributes for a comfortably contemporary design. The scale of the pieces is ample but not intimidating. A lack of ornamentation and decoration keeps the focus on the simplicity but sophistication of the design.

Perfect example of what I love: Cote De Texas blog post from 2009-10, featuring a house designed by Sally Wheat (also the first picture).

Cote de Texas also hit my soft spot recently with the post on grey wicker - my new favorite. I only have one piece of it, seen in an earlier post in the first picture as the cylinder. I got this in Memphis with Cover.

{Coming up post - the transformation of another piece of wicker that I painted a dove-grey}

Last weekend, went to Architectural Heritage in downtown Birmingham, and snagged these two balustrades circa 1890 from southern England

Again - grey... I love, but have yet to decide what to do with them. I am thinking about putting them in the hall here instead of the pictures - saving these black frames for future use...

Just a little glimpse of the house and my style as it is currently manifesting itself!

{Also coming up - a table transformation inspired by DUH and some tables I've seen at stores around town...}

Darn TV table

Jimmy was so excited to get the opportunity to buy another plasma that now we have one that we basically don't use! It is in our bedroom on a too-deep piece of wood furniture, sitting too low for us to actually watch TV in bed (bad habit I know). We probably should mount this TV up on the wall, because the room is small and already has a lot of furniture in it (big bed and big dresser, all dark wood). However - I'm having a tough time justifying spending the $200-$300 it would take to mount this huge TV and speakers on the wall, when in reality it is a guest bedroom and I don't think future prospective buyers will appreciate! Here is the room and the space - I wasn't kidding!! So I'm debating adding a taller table in here to hold up the TV, since the same amount of mula can then manifest into a piece of furniture that we can take with us and have forever. Problem: not much space and lots of wood in this room already! I've been looking for a table that is either: 1) dark wood because I know I'll use it in a future house and this room will just remain cluttered 2) wood, but painted a lighter color so it is different (think shabby chic) 3) iron with either marble/granite/glass on top I'll be honest and say that #3 is my ideal option. I've been wanting an iron table for a while, it would go anywhere in the future, yada yada. However, they tend to be pricey when nice ($1800 for my favorite one) , and I didn't have too much success finding one in the lesser-expensive antique stores downtown. So here are my options that I found lately. I'll put the price and where they are from, and I'll mention anything that stood out to me about them. Please respond if one stands out to you as one that you would be jealous of if you saw it in a friend's house! I apologize for the blurry vision - Iphones aren't exactly the best cameras, but are much more discreet! The TV stand needs to sit on a table that is at least 14" deep and 30" wide. All these tables would work. 1. I can't remember actually how much$ this one is. 18'' deep, 36'' high. From Hannah's antiques. 2. Uh, not doing so well, this one I can't remember how much either, also Hannah's antiques. The knobs match the knobs on an old dresser I have. Good dimensions. 3. $190, At Home, this one is a shabby chic greyish color, about 16" deep. 4. $400, Hannah's Antiques. kindof swirly, marble top and iron base, if you can't see. 5. $360, Nadeau's. Less wide than the others, but still would fit the TV. 6. $327, Nadeau's, sliding front in wood, more of a solid piece vs a spindly table. 7. $350, Hannah's Antiques. I talked this booth-owner down from $525, this one is 18"x48", and is 40" tall (a smidgen taller than a standard console table). 8. $347, Hannah's Antiques, green marble on top with grey iron base, cut in a trapezoid shape, width at front is 3 ft and at back is 4 ft. 9. $218, Nadeau's, traditional but very solid and good-looking. 10. $80 with the sale they are having now, Hannah's Antiques, this one is shabby chic as well and is one of the smallest, (right height though), at about 16''x 32''. Which one?!?!