Barb vs. Chalk Paint. Round #1 Goes To...

So I tried out this chalk paint phenomenon that all the kids are talking about. My friend Joanne, from Muddarittaville Studio, recently became a distributor of van Gogh chalk paint so she gave me all of her leftover Annie Sloan paint.

We have an old bookcase that is cheap and an ugly shade of brown. Not real wood, just one of those particle board jobbies with a fake wood grain. Perfect for my first stab at chalk paint.

I'm completely new to this don't-need-to-sand, just-slap-it-on kind of painting. Kind of scary. I'm not that trusting. But since I didn't like the bookcase anyway, I had nothing to lose. I used Old White for the sides, top, and shelves, and Paris Grey for the back wall.

When I opened the white paint it was very thick so I added some water to thin it out. I think I might have added too much though because it took 4 coats to cover the sides. I didn't water down the grey at all and it only took 2 coats. Also, when the paint is watered-down it doesn't self-level as well as it should and I was left with brush marks. So there you go, lesson learned - leave it thick.

brush marks. boo.

Here we are at the end of the first day. I do like how fast it dries. Even though I had to do multiple coats, they didn't take long at all. 

(How 'bout that Hoosier cabinet in the background? Can you believe my father-in-law was using it to store paint cans and hardware? I can't wait to re-finish it.)

Joanne gave me several colours to play with, so I used a few blues and a yellow to stencil some flowers onto the back wall. Again a first - first time using a real stencil - hey, Martha! - and real stenciling brushes. I like how the flowers don't jump out at you in a hippie-dippy, mystery machine sort of way - they're just there behind the books as a little extra surprise.

I waxed everything and then roughed up the white a bit along the edges with a sanding sponge to give it a chippy look. I didn't sand the grey at all since the back wouldn't normally wear, amiright?

I haven't decided where to put it yet - probably in the craft room since there are never enough places to hold all my stuff. For now I gave it a little decoration and put it in the front hallway.

I don't know if I'm completely sold on chalk paint yet - it's a little heavy for my liking. My favourite wood finish is still to stain it then give it a light wash of colour (and wax of course). I do want to try it again though. I'd love to paint something with one of the bright blues - maybe a stool or a small table.

Have you tried chalk paint? What's your opinion? 

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I'm linking up here this week!

Book Tree

We have a large bay window upstairs at the front of the house. I know you've seen it from the outside when we replaced and repainted the trim, but it also give an amazing view from the inside of our entire street. It's the dogs' favourite place to hang out. All.Day.Long.

I thought a tree would look good there, but we only have one tree tall enough to show out the window. Other than the fun one made from tree branches we put in the basement TV room.

A few weeks ago we went through the bookcases and thinned out the books that we didn't want any more. How badly do I really need old chemistry or accounting textbooks? (My favourite - Semi-micro Qualitative Analysis. Makes me sound so brainy. Or nerdy. Your pick.) Since then the books have been stacked against the wall waiting to go to Goodwill.

I decided to put the books to use and turned them into a tree. I started with the textbooks, worked up to the hardback thrillers, and then the paperbacks. The base is an old end table that I'm planning to refinish - if I ever get time to do it. Just add it to the list.

The tree is topped with a wooden moose hand-carved by Tom's uncle. I wrapped his little body with white lights so he'd look like a star.

And I found some little battery-operated lights at the dollar store that are the perfect proportion for the "tree".

There you have it. Such a fun, easy project. I'm feeling pretty resourceful for using items on hand. And it keeps the books out of the way until after Christmas when I'll have time to get them to Goodwill. Win-win.

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I'm linking up here this week!

Snow Day

We had our first big snowfall of the year this past weekend. And it managed to happen the day I was planning to go into the forest and collect branches for my Off the Wall Christmas Tree. But we went anyway. We bundled up, put coats on the dogs, and set off.

The forest was absolutely gorgeous. Very few people had been there that day so the snow was sparkling in the sun. Doesn't it look like a painting? No fancy editing - this is the real deal.

The dogs had an awesome time chasing each other all over the place. Chloe even took a header when she tripped over a log that was buried in the snow. Poor girl. But she was right back up and off again.

This is the pond where we throw balls to Chloe in the summer. We throw the ball, she flings herself into the water and swims to fetch it. Then waits for us to throw again. She didn't care if it was cold though - she saw a chunk of ice in the water and thought it was a tennis ball. We had to hurry to keep her from going for it.

"Throw the ball already!"

In the forest itself, the snow was deep. Did I mention I was carrying all of the branches we gathered? Workout? Check.

I love snowy noses so much.

This looks like, "I can't feel my feet. Do I still have feet?"

After our walk, we drove down the road that edges the forest and looked at the houses. Just to give you a reference, these places sell for over $1 million each. Out of our price range a bit. But it's nice to dream.

Do you see what I see?

(Not a real moose. It's a statue.)

Such a beautiful day!