New Hope for an old Hope Chest

I absolutely love when people think of me before they get rid of things.

There is nothing better than scoring a beautiful find and doing nothing more than answering your phone!

My grandmother (a different one than I have been referring to in the previous posts) called me the other day and asked me if I would like to have her old hope chest.  She said it was a Lane cedar chest that used to be whitewood, but after being in the attic for many years it had yellowed.  She wasn't sure if I had anything that I could do with it.

To me it was a "DUH?!"  An old cedar chest that I have been given permission to paint... not to mention family ties :o)

I pulled up and it was so much better than I could have imagined.  Hello Sunshine :o)

This piece is screaming vintage cool!

All original hardware ~ including the lock labeled LANE.

Remember back when I said it was a chest?  Up 'til now, it just looks like a dresser, but wait... I tricked you :o)

~*swoon*~

I really can't get enough of opening this chest.  The blast of cedar smell and that rich, red color.... I pretty much heart it :o)

The inside looks like it was just brought home from a show room.  Seriously, it still has the tag hanging it.   Not because it was never used.  This thing was packed to the brim with a wedding dress, cards, letters, baby clothes, handmade family blankets, and a ton more. 

I LOVE a good yellow piece of furniture.  But this particular yellow was faded and dirty.  It needed some love.

This was my first attempt with using the homemade chalk paint that is spreading like wildfire.  I put 2 tablespoons of Plaster of Paris into a sample size of paint.  The color was called celtic gray, but on this chest in looks a little more blue and in my bedroom it looks a little more green.  I will share my frustrations with the color gray very soon.

The homemade chalk paint was amazing.  It spread so beautifully.  Once I painted it on, I sanded over it with some 220 grit sandpaper.  I have never felt a piece of furniture that was so smooth and soft.  I hear it distresses really well too, but I didn't want to take my sander to this piece... weird, I know.

I left all the hardware in it's original color.  I'm not sure if it's the right decision or not.  I'm gonna let it simmer for awhile.  What do you think?  Should it go brushed bronze?

I glazed over the gray with a little black glaze.   I'm always a little worried about a piece of furniture until I glaze it.  The glaze gives it so much depth and really makes it pop.

Man I love the inside of this thing!!

This isn't it's permanent home, it has a place in my bedroom.  But since that room is far from a pretty sight right now, it's gonna stay here until I'm ready for it.

Sorry, sometimes I get a little carried away with the photography :o)  I love to take pictures.

I can't believe what an amazing gift this was and I hope my grandmother is pleased with what I did with it.  It might be my new favorite piece of furniture!

On a side note, I have officially bought my first piece of furniture to sell!  As the pockets are empty right now, I had to invest small. This baby should be done soon.  I hope somebody loves her :o) 

Purchasing a new camera lens today... can we say EXCITED!?!?

Also got to meet my favorite rock star last night before what turned out to be an awesome show.  Next to my family and refinishing furniture, Butch Walker is my favorite thing ever! 

But what was the biggest thing I learned last night by going to a rock concert in Athens, GA (home of the Georgia Bulldogs).... I'm not 18 anymore!

Linky Party Love

Perfectly Imperfect
The Shabby Nest
Miss Mustard Seed
Metamorphosis Monday with Between Naps on the Porch
Show Me What Ya Got with Not Just a Housewife
Kammy's Korner

Dining Set Reveal

I believe you have met these lovelies.

If not, let me introduce you.  From Left to right we have: Bear, Ellen, Molly, Mr. Chair, Boog, and Lucy.

5 of the 6 chairs feature a different image from The Graphics Fairy.  They each turned out so unique!  If you haven't, check 'em out!

And now, without further adieu (I guess since I didn't get a red squiggly line under that, I actually spelled it right!) The table that brings them all together.

I decided to go with a harlequin pattern on the top with a black border.  

I started by painting the table top white and used a long sewing ruler to create the lines for the pattern. I painted the design in a light gray and then painted over the lines with a dark gray.  If you want to know more information about how I did it, email me and I'll try to work you through it :o)

 

I distressed the top and edges heavily with a rotary sander and then glazed it in black.

I love how the sander brought out the imperfections of the table.  Priceless if you ask me :o)

And what's the best part of having a finished dining room table?  Getting to decorate it for fall!!

Please note that this is the dining room table reveal, not a dining room reveal :o)  I still have lots to do in here, including some pretty rockin' ideas for that wall over there.

My first official fall project are those turquoise acorns!  More on that tomorrow... but I love the pop of color that they add.

The centerpiece is a carvable fake artificial pumpkin from Hobby Lobby.  I put a foam block inside and stuffed a bunch of fall stems in there.  Seriously easy.  I had no rhyme or reason to my madness, but I think it turned out pretty awesome :o)

 

The mason jar luminary is a project I'll be showing you soon as well.  Still tinkering with them!

I chose to leave the base of the table cherry so it would match the rest of the dining room suit (not all of it is in the room yet).  I also wanted the two chairs that I didn't paint to still fit in.

And while all of those pretty, posed pictures are great and all.  I wanted to show you how we got to break our new table in.  I hosted my grandmother's 85th birthday party this weekend!

Tears of Joy

My 2 older sisters

Is there any better way to start making memories in our new dining room?!  I mean seriously!?!

Happy Fall!

Partying Here:

Between Naps on the Porch

The Girl Creative

Miss Mustard Seed

Sweet Peas and Bumblebees

My favorite Chair

Let me preface this post by saying this: my mom has a great sense of humor, she will in no way be offended by anything written below, and she knows I love her :)  This will make her day... promise!

My favorite chair carries the name Ellen.

This is my favorite chair because it holds a lot of memories for me.  This is the only chair that was in my family growing up.  It used to be a part of a massive dining room set that held lots of people for lots of different occasions.  I remember lots of Thanksgivings, Birthdays, Christmas's(I can never remember where the apostrophe goes in situations like this... and my last name ends in an s :) , and  Easter's gathered around in these chairs.  But this was the only one left and was in pretty bad shape.  The seat had fallen out  , and I can't remember if someone was in it when it happened or not!

Why did I choose to name it Ellen?  Well that's my mom's name.  Her real name.  For one, all of the memories around that table involved my mom.  At birthdays, she brought in the birthday cake. At Thanksgiving, she brought in the Turkey (and FYI, most of the time my birthday cake and the turkey came in at the same gathering cause I'm a Turkey Baby!)   At Christmas, she brought in the ham.  They are special memories, so why wouldn't I name a chair after her?!

Now to the more obvious reasons.  This chair is an antique, as is my mom.

This chair is beautiful, as is my mom.

This chair has hip replacements, just like my mom.

This chair has an old bike on it, probably like my mom used to ride... lol, just kidding... she isn't that antique!  

This chair carries the number 119605 which are my kiddos birthdays.  I know they mean the world to her.

And last but not least, it was once part of a very uniform, complete antique set that was beautiful from the outside.  That set has now been pieced out across the family, split apart.  But this chair is now becoming a part of something more beautiful and pieced together from sets all over.  This is a lot like our family.  We have broken apart and spread out, but we have added in so many more to our family over the years.  It may be a little more eclectic, but it is equally as beautiful. 

But the dining room set you will have to wait to see :)

If you missed the first 3 chairs of this set
Sister Chairs
A Chair Named Lucy

Linking Up To:

Perfectly Imperfect
Home Sweet Butterfly

Check out the completed dining room set here!