From 80's Folksy to Shabby Chic Cabinet

Can you believe we are saying goodbye to August?

WOW

where did summer go?

As wonderful as it still is,

I am ready for fall.

With lots of projects on the drawing board,

I've been overly busy lately 

and

if truth be told,

 business gets a bit overwhelming this time of year.

However, looking back over the last few months

a lot has been accomplished 

including~

a special custom painting for a dear client who became a special friend over the years.

We met long along when I was in a brick and mortar shop stocking my treasures for the day.

Nearly 20 years later, here we are, like sisters!

Swinging my paint brushes has blessed me in more ways then I ever imagined.

At one time, furniture painting made up most of my business

and it sure kept me very busy.

Now I specialize in the smaller items for decor

and smaller furniture treasures that are easier to ship.

I eventually moved out of the brick and mortar shop after 15 years,

and love being on line selling my treasures the last 13 years.

Being a member of the

National Society of Decorative Painters for nearly 30 years

and working in  Interior Design

has given me opportunities galore!!

I just love to design, create and decorate.

Well, now you didn't stop by to read about all that,

so let's get into the title of this post,

Folksy to Shabby Chic!

It all begins back in July when

my dear friend had an Amish cabinet made about 27 years ago and 

hand painted with a folk art look and style.

It really is a jelly/pie cabinet. 

This style was popular back in the 80's and  90's.

She really wanted a new look for the cabinet and had ideas

to move it from her kitchen to a room in her home designed in 

shabby chic to display her gorgeous doll collection.

She wanted cottage roses added somehow to this treasure.

So I took on the project to help her dream come true.

Here are a few before pics.

It took 2 weeks to complete from start to finish including dry time.

Someone placed a lot of time in the old folksy paintings on the doors and pull down door.

This is what took place in my studio~~~

Lots of sanding to remove the old painting

 and lightly sand the entire surface to give a bit a tooth to grab the paint.

My hubby helped me with this part since my painters elbow and wrist

didn't like this step very much!!

That's a whole other story going on since it seems

computer work and swinging paint brushes have taken a toll on my arm.

Anyway, as for the sanding~~

do you know, the shadow of the couple would not sand off.

Oh the paint went away, but their silhouette stayed etched in the wood like a shadow!!

It's like they wanted to stay with the cabinet.

So it took layers and layers of paint to cover them over.

Somewhere in the many paint layers sleeps the folksy couple

forever to stay with this cabinet!!

Once the prime work and prep was done,

It took 4 coats of paint to cover inside and out.

You can see how pretty it looks in the lighter shade of

Honeysuckle Bloom!

This is a gorgeous flat paint perfect for furniture.

It is not chalk paint but I have used it for years

and it works beautifully and works just like chalk paint,

which I have found takes more then one coat too.

No matter what they tell you,

one coat of chalk paint doesn't cover completely.

At least that's been my experience!

Once the surface cured the design was ready  to paint

adding cottage roses to the pull down and doors.

Nothing over done, just a simple pretty delicate design.

I found some gorgeous ceramic drawer and door pulls to add.

To the pull down, I stenciled a few French pretties

adding something to view when open.

A swag of roses trail down each door.

 And, another French design is painted on the inside of each door to see when opened.

More roses here would have been too much.

Lastly, I had to included a little "Dolls" sign 

hand painted on a oval tray for her new shabby room.

It really met her idea perfectly and she loved it.

BEFORE

AFTER

This was a fun project taking a Folksy jelly/pie cabinet to a Shabby Chic style

with a little paint and cottage roses.

Thank you for stopping by to see what I've been up too.

Now it's back to lots of fall and Christmas designing in the weeks ahead~

but for this week,

I'm off to the Hill Country to give my arm a little rest.

Hope to do a little junkin while there too. 

I'll let you know what I find!!

See you when I get back.

Have a great week!