Guest Post: I’ve Unleashed My Inner Martha Stewart!

Hi everyone! I'm back and I can't wait to share my pictures and stories from my epic Baltic cruise. While I'm sorting through the hundreds of pictures (more than 600!), here's an update on my friend Adrienne's shabby chic dresser. I love the way it turned out. Isn't it amazing what a coat of paint and new hardware can do?! 
 
After enlisting Calli’s help with my project to transform my chest of drawers, she asked me if I would guest post about it. It was a fun experience! Hope you enjoy reading about it!

I’ve had this ugly, black and white painted wooden chest of drawers for a few years now. It was a cheap Craigslist find so Zach and I hauled it home, hanging out the trunk of our Honda Civic. We just wanted something for our guest bedroom and never thought much about it. Well, when we moved to England we put our bedroom set in storage and this humble little chest of drawers became one of my main bedroom pieces.  I still never thought much of it… until recently. I was inspired by my friend Calli’s creativity in bringing new life out of worn out pieces of furniture by painting them. Light bulb moment: I can paint my wee little chest of drawers! Give it a make-over! Unleash Martha Stewart on it! Aha!  … but how to do it? That’s when I asked Calli for help. I knew she’d be excited about it so I was tickled pink when she offered her help and her handy sandblaster!

Before

Drawers before

  

Sanding

 

I didn’t quite know what I wanted to do with the chest of drawers; just that I knew it desperately needed some color. I kept thinking in the back of my mind what colors would look good, and of course I needed some nice new drawer knobs. I know our area isn’t known for its craft shops (oh Michaels, how I miss thee!) so I considered buying some snazzy drawer knobs online. I was hesitant though, because this just seemed like something better bought in person.

Fast forward about a week, and Zach and I are in Normandy. We decided to spend the afternoon in the nice harbor village of Honfleur. We were just wandering the streets taking in all the sights when we came across a tiny shop filled with drawer knobs, door knobs, drawer pulls! Wow! I was instantly drawn in. As I pondered over the array of colors, designs and sizes of the knobs I cast my eyes on some beautiful rose shaped knobs, and instantly was drawn to them. Oh, but which colors? Blue, orange, pink, white or red? In an instant, my vision of how I wanted my chest of drawers came to life! I decided on a few pink rose knobs with two white ones as well. It was quite entertaining to try to communicate with the man in the store, as he knew about as much English as I knew French, which, if you know me, isn’t much more than Bonjour and Merci beaucoup! But I walked out of the store giddy with my purchase and the idea that came to life before my very eyes.

I couldn’t wait to get started on this project so one day shortly after we returned from Normandy Calli came over and we sandblasted and primed the chest of drawers. To be on the safe side I ended up doing two coats of primer, and then two coats of the color. I was so giddy upon seeing the citrusy green color bringing my chest of drawers to life! It was so easy to do, and as soon as it was dry I put the knobs on and it was brought together exactly how I envisioned it. It’s amazing when you can envision something and have it actually come out how you planned! (Instead of a horrible mess that you leave in a dark corner to collect dust…) I then took a piece of sandpaper and sanded the corners and edges a bit to give it that shabby chic look. Beautiful!

Bright, citrus green (photo courtesy of Adrienne)

Totally transformed! (photo courtesy of Adrienne)

Shabby chic details (photo courtesy of Adrienne)

I also decided to get creative with the décor on the chest of drawers. I saved a few bottles aside (one was a wine bottle we got in Cyprus and two more from the thrift shop). I painted the wine bottle white, using the primer paint, so it dried with a nice matte effect. Then I tied a ribbon around the neck and voila! Instant decoration! (thanks to a craft book had been collecting dust on my bookshelf for a while). I decoupaged the other two bottles with bright pink and blue paper. Oh, and then, there’s the sheep… because, well, I like sheep!

DIY decor (photo courtesy of Adrienne)

This could get addicting!  I need to get thee to a yard sale or thrift shop or auction to find a hunk of junk in need of a make over!

Isn't that an amazing makeover? I love how the dresser now reflects her tastes and has a bit of history with the French knobs. You can check out more pictures on Adrienne's blog.Thanks for sharing with us Adrienne!