Olive Meets Versailles...Part 1

Dull, drab and scratched up

Hello, Happy Sunday and Welcome to the Farm! I'm hoping you all have had a fabulous week, with another great one coming up!  It's been pretty busy up this way (or down this way, depending on where you live) as people start bustling about again now that the weather is starting to show its nice side. Hubby was out planting today so soon enough there will be barley and hay growing (hopefully in abundance).  Me?  Uh, no I was not outside.  You could have already guessed that, right?  LOL  Yes, in our little neck of the woods, Mr. Scrappin' does all the outside stuff and I don't (do anything).  While he relies on the weather for how our farm produces, I rely on the weather to be warm.  Different points of view here, folks.

Stained, funky top

While Hubby was out planting today, I was attempting to finish up the project I had started last week.  I didn't quite accomplish all of it, but the only thing remaining is the handles so I can complete that this week.  Mr. Scrappin' said he'd paint the handles for me, but I don't know if he'll have enough time or not.  This is the beginning of his super busy time and it lasts all summer.  I may never see him again, come to think of it.  Maybe I'd better have him do those handles FIRST!  I know, I know, he works hard on the farm but, hey...a girl's gotta have her handles!  Really, those handles and anything else I put on Ms. Olive's front will be the focus of next week's blog.  For now, let's just look at her from frumpy to fab body!

First coat of Versailles on sides
Olive for the trim

This little metal dresser thingy (I really don't know what it actually is) is something I've had for several years now.  I bought her at a yard sale for eight dollars back in 2003, if that tells you anything.  And she's always been ugly.  She was ugly when I bought her and she's remained ugly until now.  Poor thing.  I really did feel sorry for her, but I didn't really know what I wanted to do with her before now.  She's been such a handy helper, holding everything from extra scrapbooks to sewing supplies to pictures to you name it. Really, she's one of the best purchases I've EVER made.  She's sturdy, roomy and just the right height to match the top of my desk.  Yes, I've used her relentlessly and she has served me well.

Color doesn't show well in this pic, but
the contrast shows up great

Since I've been revamping my spaces to make them more usable for my needs, (translation - Hubby moving everything around in my sewing and craft rooms AGAIN) this little gal has been sitting in the middle of my craft room floor. I knew it was time to give her a facelift or some sort of beautifying surgery, but what? What could I do that would make her look beautiful?  Beautiful in a way that I'd never seen but knew she deserved?  Yeah, you got it - Annie Sloan Chalk Paint.  By the way, this was only my second experience with ASCP (the first was my lovely chair) and my first experience doing it by myself.  Believe me, I was sure that Jessica, owner of Paint In My Hair, was going to come crashing in any moment and tell me I was doing it wrong.  Thankfully, she never came.  Yay!  That must have meant I was doing something right!  Actually, I remembered her telling me that I couldn't really do anything wrong, so I was hoping against hope that she was right as I worked on my little gal.

Isn't she lovely?  Dark wax
with a swirly motion!

Now, as much as I love how she's taken care of me, I'm sad to say that she did not EVER get the proper recognition of place.  She's always been relegated to a corner or somewhere that I can pile stuff on top of her to add to what she's already holding in her drawers.  I know those Sizzix dies were quite heavy when she was holding them, but she never complained once.  I *heart* her.  She's a trooper.  And I could never, ever get rid of her.  Eight dollars was a steal for her! Anyhoo, I digress...it's her turn for a nice, in-depth beauty treatment and I was happy to give her one.

Funky top gone; new top gorgeous!

I actually got the idea for her colors when I took my chair class. One of the things I received when I took it was a color chip list. Annie Sloan has some pretty cool colors, by the way.  I thought maybe my little gal would look pretty cool in a couple of contrasting but coordinating colors.  The hard part was deciding which ones!  Since I was going to be moving her from my craft room into my sewing room where she was going to once again be put in charge of sewing supplies, fabrics and other important things, I decided she needed to be somewhere in my favorite color scheme, which is green.  I know, you have all heard that green is my favorite color.  Sorry, I just can't help it. The two colors I chose for her are different, but very nice, and they coordinate beautifully.  I thought she'd look lovely.  She definitely couldn't look any worse!  I told her I was going to be daring with her, and she agreed to go through the transformation.  I dare say she might even have been a little excited to shed her dull, drab appearance.

Drawers all finished!

My little friend got a thorough cleaning before I set to work on her.  After all, she needed to be ready for her makeover!  On her top and sides, I painted her with a coat of ASCP Versailles.  Oh, beautimous!  Already, she was becoming like the ugly duckling transforming into the swan!  I was going to love this!  I let that coat dry and gave her another a little later.  I painted the trim around the top with a coat of ASCP Olive.  Oh, the contrast was awesome!  I'm pretty sure she was feeling a little flirty at that point!  On the top of her, instead of being just a flat surface, it is raised somehow, like someone put a big piece of tile or something on there. You can see the ridge and the height adjustment when you're looking at her.  It's not much of a difference, but enough to make me think about how I wanted to paint her on the top.  I taped off the flat area at the edges and carried the Olive up to that point.  I liked the way it looked; just a tad bit of dimension there.

Love the contrast after it's
been dark waxed!

After I finished with her main body, I painted the drawers in ASCP Olive.  Definitely loving these two colors together.  She was going to be gorgeous!  I was really feeling good about this!  After letting everything dry, it was time to seal her or leave her as is.  I definitely was tempted to leave her as is since the ASCP can be used as a chalkboard if left unsealed after painting.  My mind was quickly changed when I remembered how long she had sat there for me, so faithfully, in that dull, icky brown peeling paint.  She deserved much more beauty treatment after all that time standing by me.  Now, dark wax or clear wax?  I went back and forth on that one for a LONG time. Dark wax eventually won out as I decided she would look just perfect in an older, more comfortable kind of look.  It did cross my mind to do a bit of distressing, but I chose not to.  I wanted her to feel beautiful and like she fit in, like a part of the family. After all, she's lived with me for nine years now; she SHOULD be family, right?

Almost finished; just need the
drawer handles done.

So...dark wax, with a swirling motion.  It's more like a worn leather look than just a sealed look. Not a distressed or just painted kind of look.  She's got a unique look that no one else has, and I love her! I love that the swirling motion I used made the dark wax show lightly in some places and heavy in others. It's a great look for her!  

I have to admit that this was one of my favorite projects to date.  So incredibly easy with the painting; the wax made it look worn, and Olive got to meet Versailles!  

Paints (Versailles, Olive and Dark Rustic Wax) by Annie Sloan Chalk Paints.