Cottage Paint

The other day a colleague and I had the opportunity to visit Cottage Paint and meet with Gail Rogers who kindly showed us how to use the paint and create different finishes. 

Cottage Paint is a clay-based paint that dries to a silky matte finish, and remains porous and easy to sand or wet distress when dry, making it perfect for the Shabby-Chic style furniture refinishing on trend right now. This type of paint isn’t new of course, it’s been around since the frescos in the Sistine Chapel, but the benefit of this modern clay paint is that it has been formulated to exceed today’s environmental standards by removing almost all of the VOCs in both the bases and the pigments. Cottage Paint is used as a furniture refinishing product, it achieves an authentic time-worn appearance through it’s chalky finish and the hand rubbed technique used to distress it. You can create many additional finishes when using their specialty products as well, the possibilities seem almost endless once you start to experiment with it.

 A few of the great qualities this paint has:

• Cottage Paint dries in about 15 minutes to one hour. Never do more than THREE applications of anything to a piece per day though, even if you can.
• It adheres to just about any surface you can think of: wood, plastic, metal, brick
• It requires NO sanding, priming or stripping most of the time. Just make sure the surface is clean. Varnished and stained surfaces do require priming to seal the surface prior to painting.
• The paint can be distressed as soon as it is dry using a damp cloth or fine sand paper.
• Cottage Paint does not roll or peel like latex when sanded, it appears as if the paint has gradually worn off over time.
• Can be used in conjunction with their other decorative finishes to create endless unique looks and combinations

Below are some of the different surface treatments available but a visit to this supplier is worth the time.

 My favourite below - using a special was on the fabric and then adhering it to a tabletop

If anyone is interested in a demonstration, please stop by Sheridan Nurseries for Ladies Night Out at the location on Southdown Road, Mississauga at 7 pm.,

Glamour at Home

A previous post highlighted some of the trends seen throughout the Highpoint Market this past fall, so I thought I would post some pictures of the various trends starting with glamorours spaces.  It is notable that most glam spaces have sparkle and reflective surfaces.  Some have high contrast creating drama

dishfunctionaldesign.com

iseecubed.com

betterdecoratingbible.com

wikdig.org

 uutvdome.ru

mylifescoop.net

newrooms.biz

interiors by studiom.com

HABITAT FOR HUMANITY UPCYCLING CHALLENGE at THE TORONTO HOME SHOW

If you are reading this you most likely will have seen me mention this event on my face book and linked in pages.  This year I am participating in the challenge where everyone involved was given the challenge to recreate/up cycle an old door into something new and useful.  Don't forget to vote for me...     http://a.pgtb.me/7vXrK

I had tons of ideas at first but then realized I had to select a door that I could carry and that would fit in my vehicle so that changed my thinking a lot.  I decided on a light weight door which I in turn created a fun Child's Creative Art and Organization Centre.  I had so much fun checking out what could be found at the Habitat Restores and a Reuse Centre I am familiar with.  Basically everything on my project is recycled except the tiny white board and chalk.  One doesn't find used chalk usually.  Some of the pieces I picked up were really ugly but I picked off the 'uglies' and sanded, painted and made them look good.  There was a box with tons of wooden cylinders with holes in them that nobody at the Restore  knew what they had been used for originally but I had a 'lightbulb' moment and took them off their hands. They were painted and the alphabet attached to them and they now adorn the top of my creation.   I also added a couple to the bottom to be used to hang a bag or hat on.   Below are the before and after photos .....

                

                    

       

 Opps!     I forgot to take a before of this little basket
   

My Final Creation

Making a new Patio Table

One day this spring I ventured outside to my patio to sit for a minute and enjoy my coffee, only to find that my lovely glass patio table was now a pile of glass shards.  Not sure how this happened but I would not toss it.  It was longer than what I could find out there these days and the chairs were fine and most of these come as a set so I decided to remake it over using cedar fence boards cut to the correct size.  I couldn't find the colour of stain I wanted so I made my own.  I love mixing colour.

Below is what my table looked like prior to the crash!

Below is the new tabletop with the unstained cedar boards

 Running boards in the opposite direction on the underside adds stability and keeps boards from shifting

The finished result.  

Some DIY projects from a guest blogger....

I am asked on occasion to post "guest" posts on this blog and this particular post is about some DIY projects sent by Shahab Shokouth, that I thought were interesting,   so take a look.



(Photo) Doing your own DIY remodeling can at times be a daunting task, but it can also be quite simple, depending on the project. In this post we will discover several DIY remodeling tips and tricks of varying complexities.

• Custom Colored Glass Light Shades!

Tinting your own custom colored glass light shades can be done in 30 minutes with the following ingredients: Mod podge, food coloring, water, jars (or clear glass light shades). For the full instructions, view this clip.
Ball Canning Jars are perfect for this kind of project.

• DIY Towel Rack

This DIY’er is perfect for both the kitchen and the bathroom. Re-purpose the back of an old ladder back
back into a towel rack and hang your towels.


.

• Designer Tile Accents

Often times, the whole point of being a DIY-er is to save money. In this example, by having accent tiles on the shower wall (instead of tiling the shower with designer tiles), it makes for a cheaper price tag, but still showcases an effective and sleek, design cue. This is also ideal when you want some more elaborate tile work in your bathroom, but you don’t want to rout all of your tiles. And if you have tiled flooring in your bathroom, a designer tile accent may be an effective remodel for your floor, as well!

 

• Dresser Turned DIY Kitchen Island

Speaking of DIY friendly, here’s a DIY Kitchen Island, created by re-purposing an antique dresser. All it took was taking a dresser and repainting the surface. On the side, they have added hooks to hold kitchen utensils, and have simply added a towel dispenser to the side of the dresser. The vibrant blues and whites also help brighten up the kitchen space. If you’re not feeling very “DIY”, there’s the “Buy It Yourself” option… In that case, the Kitchen Island DIY installation process involves: buying it, placing it in your kitchen, and removing the price tag. Unless of course you’re buying it from IKEA in which case it will require assembly. Whichever way you go, it might be a good idea to decorate your Kitchen Island with some bowls, as seen above. This will also add counter space to your kitchen. New kitchen islands range widely in price, size, and quality.   About the Author Shahab Shokouhi is a Writer at Dulles Glass and Mirror – a manufacturer of commercial and residential glass products including custom mirrors, glass top, and glass top desks.

Christmas Decorating at My Home....

It all starts at the Entrance....

This year I decided to add some of the warm copper colour that is so popular and looks nice with the greenery and silver touches.  A little snow would make it look much better...