Refinished Furniture

Balance Beam

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In an effort to start back doing more of the things I want to do so I can still enjoy doing the things I have to do for my business, I am going to start blogging again. I might not do every day but several times a week I should be able to do. ESPECIALLY with ridiculousness like Amanda Knox going back to Italy knowing them people don’t want her over there. And did yall see that Social Security is going to be deplete in 15 years? And Prilosec and drugs like it are killing folks by giving em heart and kidney disease! Any day now one of us is going to die in a monsoon the way this weather has been kirking up and yall…there are over a hundred dolphin deaths out here recently because they opened up a spillway and let in a lot of freshwater without thinking of what it would do to the ecosystem. Like…WHERE.ARE.THE.MARINE BIOLOGISTS? SHOULDN’T SOMEONE SOMEWHERE HAVE SAID SOMETHING???????????????????

Got into a debate about Creole gumbo versus Cajun gumbo recently and literally just stopped talking and said, “Okay.” I’m good on my gumbo.

Speaking of gumbo, I have new hours at my store so I don’t kill myself trying to do it all. It wasn’t doctor’s orders it was husband’s orders. Dude was like…why are you killing yourself?

AND I FELT THAT!

I tried to return my hair to natural and was on the journey for 7 months and then decided nerp…not for me. And I relaxed again. I just didn’t have the time it seemed necessary to dedicate to transitioning. And…I caused a LOT of damage trying to transition and had to get a good cut to level it all back out again properly. So I’m rocking a layer cut that looks like nothing in my day-to-day topknot. LOL! You know…cuz I don’t have time to comb relaxed hair either.

I’m making things pretty and having an amazing time doing so. Check out my Instagram to see most of my projects. Let me know if you need any help doing something on your own. I can help you out via messages or phone! WHOOT WHOOT!!!!! www.Instagram.com/ThatGumboLife

I’ll be 50 years old in September and I’m starting to really feel this getting old thing. Aging is just wrong to women. I can’t take this hot stuff. It is honestly taking it out of me.

I’ve moved my store to a bigger location and I’m always looking for real estate for my next move. It’s super cute and I enjoy being there. I just don’t want to be tied to it every single day. Work life balance is key for me to have what it takes to choose happy. If I don’t have it…I’m just grumpy. I was either busy or exhausted. Those were my two modes.

EW.

What’s been going on with yall? I honestly miss all the different perspectives on topics that come up in the news and in my life so I’m going to try blogging again. Not every day but certainly a few times a week when it just builds up so much I wanna snap. LOL! And I miss writing daily. Massaging that muscle really helps me.

Things I did today...

My two tough pieces are coming along nicely.  :)

Kroehler MCM Piece: I 100% love learning something new!

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The amount of damage on this piece is ridiculous.  I tried very, very hard to figure out a way to not paint this but the water damage done to it is going to make that impossible.  So I plan to do a version of this with paint and stain trying to keep as much of the details as possible.

The bottom two drawers have water damage that can only be painted.  The top drawer, however, I decided to replace the veneer for a fresh stain since it wasn't too bad.

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I removed the old veneer.

Then I cut new veneer and glued it on.

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I cannot wait to finish this piece since I'm going to have some fun with it.  Now that I know how to do this...I think I'm going to take this refinishing hobby to whole new levels!

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The Eating Holidays are Coming!!!!

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It's that time of year again when I want to completely redo everything to get ready for the holidays.  I just get into the thought process that people are coming so I need to be ready.  LOL!  Not like people aren't always visiting year 'round mind you.  Year 'round is okay for what it looks like...but when them SAME people come for the holidays it has to be mo'betta.  Don't ask for a rationale behind this way of thinking because there is none.  Seriously.  None.

But I know you probably feel me and are looking around your dining room to see what you need to do too.  LOL!  Cuz that's how we roll.

This starts with me bringing home this piece.  It was soooooooo heavy and we just loaded that sucker up any way we could.  Just slid it all cross the back of the truck.  We got it home and maneuvered it to the garage where it stayed while I worked on it.  It was a challenge because whenever I needed to move it, I couldn't without The Robinator and his schedule made that hard to be consistent.  But I finally finished it.

I stripped the top layer of the finish off and then lightly sanded it.  Then I put two coats of Minwax weathered grey stain on the top of it.  For the base, I painted it with Dixie Belle's Haint Blue.    It's the loveliest neutral color with just the tiniest bit of blue in it.  So much so that you only see it as blue in perfect lighting conditions.  LOL!  I'm talking blinds closed and ceiling light on.  Any other times it looks white.

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Because I'm going for a rustic farmhouse look in there, I distressed it lightly.  I only did that after we decided to keep it because it was too heavy to take it to my shop.  I mean...this thing is crazy heavy and we're just not built for moving stuff that can't get scratched up.  We're more of the college students you find on Craigslist kinda movers where we just pray for the best and get the worst possible outcome.  Who knew I needed so much additional storage though?  I certainly didn't and now, I have much more.  I have a whole drawer dedicated to linen napkins so I'm not scrambling looking for 8 that match and end up having to use two sets of 4.  *sigh*  And who knew I had enough small placecard holders and napkin rings to fill an entire drawer?  Not me that's for sure!  But I do.  LOL!  So yeah...next thing is to find a rug I can live with, get some cushions made for those two barrel back chairs and some kinda window treatments which don't make the room feel stuffy and I'll be ready for the eating holidays!

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Solid Oak Round End Table Refinished in Annie Sloan Country Grey with Stained Top

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I'm totally beginning to have a thing for round coffee tables and end tables.  Not plain ones mind you...but some with a bit of oomph.  What is oomph you ask?  Hell if I know...I just know it when I see it.  

When I found this table it had a busted leg.  Totally ew.  Turns out, broken wood pegs are relatively simple to fix though.  You take a drill and drill through the broken peg until the hole is completely cleaned out.  Then?  Add some wood glue and bang in a new wood peg.  You can get a pack of like 10 of them for under $2.  Crazy huh?  When I think of all the things I've encountered with a busted wooden peg and it could have been fixed for like TWENTY CENTS???????  

LAWD... SHAME! SHAME! SHAME!

So...this was pretty basic.  Like...seriously.  When you use Annie Sloan chalk paint you don't have to sand it so I only sanded the top because I wanted to stain it and to stain something...ya gotta remove the current finish so the wood can absorb the Minwax Dark Walnut stain.  There was just no way I was painting over that gorgeous inlaid top.  It was just so neat to me that it was laid in quarters like that.  The beading along the side was a detail I wanted to make pop so after painting the base in Annie Sloan Country Grey (my favorite color it seems)  and under the top, I rubbed dark wax under the top.  As a protectant, I really like General Finishes High Performance Top Coat in satin.  I think I did two coats on the top.  Anything vertical I've learned to use a polyacrylic spray so that's what I did there.  The piece came out so lovely and man is this thing SOLID!  It won't move unless you actually move it.  A simple bump won't sent it sprawling into the wall to make a knick in your paint.  WHOOOOOHOOOOOOOOO!

You'll find that round end tables are pretty versatile for the space you're looking to fill too.  Squares and rectangles are pretty...um...finite.  I guess that's a good way to put it.  If not...pick some words, put them together and VIOLA!  Hopefully you know what I'm trying to say.  LOL!