A little project I done did...

I’ve had a little hutch in my entry way for some years now. I like it, but I’ve been hoping for a little more shelf space for displaying some of my collections. I thought it would be easy to find a nice little hutch to replace it.

 

And it WAS easy to find hutches – but not little ones. Because of the curve of my staircase, and its rise, I had not a few limitations.

After a couple of years of looking, and finding, and measuring, only to discover one was too long, too high, or too deep, I FINALLY FOUND THE RIGHT ONE!

It was right in town at Keepsakes Antique Mall…and only $150! It was maple -- like Tell City maple, the kind of furniture that my mom loved, and was pleased to acquire back in the 70’s. It was cute in its wooden state, but didn’t look quite old enough…Retro, but not vintage – and I definitely wanted vintage.

So I decided to paint it.

I’m too much an optimist sometimes…or not very smart.

Or both…

I’ve gained skills enough to paint walls, but furniture is stretching it. So of course, I bought the reportedly easy to use Annie Sloan Chalk Paint, and learned that even easy-to-use paint is difficult for me.

I had planned to distress the finish, but as I got going on the project it became clear that I would NEED to distress the finish. It was pretty distressed, and distressing, even when I wasn’t trying to make it that way.

Chalk paint is thick, and fast-drying, and it stays where you put it…If you aren’t careful with your brush strokes, it can get pretty ugly…and fast.

By the 3^rd coat, I had reduced the number of anomalies to a level at which I could distress the heck out of the hutch and they might seem intentional…

So the hutch and I both got distressed, but fortunately, it looks better on the hutch than me. I’m quite happy with the result!

I found these funky knobs at Anthropologie, and had to have them as a finishing touch on the project. Aren’t they cute?

While I didn’t gain a lot more storage space, I did gain display space. My tea cup collection can now come out and be seen, instead of hiding in a cabinet. And I can use the cabinet for other things.

All in all, a successful project! Of course that means that, once the painting memories fade, I will likely find some piece of furniture to do again…

No doubt, both it and I will be distressed again.