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Monday 28 February 2011

Play it Again Bench

Play it Again Bench
*SOLD*

We are back to extreme winter here in southern Alberta. It is snowing and blowing and disgusting considering it will be March tomorrow. Let's distract ourselves with something pretty then...




This is a charming little bench that would be perfect as an end table beside your sofa, chair, or bedside. 




It measures approximately 13 3/4" D x 24 1/2" W x 22"H. 




It is appealing as a little table, but it has a great surprise! Having lived formally as a piano bench, this table comes with storage ~ just enough for books, cards, or whatever little treasures you need close by. I think it would work as a hidden station for charging iPhones and games too. Functional and pretty!





It is lined with some more of that leftover wallpaper and painted a crisp white with just a little distressing to add definition to the legs and edges.



For a smooth finish it has been rubbed with a layer of wax. I am really learning to love the feel of this finish. I let it harden overnight and then gave it another polish. The beauty of wax is that if it loses some of that lustre, it is easy to buff it back to beautiful with a soft cloth and a little elbow grease.

I think that this charmer would be ideal at the end of a little girl's bed too. I know in our house it would be full of important things like hair accessories, jewelry, and Playmobil in about 2 seconds. Just close the lid and it all disappears....

Monday 21 February 2011

A Rustic Window View

Rustic Window 
*SOLD*

What a relief to have my first piece sold! It was snapped up within a day ~ I am so excited to have it find a new home with Erin. I hope that she will enjoy it. 


I have another item to list. This one is not upcycled so much as just cleaned up. 




This is an old wood window with 8 little panes. The frame is a good size ~ about 24"H x 45"W.  I removed the old glass and the stubborn putty used to hold it in place then sanded the frame and did a few little repairs to the wood. I debated painting it, but I really like the way the layers of paint and wood show through. There is a layer of white and a peachy shade  and a bluish-green layer as well as the wood. It would make a lovely statement on a mantle or hanging on a wall with other pictures hanging within the individual frames. This is the kind of thing that has limitless possibilities when decorating.


Here you can see a few of the layers showing through a little better.


I am also beyond thrilled to have my first commission piece to start on. It is a little end table and I am really looking forward to getting started on it. 


Thanks to everyone for the positive feedback and patience as I am working on getting my little business up and running. I am so encouraged!

Friday 18 February 2011

Little Side Table

Quirky Little Side Table 
*SOLD*



So this is my first item for sale from hour25. This is a quirky little table that seems to have been created with stair railings for legs. I like the way the curves are showcased with the distressing  and stain. 


I painted it with a cotton white latex paint then gave it a serious sanding. I rubbed a light coat of dark walnut stain over the entire piece and buffed it to a nice finish with a layer of wax.




I found this funky little pull at Anthropologie (a constant source of inspiration) and thought it adds just the right amount of whimsy.




I lined the drawer with a scrap of fairly glam wallpaper that I had leftover from a recent home project.




Overall, I am pleased with the way that this turned out and hope that someone else feels the same way!

Thursday 17 February 2011

First Post!

So, I am getting started with a blog.

Coming up with the name for my little corner of the internets was a big challenge. It is not really that subtle, but like everyone with a young family and a house and a dog, I am busy and doing what I want to do with my time has to get shoved into the 25th hour of my day.

I have loved doing creative things for a long long time. I have always felt that I was given just enough talent artistically to only be frustrated that I am not better. One area that has always given me a lot of satisfaction is sewing and another is furniture refinishing. I have spent a lot of time sewing aprons and other fun things the past few years, but it feels like time for a change.

In a long-ago stage of life, pre-children and without a work visa, I moved with my husband down to south Texas. I discovered a very eccentric cabinet maker who loved the idea of someone who would work for basically nothing in exchange for learning about woodworking and tools and swearing like a true artist (him, not me). I found that I loved the refinishing aspect of the shop and enjoyed seeing the beauty restored to these old pieces. I also did a lot of painting and gluing and sweeping (not as glamourous).

After a couple of years in Texas, we returned to Canada and set up stakes in central Alberta. We bought an old 1960's bungalow in need of a lot of love and worked over the next 10 years to make it into our family home and painted and renovated every square inch of that house. I should point out that we also discovered that I should be the one wielding the paintbrush. Tim (my excellent and patient husband) grew accustomed to coming home to a wall removed or cabinets in the middle of a remodel and was happy with it all as long as he did not have to participate. We brought our two children home there and it was cozy and we loved it.

In 2009 we made the decision to move just outside of Calgary, Alberta to the 'burbs due to job changes for Tim. Just for something completely different we bought a brand new house which is nice in some ways, but comes with its own set of challenges. The big one being that everything is a blank slate. It has been difficult infusing some character into the typical builder finished home. An older home naturally brings some character with it, but a new house needs some help. I have spent the past year and half finding ways to do that and also rediscovering a real passion for upcycling some truly ugly stuff.

I am running out of room for a lot of my finds, but not out of ideas. I know I cannot be the only person who loves these little treasures, so I thought I would start to offer some of these extra pieces at a reasonable price. I am trying some new techniques and different types of paint and finishes. I am nervous to put this stuff out there, but have been encouraged by people close to me that this could be good.

I will post items here and on the local Kijiji site in the hopes that I will be able to find others who like this  character stuff too. I am also open to doing commission work as well. If you have a small piece that you would like reinvented, please contact me and we can talk about it!

Stayed tuned for my first item.