Category Archives: DIY

One of the presents I wanted and received for Christmas this year was a computerized sewing machine.  So, do I sew?  If you call the owl pillow I made in 6th grade sewing, then yes, I do sew.  Of course, with a new sewing machine and new supplies, I needed a sewing table,  I knew I did not want a cheap table made of particle board. I started searching online and I found a sewing table I really liked (pictured below).

 

What I didn’t like about it, was the nearly $600 price tag.  I started a search for something else, and in my search, I found an antique vanity for $35 on Craigslist.  They also had a $50 antique desk I bought as well, but that’s another post.

Anyway, with the vanity in hand, I needed to learn how to paint, distress and antique it to make it amazing. In my search, I discovered an awesome blog called, Oopsredone. Browsing the site,  I saw a few things she did in a turquoise paint called Holiday Cozumel Aqua that she later distressed and antiqued with Minwax stain.  I bought a gallon of the paint and started doing some ladder back chairs which will be featured in a future post. However, after painting the chairs, and noticing all the details on the vanity, I wanted to make things easier.

Armed with my paint chip, I found a very close match in a Rust-Oleum Painter’s Touch 2X  satin spray paint in a color called Lagoon.  I bought the Rust-Oleum Painter Touch Ultra Cover 2X Gray spray primer as well and drove home to get to work sanding.  I fixed one flaw in the top with Elmer’s Carpenters Max wood fill and then sanded, but since I wanted a distressed look, I decided to keep the edges the way they were.

 

I primed, sanded with a fine sandpaper and spray painted the vanity. After that dried, I sanded lightly with a fine sandpaper and sprayed on another coat of paint. Next, I used Rust-Oleum Transformations, Decorative Glaze in Java Brown.  I had tried the Minwax stain method on the ladder back chairs, but it was harder to work with, and had a tendency to keep the piece sticky for some time.

I am so glad I tried the glaze, I absolutely love the results and the ease of use.  You just apply it and then wipe it off using varying pressure.  It is specially formulated to give you more time to work, so you can get the results you desire.  After that, I applied 2 coats of Minwax Polyurethane Satin to protect the finish.  Finally, I added some new hardware, and decoupaged some fun paper in the drawers and on the inside of the cabinet and door back.

The pictures do not do the piece justice. and I will take some more once I get it set up inside, I have some little things I am going to show you in another post about how I am organizing everything.  Anyway, If you have any questions on how I did anything. just ask in the comments.