I hope you’ll join me on my never-ending search for beautiful pieces, with history, for your home. Find my curated treasures, in Booth #154, at the Antique Trove, in Roseville, CA. ~ Barbara
Painting class update for my local friends, I’m happy to report that this weekend’s furniture painting classes are full! I had a lot of fun last Saturday, with a great group of women and am not quite as nervous about what’s ahead. I’ve gone ahead and scheduled classes for next month. February 16th will be the date for free, introductory classes! Join us for the Maison Blanche chalk-based furniture painting class, at 10, or the Miss Mustard Seed Milk Pint class, at 2 p.m. On February 23rd, sign up for a Maison Blanche 3-Hour class, where you can bring in…
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Way back in 2012, I painted this old girl with ASCP, in Paris Gray. As you see, I left the top in its natural state. I was searching for a Nordic look, but think it just turned out boring. So, in my “sell it, or re-paint it” mode, I came up with this new version. Looks a little perkier, don’t you think? The paint classes last Saturday went really well and this weekend’s classes are full! Mr. Wonderful has a three-car garage with room for just one car! He has tons of furniture projects, but his day job and season…
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Hello there! I thought I had better check in before you forgot all about me and Mr. Wonderful! I’m getting ready for two painting classes this Saturday. Since one of them will be covering milk paint, I thought it would be nice to show all of the colors, well at least eight of them, in the Miss Mustard Seed line. I’ve also brought in some painting essentials, every furniture painter should have on hand. Thank goodness I finally found a resource for the round waxing brushes! They arrive tomorrow, and I can’t wait! I will be selling those online so…
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Hello there!, I can’t think of anything better to do on a cold, wintry day, than to paint furniture! I do a lot of that, these days! In fact, I recently told a friend that I think we could have world peace, if everyone had a paint brush in their hand. Don’t you think? The last few days, I’ve been trying my hand at some new techniques. I have a motto, “If it doesn’t sell, re-paint it!” Such is the case with this little table. I use the stencil for the lower shelf and hand-painted the dots all by myself!…
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Hello there! I know that when its this cold here (a low of 29 degrees), that its really cold, where some of you are! If you’re a furniture painter, I just wanted to remind you that chalk-based paint, like Maison Blanche, will be compromised by freezing temperatures. In the past, I’ve always kept paint in the garage. Makes sense, eh? While that probably isn’t a problem in California, it might be, in your neck of the woods! Also, be sure to close your cans completely, after each use. I use a rubber mallet, to close my cans and prevent the…
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Well, the pressing question today is, will we call this year twenty-thirteen or two-thousand-thirteen? Enquiring minds want to know! I finished resurfacing the top of this antique farm table over the weekend, thanks to my friends at Min-Wax and hours of sanding with my new power sander! It was the first time I had used the Min-Wax Polyacrylic product. While the product was easy to work with and will provide good protection for the table, I’ve grown to love a simple wax finish. I guess I could always sand off the Polyacrylic, but I’ll probably just leave well enough alone!…
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Welcome to the first day, of a new year! If you’re like me, you have plenty of projects to keep you busy, well into 2014! I see lots of furniture painting in my future! I didn’t even need to go see my psychic, to figure that out! I’ve extended my free shipping promotion, on Miss Mustard Seed’s Milk Paint, through january 1st, in case you’ve been meaning to place an order. It’s been quite a year and I have so much to be thankful for. At the top of the list is my faith, my Mr. Wonderful, my family and…
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See up there? Yes, that’s it! Up there, at the top of my blog, see where it says “Workshop & Classes”? Well, if you click on that, it will take you to the class calendar. There are now 4, count ’em, four classes scheduled for January 12th and 19th. They’re free, introductory classes, on both Miss Mustard Seed’s Milk Paint and Maison Blanche’s “La Craie” (frenchy for “the chalk”). You’ll find all the details and learn that you’ll have to register to attend. Register at the shop or by calling 916/514-5272, leaving your name and number. The La Craie class,…
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Hello, sweetness!, Wow! Two days in a row! Teacher, I’m here! This is what happens when I’m taking a va-cay from the shop! Of course, my vacation includes getting the farm table top refinished. (Oh boy!) That was my goal today. I knew I had a beauty on my hands, (thank you, dear Craig!) when I found this 6 foot long farm table, that was solid wood. No veneer! Hate that veneer stuff! It should be outlawed. I remember when the farm table’s former owner said “all you need is some varnish”, (to cover the missing varnished areas), I thought,…
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In case you heard that I ran off with Rudolph or Frosty, or one of those guys, the rumor is not true! I’ve just been taking a bit of time off for good behavior. The fact of the matter is that I have my first Maison Blanche paint class scheduled for Saturday, January 12th at the shop! The free class will begin at 10 AM and it will cover the basics. The “do’s and don’ts”. And just how easy painting a piece of furniture can be! All future classes scheduled, can be found at the “Workshop & Classes” link, at…
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