Happy New Year and One Week!

Happy 2014! I hope your year is getting off to a fabulous start and I hope everyone had a wonderful December holiday. It seems that the late Thanksgiving made it a challenge for all. It was frantic for me since this was the first time in about 20 years that I worked a "day" job and didn't take Christmas week off or have down time to get all the extra Christmas cheer completed! And my Mom treated me and my sister to a long weekend in NYC! It was awesome! I was hoping to post about it last month but would it be weird if I post in a few weeks? So of course, my apologies for no Christmas cards and no baked goodies. I'll do better next year!
I know my blogging is still taking a back seat but I'm finding that working full time and doing some weekend "Painting the Town" and "Savard Studios" Etsy stuff is about all I have time for. I do think I will find a better balance in the coming months so please just bear with me. I truly love all of my jobs and I would love to even post about my new career in medical devices. Would you be interested in hearing about that?
I'm still slowly working on my master bedroom makeover. I had to change direction a bit but I'll post on that later.
I've been working on some painting jobs but nothing too extravagant. I do have a few fun painting projects coming up and will be sure to post those too. I have some furniture makeovers as well and am hoping to do a showcase of furniture before and afters. This piece sold on Etsy and it is in process.

 It's a simple makeover but it will be gorgeous! I was tempted to keep it for myself!
This dresser is also in process.

I'm planning to do a simple white with cut glass knobs.

I found these knobs on Etsy. I'll leave the option to the buyer to have it distressed for a cottage look or to polyurethane it with a high gloss finish for a laquered, hollywood regency look. Which style would you choose?
I really miss blogging and interacting! Please nudge me occasionally to remind me someone is anxiously awaiting a new post! Stay warm!!

French Side Table and Whimsical Coat Rack

A couple of other small, upcycled projects completed recently, include an awesome side table perfect for that Paris style apartment and an old, solid wood cabinet door upcycled into a fun coat and hat rack with an inspirational Dr.Suess quote. I also did the top of an old Duncan Phyffe drum style table. I painted it to look like my favorite distressed clockface. I completed that for "Remember Me Antiques". Scott and Dara have a great little antique shop in Monroe, NC. You can check out their stuff and follow them on Facebook at www.facebook.com/remembermeantiques . Both side tables were transformed using the same paint colors. Typical preparation included rough sanding, wiping down dust and priming. There are some new products out there that allow you to skip these steps. I'm still old school on this process, but will be doing some pieces in the near future using these products. If you are a DIYer, make sure you follow by email so you don't miss this. My basecoat is a satin finish, antique white. A little creamy and warm, not bright and harsh. For the clock table, I printed out my Roman numerals on the computer in the size that I felt was appropriate, using Times Roman font.

Clockface table in process

I also used the font Harrington for the word Paris to go on the side table. Using carbon paper, I duplicated the letter/numbers onto each table. Carbon paper is  my new favorite way to duplicate text. It works very well. The scrolling around the border of the Paris table was hand painted, but you could also use carbon paper for that also. Below picture is before distressing and glazing. Next, I always love to add a little distressing! A firm sanding block with a touch here and there. Lovely French country, cottage chic style.

Paris table before distressing and glazing

Once I am satsfied with the distressing, I rub on a chocolate glaze. It further tones the white and makes the text and distressing a little more subtle. I finish it off with a 50/50 blend of my favoirite flat and satin varnish. You can see the dramatic change below after the distressing and glazing on both tables. I hope these transformations inspire you to transform and old piece of furniture you have or allow me to breathe new life into it for you.

Completed Paris table!

Clockface table after

Clockface table after



The coat and hat rack was a similar process, except that the old door had been used as a crackled finish sample for a client and it needed to be freshened up. It had been previously prepped and painted so I just added a fresh basecoat in a canvas white color. My crackled texture was still visible which was perfect. I envisioned a little more drama and color, so I did a soft wash of a champagne metallic glaze and a very soft wash of an aqua glaze. Overall, still going for creamy neutral, but with a pop of fun color! I found an inspiring Dr. Suess quote that I wanted to wrap the border on the hat rack. "Today is your day! Your mountain is waiting, so get on your way.." I found a whimsical font called Viner Hand that I printed in the appropriate size. Using my new favorite carbon paper, I traced the quote around the border.

Tracing text onto coat rack

Text imprint on coat rack

Once the I had the border imprint, I used a sheer champagne metallic wash with some chocolate glaze to fill in my text. The effect is slightly dimensional.

I also added the metallic on the higher points of the cabinet detail. Once dry, I polyurethaned the coat and hat rack. I found some slightly whimsical hardware. I tweeked the color of the hanger hardware by adding a little of my champagne metallic. I measured and lined up the coat hangers, drilled my holes and installed. I also added two D ring hooks on the back for hanging. I though it turned out great! You can also see these items in my online shop. http://www.etsy.com/shop/savardstudios .  Thanks so much for looking!