TayRose Design interior design designer Archives - Page 2 of 5

Shareathon Cutting Edge Stencil Project – Sofa Table and Pillow

I again was invited by Hometalk.com to participate in a Shareathon project featuring Cutting Edge Stencils on any item of my choosing and sharing the process. I haven’t used stencils very often and thought this would be the perfect opportunity to try them on a larger scale.

I went to the Cutting Edge website, www.CuttingEdgeStencils.com and tried to choose just one of their beautiful array of various stencils for my project. I had just been to an auction and purchased a sofa table that I thought would be a great candidate for stencils. I chose the “French Poem” allover stencil, from the website because I really liked the writing style and since I don’t speak French, the mystery of what the words say….

While waiting for the stencil to arrive, I decided that I would prep my table so it will be ready for stenciling. The sofa table had a factory finish, meaning it had a shiny finish over the paint that had to be sanded down before applying any new paint so the paint had something to grab onto.

After sanding, I wiped off all of the sanding dust and wiped down all of the surfaces of the table so it had a clean, dust free surface to start painting. Cutting Edge Stencils recommends acrylic or latex paint which I would have used if I painted my table with a latex paint, but I chose to try the mineral based paint again from Country Chic Paints in the color Cheesecake, for that color is a warm cream and goes with everything. I wanted a contrast color for accents and for the legs, so deciding the 2nd paint color was between Dark Roast and Licorice….dark brown or black. I chose the dark brown color, mainly because again, it would have a better chance of blending in with most decor, and I also wanted to add some metallic highlights, and an antique gold would best suit a dark brown color.

So with paint colors in hand and after the top of the table was sanded down, I used a sanding block to rough up the surface on the legs and apron of the table. One of the features that I liked about this table was that the ends flip up or down, and transforms from a really long table to a shorter version depending on the space allowed. Another feature is that there is a drawer, which is very nice to have to store items for buffet, desk or playing cards .

I painted 2 coats of paint on the top and on the bottom shelf and let it dry. I used a roller for the 2nd coat to smooth the layer, although the grain in the wood still showed the pattern, at least the paint was smoother without brush marks for an easier surface to stencil on. I also painted the legs and the border in the contrast color with 2 coats as well. The stencil arrived and there was a nice instructional sheet included along with a mini foam roller with several replacements and a small stencil brush. The instructional included everything I needed from materials, getting started, stenciling techniques, tips and tricks and finally, cleaning and storage of the stencil. Cutting Edge Stencils also have wonderful tutorials on their website that I referred to before I got started so a lot of the uncertainty I felt melted away.

The stencil I received was an allover stencil, which means it is made for large surfaces like a wall. Since the top and shelf of my table were on a much smaller scale, I ended up taping the stencil on the ends to stabilize the stencil so it wouldn’t move as I painted.

The table was also longer than the stencil, so I needed to re-lay the stencil after the paint had dried on the first half and line it up with the lettering to continue the poem. Since the stencil is clear, it was easy to line up lettering as the pattern continued on the surface. I started to use the small stencil brush using a small amount of paint on the brush, then dabbing on a paper towel before dabbing on table surface, and this process worked fine, but it was going very slowly, so I opted to try the foam roller instead.

What a difference! With the roller, painting went super fast and very easy. I still rolled off a lot of the paint on a paper towel before applying on stencil and was careful how I rolled so that the roller didn’t catch on the letter edges and pull them up while rolling. The chalk based paint seemed to work fine, no problems at all with the stencil. I wanted to also try the stencil on fabric, so after finishing the table, and laying the stencil on the pillow cover to see how I wanted to line it up, I used windex to spray on the dried paint and wiped clean with paper towels and rags. Easy peasy.

After all the surfaces were painted and dry, I applied some antique gold colored rub n’ buff metallic to the legs and a little on the borders to bring out some highlights on the curves and brighten up the brown a bit.

After applying the metallic, I used the natural wax offered by the same company as the paint and brushed on all the surfaces and buffed off the excess until all the stickiness was gone.

I found a wallpaper roll I had onhand that I used to line the drawer, so a bit of a surprise when opened, and the colors seemed to work well with the paint colors.

As I mentioned earlier, I wanted to try the stencil on fabric, so I used a solid velveteen pillow I had onhand, and I first removed the pillow insert, then laid the stencil down on top of the fabric and lined up the lettering as straight as I could, then taped down the edges of the stencil to the floor to keep it steady as I painted. I was able to use the foam roller in the same application procedure on the fabric as I did on the table top and shelf and it worked like a charm! I even used the same chalk based paint that I used on the table, for I read that the paint could be used on fabric as well. I decided to flip and have the cream stencil words on a brown surface to show a different look with the lettering, plus I did have the pillow on hand, so no added cost there!

When staging the photo with the table, I used a table lamp that had originally been brass and I painted it in the same color as the table with the chalk based paint, and I also took the lampshade and stripped off the fabric and painted the wire in cheesecake color as well. I found at Hobby Lobby back in the dollhouse furniture area, a small wood dresser that I painted in same paints as the sofa table to pull in the colors as your eye went to the top of the lamp, and to have a little unexpected finial idea.

I love how the stencil poem gives enough of a pattern but doesn’t feel too busy and can be decorated easily. (Of course, when my husband takes such beautiful pictures, everything looks awesome. See more of his wonderful work at eRegalStudio.com. )

Cutting Edge Stencils recommend storing the larger stencils flat and under a bed as an option, so that is where my stencil is heading….but not for long for I’m sure I will have more projects in the future that will include this stencil!

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Wallpaper Challenge…at least for me

I had an invitation asking if I would be interested in a new program called “Share-A-thon”. They were inviting a few contributors to try out a product and then “share” the step by step project to inspire others. When I heard it was wallpaper I was intrigued, for I have never used wallpaper before except to line drawers, so I thought this would be something new to try. We were sent a link to the product, who in this case is Walls Republic found here, http://www.wallsrepublic.com/ that have beautiful online candy for the eye, pages and dreamy pages of wallpaper samples (plus you can get up to 5 sample swatches for free). We had a list of samples to choose from and I chose a paper called Adeline in the color, Duck Egg #97411.

These papers use a newer, “paste to the wall” technology, where you paste the item you are attaching the paper to without having to paste the paper first. The papers are hung dry, so no soaking before hand…a nice one less step. Another awesome feature, is that the papers are dry strippable, which means they are easy to remove by just peeling back a corner and the whole paper comes off in one sheet….no more stripper and heaters and scrapers…just peel and go! Do you know how many times I have wanted to try wallpaper somewhere but because of the hassle to remove it I didn’t? This feature alone has me going room by room looking at the walls much differently now….

I started thinking about how I would use the wallpaper. I knew that I wanted to make something that would show what to do with remnants after papering a wall. I decided on 3 items: a chair, a hanging lamp and a bi-fold door. I figured that these items could be used in a bedroom, a large bath or guest room.

3 before items for wallpaper project

After 3 pieces wallpapered with Walls Republic wallpaper

For the chair, I needed to shellac the chair first so that the tannin pigment of the stain would not bleed through the chalky mineral paint I planned to use. I found 2 colors that matched very closely to the colors in the wallpaper from Country Chic paints- Cheesecake, and Elegance. I applied the blue Elegance in various areas so it would show through the creamy cheesecake color when I distressed it.

After painting on the blue Elegance color, I applied 2 coats of the cream Cheesecake color. After drying for a day, I did some distressing and more blending of the 2 colors as per product directions…Country Chic has great tutorials on their website, which is so helpful for us diy’s. For the finishing coat on the painted areas of the chair, I used the Country Chic natural wax brushed on lightly then buffed off with a clean cloth for a smooth finish

Since the chair seat was wood, I thought it would be perfect to cover with the wallpaper. Mind you, this chair is meant to be an “accent” chair, not really used to sit on, but as a holder of sorts which you will see how further in the post. Also, the thick spindles along the back of the chair would be a great place to try some appliques with the wallpaper as well as an outlined curve on the top of the chair. I pried up the chair seat and painted the seat with a latex primer/paint mixture in white that I already had on hand. I painted 2 coats just to be sure no bleeding after the shellac layer and 2 primer/paint coats.

Once thoroughly dried as per can instructions, I unrolled some of the wallpaper out and laid the wooden seat on the paper and cut out leaving about and inch width around the perimeter to turn under the seat. I set the seat up on some risers ( I used all the same size paint cans) and proceeded to lightly bend the paper down along the edges so I can see the outline of the seat and know where the paper is supposed to lie. I picked up the recommended paste that Walls Republic had suggested from Lowes, the Roman brand adhesive and I brushed a liberal amount to the top of the wooden chair seat. Trying not to get any paste/glue on the top of the paper was the biggest challenge, then proceeded to lay my cut out piece on the seat starting from the top and laying down, pushing gently the air bubbles to the sides as I lowered the paper all the way down. Then I took my wallpaper brush I picked up at the Dollar Store, yeah..and smoothed more bubbles out to the sides for smooth surface. If I did happen to get a bit of glue on the paper, I tried to wipe off quickly with a damp rag.

Once the paper was dry, I really let it set overnight, I decided the best way to secure the ends under the chair seat was to hot glue along the underneath edge and it worked fine. For a little more added protection, I brushed a coat of Modge Podge to the surface and it dried clear and didn’t affect the paper, which was a great relief! (I did sample the Modge Podge on a small scrap to be sure it didn’t discolor the paper before actually applying to wood seat)

I decided rather than use the same nail heads which most of them were bent anyway, I had some large headed silver nail heads that my husband pre-drilled small holes around the perimeter of the seat and then hammered in the tacks. I like how the little bit of shimmer in the paper picks up the shimmer of the metal nail heads.

There is a part of the chair at the top that is outlined and I thought this would be a great place for an accent of this pretty paper. I made a pattern of the area on tracing paper and cut the wallpaper and applied it in the same way…paste, smooth out bubbles, clean off glue, modge podge. For the spindles cut “appliques” from the wallpaper and pasted them to the front of the spindles, smoothing the paper out with my fingers and wiping up the excess glue. When dry, I trimmed off the edges that stuck out with a razor blade.

Here are a couple of ways to use this trio of wallpapered items- in the bath:

Also in a bedroom, to catch tossed off clothing…

You could also use the bi-fold doors hinged together as a headboard for a twin or queen sized bed.

All in all, I learned more about wallpaper than when I started this project, and working with this new type of wallpaper, I think I was spoiled. W

hat turned out as a challenge ended up easier than I thought….I have a feeling that as I look around the house, many things just may end up with a wallpaper accent somehow…. try it, you’ll like it!!

To read about the other posts on wallpaper, find them here: http://tayrose.com/2015/04/16/taking-a-vintage-pendant-and-adding-wallpaper-for-a-fresh-look/ http://tayrose.com/2015/04/16/how-to-wallpaper-a-bi-fold-door-to-use-as-a-headboard-or-screen/

http://www.eregalstudio.com/ credit for finished group photo of wallpapered items.

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Taking a vintage pendant lamp and adding wallpaper for a fresh look

I was given the opportunity to try a new wallpaper product from Walls Republic www.wallsrepublic.com. These particular wallpapers use a newer technology of pasting the object surface rather than pasting the paper first, cool, right? I have never really used wallpaper before besides lining drawers, so I was willing to challenge myself, and pick items that could be papered using the leftovers rather than tackle a”wall” to paper. Walls Republic have mega choices for paper in every style and color you can think of, so when you go to the site have fun! Plus they ship out up to 5 samples free, so you can see the paper in person before ordering…a nice perk!

Supplies I used for this project:

Wallpaper roll from Walls Republic pattern Adeline color Duck Egg #97411

Wallpaper adhesive paste brand Romans from Lowes (brand recommended from Walls Republic)

Wide brush or roller for pasting the adhesive

Wallpaper brush to smooth out air bubbles

scissors

ribbon and hot glue gun to attach

paint for painting inside of shade *optional, my shade just needed some freshening up

I had this vintage pendant light in my stash for years and once the wallpaper arrived, I knew this shade would be one of the perfect candidates for this project. You see, I had 3 items in mind…

lamp before wallpapering

Oh boy, this lamp was not the prettiest flower in the pot, but I could see the potential. I disassembled the lamp so I could paint the parts later, and concentrated on the shade since that was what I was going to wallpaper. I first removed the old fabric trim and since there were some age discolorations on the inside of the shade, I painted the inside. At first, I used a spray primer paint, but didn’t like how the paint was dripping, so I smoothed out the drips while still wet and let it dry before painting over with the same color paint I was going to use on the metal parts, which is from Country Chic https://www.countrychicpaint.com/paints in the Cheesecake color that matched the wallpaper background really well.

spray paint inside lampshade

Painting the inside with the mineral chalk based paint worked much better than the spray paint…just want to spare you the mis-step of using spray paint for this project. I always live and learn many times it seems, and usually from this, a much better way to do something presents itself…thank goodness! HA! While my paint brush was still wet, I went ahead and painted all the metal parts their first of several coats.

Cheesecake mineral chalkbased paint

I laid the shade on the backside of the wallpaper that I unrolled a bit, and began to roll the shade holding on to the paper end so I could determine how much paper I would need to cover the shade. I was sure to leave about an inch overlap at the end. Walls Republic suggests that ends meet rather than overlap on walls, and that makes sense, but since I was doing a lampshade, I wanted a bit of an overlay. I cut off the piece and lined up the straight edge of the paper to the edge of the lampshade. On the other side of the shade will be the extra width of the paper that will be trimmed off after I pasted down the paper. I got my large paint brush and started brushing the paste onto the shade…remember, you don’t need to apply paste to the paper but right to the surface of the object. Try to avoid getting the paste on the surface of the paper, if I did, I used a damp soft cloth to remove….

laying lampshade on wallpaper to cut to fit

I continued to paste and slowly roll the shade onto the wallpaper, smoothing gently as it rolled until the whole shade was pasted and the wallpaper was in place. Then I went back over the paper with one hand inside the shade following my other hand on the surface using the wallpaper brush to smooth out the air bubbles to the sides until the surface was smooth. Having my hand inside ensured that I didn’t press too hard on the shade and dent it. I let the shade dry before I trimmed off the excess paper on the end. Walls Republic have a nice hanging instructional that is included with the wallpaper complete with drawings which always helps us visual people!!

wallpaper on lampshade

I knew I was going to add ribbon trim to the ends of the shade, so if my cut line wasn’t exactly straight that was ok because it was going to be covered by the ribbon. I was so lucky to find only 2 ribbons that came close to matching the colors in the wallpaper and I grabbed them…plus, at Hobby Lobby, they were on sale for 50% off…can I hear an Amen!! I used the hot glue gun to attach both ribbons, first the larger ribbon in blue, then the thinner cream ribbon.

hot glue ribbon to lampshade

I reassembled all the lamp parts, after I used Windex to clean off the glass prisms, then added the shade. One last step I did was to take the creamy color paint and dry brushed the chain. I didn’t want to completely cover the whole chain with the paint, for I like to see the metal coming through. You could also make a chain cover in a color matching the fabric would be pretty too.

All finished and ready to hang..I love how it seems to breathe a fresh breath- like putting on a new floral dress after wearing long underwear for months…HA! Can you tell I live in Upstate NY?

Check out my other posts showing how I used the same wallpaper to accent a chair and and bi-fold door so they would all coordinate together.

Seeing vintage in fresh new ways is always inspiring and keeps perfectly good treasures out of the dumps!

To view the other wallpaper inspired items using Walls Republic wallpaper you can find them here: http://tayrose.com/2015/04/16/how-to-wallpaper-a-bi-fold-door-to-use-as-a-headboard-or-screen/ http://tayrose.com/2015/04/16/wallpaper-challenge-at-least-for-me/

http://www.eregalstudio.com/ credit for finished group photos on my wallpaper project with the chair, bi-fold and pendant light.

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Sea Shells far from the Sea Shore…..A mirrored view

One can’t say enough about shells….their shapes; colors; and sizes from a tiny spiral to a large conch- shells have been a part of decorating through out history. Shells add beauty whether displayed in a dish, or on a shelf or, in my case, adhered to an old mirror.

I have 2 examples of mirrors and a memento box that I have made that changed their entire look just by adding shells. On one mirror, I painted the shells, and the other, I left the shells in their original colors. Both I feel have done shells proud…

The first mirror I had a large oval gold-painted mirror that had some rose bas relief along the rim but only in a few places so I wanted to fill in the whole rim to make the mirror more sculptural looking.

Whenever I see shells at garage sales, or thrift stores, I try to scoop them up for I know they will be used one day, in one way or another. Or I just admire them in a bowl or jar- reminded of the waves from whence they came.

I used a putty type product called Laticrete to apply the shells to the rim, working in small sections so the adhesive wouldn’t dry out too fast.

It’s waterproof and used to set tiles. It has a creamy consistency and I used a putty knife to apply then set the shells into the soft putty.

After the putty was dry, I decided to paint the mirror plus the shells in white, with several coats, using up some white paint I had leftover in my basement.

I thought white was an appropriate color, where I could envision the mirror in a beach house at the Cape, or in a contemporary loft in the City, or cozied up Shabby Chic style in a vintage cottage. I love the mirror in white, it’s so sculptural with the shells, and you really have to walk up and look closely to verify they are shells, which makes it all the more interesting.

For the 2nd mirror, I decided to keep the shells in their original forms, and I again used putty to attach the shells, but I added some black acrylic paint to the putty to darken it to a gray color so the shells would stand out more. I also painted the inside rim in black so the shell color would pop, and give a nice contrast rim around the mirror.

I worked with the putty in small sections at a time, fitting shells and adding tiny shells into small openings, filling as many gaps as I could find with more shells. This mirror was in pretty bad shape, so by covering it with the shells, the life was saved with a little hint of it’s history at the top. The mirror too is timeless, and really fits into any style of decor be it eclectic to contemporary. It has found a spot in my bathroom, and if I tire of it there, it will find another wall in the house to be appreciated.

(And yes, the mirror is hanging on some bead board that I painted the wall color and then hand painted the seams of the bead board slats in gray….call me crazy, but for this accent wall in the bath, it works really well and didn’t take all that long to do.)

The last piece I did with shells, but certainly not the last piece I will use shells on, was a memento box I had covered in shells as a card box for my wedding. This box now holds trinkets and memories and the shells encircled a favorite photo of ours on the lid.

Shells will always be a part of my home decor, and though I may not live by the seashore, the sea is remembered by the tiny treasures found on beaches and in thrift stores that share their natural beauty… off shore.

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“Rev” Up your Home Decor with Car Parts!

Taylor

21 Feb 2015

Art, Custom Design, DIY, Interior Design Room, Repurposed

I have been known to find “art” in the most unexpected places. I was designing a showcase home, to show how furniture and wall art can be made by using everyday items; thrown out items; stuff that was found at the curb; or in thrift stores. I didn’t have far to go for this design plan….

Have you ever been to a Pick & Pull? Oh boy, first be sure you wear your grungy clothes and shoes, bring gloves and I didn’t know this, but be aware that prices are not cheap for many items. That was my biggest surprise.

I wandered up and down aisles of discarded cars, smashed up cars, and parts laying on the ground. It was eery walking around all of those car shells…. what stories they would tell-not good ones in most cases.

As I turned a corner, I saw this awesome sculptural piece of metal just sitting in the middle of the aisle like it was saying, “hey, here I am, just what you were looking for!” I had no idea what part of the car it was, it was heavy, but I could still carry it, (oh, btw, you have to carry everything out yourself!) The piece had beautiful rusty patina, and I thought it would serve perfectly as a side table base. Now, if I could just carry it to the check out counter!

I also found I think it was called an air cleaner that was metal, and I thought I could turn that piece into a wall art design. So, I dragged my pieces to the checkout counter, had a bit of a sticker shock (I was very naive to costs, I thought being a junkyard it would be pennies to the pound or something similar…..oh no, more like $’s to the pound) Anyway, I was happy with my purchases and now to get to work on creating my vision.

I started with the air cleaner. I don’t have pictures of the process, but I can briefly tell you about it. The air cleaner was black already, but I cleaned it up and spray painted it black again just to keep any rust at bay. I found a round piece of mirror at the Dollar Store and glued it under the opening that was in the middle, then positioned it on the wall with the “arm” facing up so I could put some dried floral, then hung a tassel to complete the look. This piece was for my client’s entry where we hung metal siding on one indented wall, then had a bench with custom pillows. He was thrilled- he loved the whole industrial look especially since being a race car driver, having car related “art” was what he had hoped for.

I also used some large coiled springs from his garage to place on both sides of the fireplace. I inserted large glass vases to hold floral sprigs.

For the side table, I found out that I had picked up a crankshaft from a car, and by turning it on end vertically, I was able to put a round glass top and bolt it on to a wooden round disk, found at Home Depot that I stained a dark brown. I had cleaned up the crankshaft removing the grease, then sprayed it with a satin clear coat spray. Super simple, and so interesting looking. Being a small table, this table fits just about anywhere. I love how something so industrial works inside a home. This table would be perfect for a Man Cave, or set as I have it, in a corner next to a chair.

Pick and pull parts from lots of sources to create unique items, and “Rev” up your decor!
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