Before and After PLUS Tutorial : Bombe style Chest of Drawers in Modern Masters Metallics

When the client approached me with her ideas for a metallic stripe on this super classic piece, it was the polar opposite of what I had anticipated. I was thinking of maybe doing Annie Sloan Chalk Paint in Louis Blue or Paris Grey, with some Old White accents on the carved side details and feet, light distressing... So we did a lot of searching online to see examples that might help me to realize the vision she had her heart set on! Here's the enormous complete transformation!

Originally the vision was for a more subtle stripe, so we mocked up some sample boards with Annie Sloan Paloma blended with a few metallic colors and thought that would serve as the base, with the pure metallic color on top. However, the client really gravitated toward seeing more of the metallic luster, so we ended up electing to put Warm Silver and Pewter next to one another. Read on to see the rest of the tutorial!

Before and After : Mid Century Modern Dresser in General Finishes Milk Paint

I picked up this fantastic Mid Century Modern or MCM piece from the lovely Michele at Barn Dance Vintage. I wasn't quite sure how to get started, so I walked by it for several weeks before making up my mind. Once I felt the smooth and fabulous texture of the General Finishes Milk Paint, however, I decided to go with that, in a high contrast to really show off the gorgeous curves on the front of the dresser. I selected Queenstown Gray and Snow White for a chic and classic finish. (Note: I ended up doing several coats of the white. This may be because I hand-paint and do not use a sprayer, but I wanted it to be totally opaque and not show as much variation. I still enjoyed the smooth feel of the paint, but probably used more coats than I would have with a chalk paint.. but that's an entirely different, much thicker product!

And a close up of the fantastic hardware! Mid Century Modern pieces often have these cute and quirky details that are just amazing and striking. I think the bold color contrast really lets them stand out!

I have another MCM dresser in inventory, and once I get through a large custom order, I will get going on that one! I'm hoping to stain the drawers and the feet, and paint the body. We'll see what we find when we sand down the drawer faces!!

Before and After : Dixie Dresser in General Finishes Milk Paint

This lovely was my first experiment with milk paints! The dresser has gorgeous knotted pine exterior facings and a subtle nautical vibe with a carved seashell detail and curved side edges along the drawers. I wanted to highlight these without being too literal and thought I would try the chippy texture of a milk paint! I selected General Finishes Basil and Persian Blue - then realized quickly that this was nothing like the milk paint I had anticipated. It instead was a beautifully saturated, smooth and gorgeous color with all-over adhesion (We had also lightly sanded the entire surface). I probably would have done two to three coats to see the full expression of the color, but Basil was a little more of a light sage than I had expected, so I switched to layer it with Persian Blue. This brought out a gorgeous almost sea foam or sea glass color that started to speak to me.

I wanted to also embrace the beautiful vintage texture and knotted pine on this piece, so I did a light all-over distressing, as well as a focused distressing at the natural wear points on edges, drawer sides, feet, etc. The texture was exceptionally smooth and I LOVED the driftwood-inspired finish.

Here's one more photo of it from the shop. Again, these colors have subtle nuances that pick up on different qualities of lighting and the rest of your decor and design. I adore the way this piece turned out, and am sure I'll experiment with these colors again! Next time I want to try a chippy paint, though, I'll try Miss Mustard Seed! Maybe Santa will bring me some :)

Antique Chest on Chest in Layered Paint Finish

I apparently managed to not get a "Before" photo of this antique chest on chest style dresser / chest of drawers. But I really liked the way it turned out, using layers of Annie Sloan Chalk Paint in a Florence blend, Primer Red, and Aubusson to accent the original shape and style. I'm always a little nervous when I try something different, but often end up loving the results! This is one of those times - the carved details on the side and the beautiful antique texture of this piece really pop now; what do you think? Most of the layering you see below is from the primary paint application; however, I also did distress back gently at the edges to ensure I captured the natural wear points as well.

This also shows you how much lighting can impact the appearance of these paints. They are so nuanced and beautiful that the light/shadow balance and other colors in the room can really pick up on different details and look like a virtually different piece! I think of them as chameleons - they can blend into all sorts of spaces and still look natural and beautiful.