One Dollar Cabinet Redo

Don't you love it when you drive up to the local Salvation Army and they're just putting out a bunch of stuff on their sidewalk marked one dollar??? I tell you, for a cheapaholic like me, it was a thrill! I picked up lots of stuff. A TON. Filled my car up for less than ten dollars. 

So here she is, a sturdy all wood, not particleboard, cabinet with two tight doors and a neat little nook at the bottom. Yeah, she was dirty and had a bad paint job but her potential was so great that when my daughter, Insanely Creative Christy, came to visit and asked if I had any fun projects on tap, well, you know what happened next!

We love to use old book pages for our projects and this old, decrepit dictionary with brittle brittle pages was just the ticket. LOVE the old pen and ink illustrations in these old books. They are little works of art.

Christy painted the whole cabinet with the Country White latex I have in my stash. It goes perfectly with the vintage look of the book pages.

Here is the little nook with the start of the process. Mod Podge rocks! Tho we've learned to save money by using plain Elmer's school glue for the first phase then finish with 2 coats of Mod Podge for a nice sheen. Creative and CHEAP, that's us!

Here are the doors after their first coat of Mod Podge, drying overnight. Already they look so much better!

Ah, the details!! Christy finished the edges of the book page insets with jute twine, spray painted the fixtures with oil rubbed bronze and THEN added jute to the knobs for an extra kick of texture and interest. She sanded the the edges with The Welding Man's palm sander and VOILA! Beautiful! We don't call her Insanely Creative Christy for nothing!

Just look at how gorgeous Miss One Dollar Cabinet looks now. She's in the hallway bath for that extra bit of style and storage that every bathroom needs. We're still deciding whether to book page her side. What do you think?

I think Christy has given Pottery Barn a run for their money on this one, don't you? So creative and clever and CHEAP! This project is a win, win, win.

I'm hooking up to the fun parties on my sidebar. Please join me for some wonderful projects and a great group of bloggers. See you there!

Wish List...A Blue Buffet, Part 1.

I've been pining after a blue buffet for my dining room for awhile now. My "Blue" board on Pinterest is full of photos of awesome retro buffets redone in wonderful blue paint finishes. I Googled and sighed and pinned and kept planning what I would do with the perfect vintage CHEAP buffet when I found it.

http://europaintfinishes.blogspot.com/2011/01/rustic-blue-buffet.html

Love this color. Cuz it's blue and it looks old. I'm a serious blue freak, let me tell you. But then, look at my blog header. Blue! Ahem.

 http://floferrell.blogspot.com/p/furniture-for-sale.html

The color, it makes me happy. I used turquoise blue in my craft room and with a bit of tweaking I could totally make this color work in my dining room. Le sigh.

http://www.etsy.com/listing/80040680/boy-blue-buffet

 The Welding Man took a look at this photo and said, in his best husbandly manner, "That looks kind of cruddy." Yes, but it's blue and its vintage looking and is loaded with character! Like me! LOL!

And look what I found! A vintage 70s Mediterranean buffet for $20!!! 

The guys brought it home and I immediately started loading it up with all manner of decor items, cuz I am loving it. Yeah, that eclectic mix includes a genuine Poortvliet gnome (looks like The Welding Man), cobalt blue glassware, an Oriental teak chest,  retro wire fruit basket, galvanized tin lantern and an apothecary jar full of  orbs with family names. And a samurai sword. And a painted butterfly rock. And an earthenware vase. Ok, I'll stop now.

Hey, Pottery Barn I'm not.

It is beat up and exactly what I was looking for. Look at that retro detail! The shelves inside are solid and the doors are straight and tight. And soon, it will be BLUE. A nice denim blue with a touch of turquoise. And a bit of crackle (using Elmer's glue, of course), and some glazing, and sanding, and distressed edges. Maybe with a dark walnut top. Or not. And oil rubbed bronze fixtures (thanks to Krylon spray paint) and maybe a bit of  Mod Podged book pages on the inside because I'm just that excited about this project.

Does it need legs or not?  Still deciding.

Don't you love it when a plan comes together?

And one last comment by The Welding Man. "I like the way it looks right now!" Funny man, he knows I never leave anything well enough alone.

I'll post progress right here, so check back for part 2.