Swedish basket makeover with tutorial

I wanted to buy some Byholma trunk baskets for our family room but Ikea has discontinued the weathered ones I wanted...they added a new basket trunk but it is a dark redish brown color which was not what I wanted...I wanted that old swedish basket look...

I started to search for other options and I found some gorgeous pieces at Target online...but they were very pricey..$260-$400 range....much more than I wanted to spend...so I bought two of the brown baskets from Ikea $99.00 and attempted to make them into what I had envisioned.

 my result is more grey than my inspiration but I love how they turned out, it's hard to believe they are even the same baskets

 Here is the before of how the GABBIG basket looks

I started this paint process with minwax water based stain in white wash pickling...I generously painted it all over the basket and put it in the sun to dry...

After the white layer I applied a dry brush layer in this custom taupe shade...by dry brush I mean I dipped the brush in to the paint and removed the excess stain on the side of the can to have very little transfer to the basket...I then let that dry...

nest I added some watered how white chalk paint at a ratio 8 parts water to 1 part paint...a very watery mix...I wanted that flat white wash...I brushed it on in a very sloppy generous manner..letting it drip is fine....after it dried I then flicked on drops of this watered paint with a big old brush...then dry brushed it to blend it in...

here is a good close up of another basket I worked on...the more you do the better...

 After this I used some black paint on a dry brush and very sparingly dry brushed on black very faintly to just accent and to create that low light type of effect...then I did the same with white chalk paint after that was dry I then applied a very sloppy wet coat of this water white and a touch of black paint to create this barely grey wash...it's the consistency of skim milk....you can't really go wrong...just water white paint and a touch of black...and lots of water...flat paints work best for this look.

After all the applied paint dried, this doesn't take long, I took my ryobi corner cat with a 120 grit paper and sanded the basket to make it appear more worn...

I wanted to add to my basket to create that old antique look with stenciled words...I decided to take inspiration from our location and from the year our house/church was built so Enfield 1877 was the stencil I made with my silhouette machine...a light coat of flat black spray paint and I had my antique one of a kind trunk basket...

after I stenciled the words and numbers I added one more light application over the black of the water grey wash to just soften the black...and that was how I achieved this unique look. 

 I did two different designs to create the appearance that perhaps I found these trunks.

I'm really please with how they turned out and it was fun to tackle this project...it took about an hour to complete these two baskets on a nice hot sunny day.

So if you are searching for that swedish look but don't have bags of money to spend this is worth the effort...and you can even stock up on clearance baskets because you will want to add this finish to all your baskets...

thanks for reading....and happy painting,

Chris 

unwrapping an early Christmas gift...

 I completed three coats of water base Varathane last night and thought it was about time to remove the plastic door and when I did and stood back in the kitchen to take it all in I must admit I was in awe of how beautiful it looked. If I may say so. After all it now looks like all those gorgeous Pinterest images I have been longing for for so long. Having the same deep rich flooring really expands and blends the space so much better. I just need to finish the quarter round and then wait a couple more days for the top coat to fully cure, luckily it is a three day cure water based Varathane then we will move some furniture back in. 

My opinion on decorating is that a room should always look beautiful empty, if you start with beautiful bones and character the less fluff you have to add and the easier decorating the room is. As well this is what adds value to your home, decor is nice and cute but it isn't there to stay like millwork. 

This project took me 16 days to complete which is a little bit shorter than the 21 day timeline that I wasn't sure I could even make. Now it did take me much of each day from 4-6 hours some days on average, I know 4 hours doesn't sound long , but working over head and on your knees for 4 hours is rough. I took two whole days off through the process I was on a mission. 

I am so happy to have that carpet gone, it was less than two years old and showing so much matting and crushing , under the sofa looked great but the rest was so shabby looking. 

Having a continuous flooring also means I can extend my table even into the family room a bit for large gatherings which will be a great option.

I have been looking for a nice rug for the family room, I mean I hate to cover the wood but the room needs an 8x10 area carpet.

If we didn't put in a rug the furniture legs would ruin the pine floors and the furniture would slide around which would be an incredible pain, plus it's just nice visually and functionally.

 I think I am going with a synthetic sisal carpet for now because of the price and wear and tear. I love real sisal but one dog barf incident and its ruined. I would love a more decorative option but we also need a new sofa so the sofa will come first as we can always upgrade our rug. As well I haven't found anything I love yet.

We are thinking the Ikea Hovas sofa would be the perfect choice for our big reveal... 

 I am happy to share I found some almost perfect wool 8x10 rugs for around $500 price at Home Depot which I think it pretty great but I still need to check out Homesense on a regular basis I suppose.

Life is about to get back to normal and Christmas is about to officially begin at our house. Happy holiday's!

If you would like to see how I DIY my coffered ceiling check it out here http://chriskauffman.blogspot.ca/2013/12/my-diy-coffered-ceiling.html

My secret office makeover

 21 months , that is how long we have lived in our current home. For 21 months this room has remain untouched. It has been a room with a desk and computer surrounded by boxes. This was supposed to be a real office for my husband but this project never got started.
I didn't want to get involved as my husband had very definite ideas for his office and  I thought I should just stay out of it so I did, well I did for 21 months. But I saw that nothing was going to happen, my husband is a very busy man who does not have the time that was required to really tackle this room which was  4 1/2 full days,long days.
My husband works in the animation industry which I think explains all the toys.He has been a collector for as long as I have known him since way back when he was in school for animation when we were just babies....20 or so years old.
He went on his annual trip to LA this past week and unknown to him I was planning a big old makeover, a secret makeover. I couldn't look at this mess any longer, he needed a real office a nice place a space for him to be to surround himself with the things he loves. He deserves a nice room to call his own.
Now I was taking a risk doing this , would he be OK with me taking this over ? I wondered if he would be mad???
 But he had a Pinterest board for his office so I took from it what I could to make him a nice office. I thought if I tried my best and did a good job he would be happy.......I really hoped I was right. But I was nervous for him to arrive, would he like it? would he be dissapointed? what would happen who knew! Our youngest was hands on and helped me with decisions but our oldest thought I was making a mistake tackling this, she thought her Dad would be mad...how nervous did that make me, right! But I carried on hoping for the best.

I started by emptying the many many boxes about 12 BIG boxes. I painted the walls flagstone by Martha Stewart , I love this color. I then headed off to Ikea to pick up loads of shelf brackets, simple black wood brackets $2.50 each. I also grabbed two metal locker units this one and this one. $109 and $99 which is amazing , they add so much character and storage. I knew my hubby liked lockers so it was a win. Having a collection of toys meant I didn't have to hold back on color at all. 

 Here is a good before it was so bland , messy and where are all those cool toys? No color no warmth not inviting at all.

 Like I said there were a few boxes and then a few new boxes from my new purchases.

 Those awful sliding closet doors I dislike so much , they were the last ones and they are now gone. Happy dance!
I was going to try building a sliding barn door which Todd wanted but that would mean losing the wall storage to the right and it was needed so much I decided it was best to leave the closet open.I had considered doing built in shelves but opted for this black metal shelf from Lowe's , it was on budget and was so quick to put together , built ins would have taken up to a week to complete and I didn't have that time. The other bonus is that these shelves won't really collect dust and that a big plus. It also fits the industrial edge my husband likes.

Lots of storage room now. I may make some cool wood doors but I am tired and taking a breather for now.

 Makeovers really make a mess of the whole house don't they , dust and messes everywhere.

 Here things were coming along nicely. I tried my best to display all there was but I don't know toys, so I just grouped like items together.

 Box after box of this...

I even hung my husbands Grandmother's cookoo clock , its broken but it is important.

 I know I know grainy photos my phone is my only camera and boy do I ever need a new iphone...

I love these HR Puff N Stuff skate decks they deserved to be displayed so I made a stand for them. This took two tries but I ended up with display ledges from the first fail stand so it was a win win. 

 We have all seen the cool shelves held up by metal pipes ...those pipes are messy I tell you. I dreaded working with them and instead opted to use the pipes to make hooks for display. The pipes at our local store only would have allowed for 6" deep shelves and that wouldn't have worked at all. I really wanted to make sure I incorporated some pipe made accents. Each of those was about $6.00 and he likes them.

So there you have it my top secret hubby office makeover...

So what happened you're wondering...well he came home a little after 1:00 am from his trip where I had left his office door semi open with the lamp on and a big red bow on the door.

He asked me what was with the light on so I just lied and said " I don't know???" He opened the door and it was clear he loved it and was shocked I would say blown away....it was so much fun to give him this gift. He works so very hard and deserves this surprise so much. 

I have only ever seen my husband cry once and that was when he thought our daughter had drown in the tub, long story she was a trickster.... but it was a horrible moment for sure but seeing him choke up while he was seeing his new room made all the stress and hard work so worth it ....big strong men have hearts too thank goodness. 

I am so glad I did this and that it all turned out so well and I'm feeling pretty happy.