I have whined about the color palatte of my home in the past, but now I am doing something about it. With paint. Now, if you are wanting to *try* a new color, but don't have the budget to redecorate or don't want to sew new throw pillow covers, paint a couple of pieces to see how it looks. If you hate it, then paint over it. Go to Goodwill and find some cheap knick knack to experiment with. Shop your house for a mirror frame, picture frame, or some other doodley whop. Today, I am doing my Friend's peephole frame, and a pretty vintage brass candlestick.
Also, I have joined Life in Grace's linky party for painted wood projects. You absolutely MUST see her kitchen. Oh my goodness.
Truly, this is how it goes in my home.
I find a bottle of paint I like, I pull it out with a paint brush and a piece of sandpaper. Then, I quite literally wander around the house pulling stuff out of hiding, from shelves, walls...
Then, I dust it off, sand it a little and start to paint.
But, Lisa, shouldn't you prime? *Blink blink* Probably. Considering that I wil most likely repaint them the next time I want to change color, I really don't bother with that.
But Lisa, shouldn't you use paint designed for metal finishes? *Blink blink* Probably. But I really don't do anything except dust them. If you will use pieces for their actual usage, then by all means, sand better, prime, use the right paint, seal with a sealer, blah blah blah... but I really don't mind if the paint chips. Actually, I enjoy it. (HERE is a good post on painting metal)
Enough talking. Start painting. This is a technique that I use and have invented in my own mind, however, I am sure many many others use it too, but I gave it a name, in all caps. I call it REVERSE DISTRESSING. This is great for when you have an item where you love the color, but it is too bright, so you want to tone it down. (like white washing, but without the water).
Usually, to correctly distress, you paint the underneath color FIRST, the top color next and then sand through so the underneath color pops up through the layer of paint. If you like doing this, you will like this tip. To protect your underneath layer from sanding (so you don't sand too hard to the wood in certain areas) rub a candle on those edges. When you sand over the candle wax, it will reveal the paint you wish to expose instead of going to deep into the wood.
BUT. Forget the rules of distress painting. I switched it up. I paint everything the main top color FIRST. I usually do ivory. Or black. But this year ivory. I have been using Apple Barrel 20405 Antique White acrylic paint and we are getting married soon b/c I love it that much. This technique I will reveal works perfectly for pieces that you can't sand down to expose the underneath layer. Like my brass candlestick. The blue paint I am using is FolkArt 713 Coastal Blue acrylic paint.
SO. Once your piece is ready to paint (cleaned/sanded/primed), paint it your main color first. Now, take your accent color and paint just the pieces you want to highlight with a subtle burst of color, and let it dry, like so:
Now, it is time to DRY BRUSH. This is not my invention. But it works like a charm. You take a mangly, feathery, stragely haired brush for this. A blunt, well kept brush doesn't feather as well. Dip your brush in your main color paint (so ivory in my case), BLOT THE PAINT OFF THE BRUSH and very lightly blend in those bright strips of color until they look like they are being lightly exposed underneath.
You notice I only painted those stripes blue, but afterwards I dry brushed a mix of blue/ivory on other parts of the candlestick holder for a nice subtle finish. On the frame, I dry brushed the ivory on and focused on the edges of the wood. When distressing with paint, it is the same idea as sanding distressing. Focus on highlights, edges and raised surfaces, the areas that are most likely to be scratched and dinged over time.
ONE LAYER OF BLENDING:
FINAL BLENDING (many layers):
I just keep on dry brushing until I am happy. I love how this technique works every time. It leaves a nice texture as well. On my candle stick, I did not sand at all, but on my peep hole Friends frame, I did sand just a tad to show some wood.
BEFORE SANDING:
AFTER SANDING:
It is easy and simple. Once you are done, embellish the pieces. I added lace and a rhinestone brooch to my candlestick, now available for purchase HERE! It would make a lovely vase (for silk or milinery flowers of course). Now, go find something to paint and introduce a new color to your room!
