Sunday, July 15, 2012

Nautical Compass Dresser

I have been wanting to paint
a nautical compass
on something for quite a while.
I was waiting for just the right piece.

I knew this was it
the day I found
the green beast
on the side of the road.


I was so excited
that I really didn't look it over
as well as I should have.
It was like a blank canvas!
No handles even.
After I drug it home
I found it had several flaws.

But I had a vision.


 
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Now that I am on the other side
of the before and after,
I'm glad I finished it.
But there were several times I wanted to quit.

Like when this happened -



Even though this wasn't a fine piece of furniture
the drawers were clean and good
and I continued on with the rescue
by adhering "underlayment" with liquid nails
to both of the sides.



After sanding
I base painted everything black,
even the insides of the drawers
and the back of the dresser.



Then,
here I go again
I want to throw it away
because the drawers won't open!
For Pete's sake,
you can't have a dresser
if the drawers won't open.
It wasn't the paint
that was holding them in.
They just wouldn't slide.

I used candle wax from my scentsy
and rubbed on every part of the
drawer and dresser that touched.
It took a lot of wax
and finally the drawers work!
What a relief.
Gosh it smells good too.

Now I can move on
and paint it red.



I double loaded the brush with two shades of red
and one coated over the black.
Love that look.



I laid out some big stripes on the sides.



They were base painted white
then shaded with charcoal and tan.



Here's a picture series of
some of the steps
in painting the compass.











My Limeade
will get me through this

1/2 tsp. grenadine
Diet gingerale
2 slices lime squeezed
Lots of ice





So the green beast
gets a second chance.

Note to self:
Stay Calm and Examine Thoroughly
when you see
things like this:



Because that was a lot of work!
(a two day project)

But hopefully
I can find a good home for the cast away
and it will be
just someone's style...

Nautical,
Geometric Elements,
Worn colors,
Bold and Graphic












 
 
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Thanks for your visit!
Hope you're having a great summer,
Deb

Linking To:

Monday:        Craftomaniac
                      Boogieboard Cottage
                      DIY Showoff
                      Sumos Sweet Stuff
                      Between Naps on the Porch
                      I should be mopping the floor
                      The Dedicated House

Tuesday:       Coastal Charm
                     Home Stories A to Z
                     My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia
                     Primitive and Proper

Wednesday:  Savvy Southern Style

Thursday:     Beyond the Picket Fence
                     The Shabby Creek Cottage
                     House of Hepworths
                     The 36th Avenue
                            Delightful Order

Friday:          Miss Mustard Seed
                     Redoux Interiors
                     The Shabby Nest
                     At the Picket Fence
                    Bliss Ranch - Hot Fun in the Summertime Party

Saturday:     Cheerios and Lattes
                    Funky Junk Interiors
                    Tatertots and Jello

38 comments:

Heidi Lisa said...

OH DEB IT'S BEAUTIFUL! Love, love, love it! and if I had the room for it. I'd take it off your hands :o)

Deb Hrabik said...

Thanks! I know it is such a large dresser, but will hold a lot.

Family of Five said...

Love it! Great Job!!!!

Courtney said...

Wow!! As usual, you've done an exceptional job on this piece Deb!!!
Good on you for sticking with it! :)

Deb Hrabik said...

Thanks Courney,
It makes me appreciate the projects that go smoothly. I need one of those next! Phew!

Niki said...

It is a fantastic transformation!! Love the side stripes as well.

Might have to try some limeade.

Unknown said...

Oh my gosh amazing ! Thanks for sharing. I'm stopping by from a blog hop and am a new follower, I would love if you came to say hi and followed me back at www.iheartpears.blogspot.com

Laurel Stephens said...

Amazing, gorgeous, stunning, incredible. Can you tell I like it?

foreverdecorating said...

I have a table/bench top with this painted on it. Yours is lovely and it certainly gave new life to this old piece.

Clara @ The Charmed Nest said...

It looks awesome! I actually just had the exact same piece it was just the shorter version. I went with red too and a graphic...seemed like a big blank canvas to me. :) Unfortunately, my pictures turned out terrible but you can see my finished product here...http://www.thecharmednest.com/2012/07/playing-catch-upjunes-furniture.html

Cathy said...

This looks so cool! And I kinda like difficult pieces like that, they're a good learning experience!

Deb Hrabik said...

Ha, I can say that now. I did learn a lot!
Thanks for stopping,
Deb

Cassie Bustamante said...

WOW! another amazing piece over here!! fabulous job!

Deb Hrabik said...

Thank you, Cassie.
I really appreciate your furniture parties.

Roeshel said...

Wow! What a transformation! You rescued 'garbage' and made it a treasure. It's gorgeous, Deb!

Deb Hrabik said...

Thanks Roeshel!
Much appreciation for your hosting the link party!

Kathryn Ferguson Griffin said...

Oh, Deb, it's beautiful! You are a gem and so it your kitty! Thank you for sharing this at my Make it Pretty Monday party at The Dedicated House. Hope to see your prettiness again on Monday. Wishing you a grand week. Toodles, Kathryn @TheDedicatedHouse

Kathy said...

Boy is this ever a great unique piece...very talented you are!

debra said...

Extraordinary...love it. So original and creative!

Megan said...

This is an amazing piece! You did an amazing job with the general finish and particularly with the compass. I'm glad you pushed through too- you've inspired me to tackle a "problem piece" I have hanging out in my garage.

Deb Hrabik said...

Hi Megan,
My garage can be overwhelming with al of my "great finds" ha! Working through them one project at a time.
Thanks for your visit,
Deb

Geri O said...

Wow is all I can say. I love the color of this dresser with the stripes on the side. It is beautiful. I'm your newest follower. COme check out my blog when you have a second. http://sister-number-5.blogspot.com

Artsy VaVa said...

The green beast turned out gorgeous!

Coreen @ 58 Vintage Faire said...

You've 'shown me the way to go' (pun intended) with this great compass dresser! I have a couple pieces that could use this or similar inspired face lifts...Coreen

Vickie @ Ranger 911 said...

You did a fabulous job transforming a castoff piece of furniture! Your color choices "make" the piece!

Maria Kitching said...

This is gorgeous, I love it.
Maria Crafty Chic

Unknown said...

I stumbled upon you from Centsational Girl - I'm your newest follower.
Leaving here SO inspired to go paint something!!

Deb Hrabik said...

Great Patti!
Go for it.
Thank you for your visit, Deb

Babs said...

Wow! The dresser is fantastic! You did a great job and I love the colors.
Babs

karen@somewhatquirky said...

Nice job Deb! Some projects just seem to last forever. I think you're pretty dang fast though - I never would have completed that in 2 days. It looks great. Thanks for joining the party this week!

Little Miss Maggie said...

Super project. Glad you stuck to it. Your finished product is so worth it. Thanks for linking to Hot Fun in the Summertime.

Cheerios and Lattes said...

The dresser looks amazing! I would love to invite you to share this on Saturday Show and Tell. My readers would love this and some of the other posts on your blog. Come join us at http://www.cheeriosandlattes.com/saturday-show-tell-20 Thanks and have a great weekend.
-Mackenzie
http://www.cheeriosandlattes.com

kristi@ishouldbemoppingthefloor said...

It's so GORGEOUS, Deb!! You are so incredibly talented!! What an absolute beauty!
{HUGS},
kristi

reFresh reStyle said...

It's beautiful! Love it!

Cheerios and Lattes said...

The dresser looks amazing and l love how you added the limeade into the middle of the post. Thank you for sharing on Saturday Show and Tell. I hope you'll join us again this week with some more great ideas!
-Mackenzie
http://www.cheeriosandlattes.com

Ada (new york) said...

It looks AMAZING! Glad that u didn't give up (and that your limeaid helped power you one). I may had given up ... and cried!! :)

Deb Hrabik said...

Funny. That's what I felt like a couple of times!

Kim said...

This turned out very nice indeed!
I can relate to the 2nd thoughts after you get those road kill pieces home. I think there is some sort of blindness that sets in when you first lay eyes on these. They look flawless (almost) while laying helplessly on the curb. Once you get them home, the blinders come off and you suddenly see every little (and sometimes not so little) flaw.
You did great with this one. And thanks for the tip on painting with 2 different shades of color on the brush at once. I'll have to give that a try sometime.