How to Plan for a Home DIY Project


Spring Break for our kids is in just a few weeks. Because of Ken’s job, this means that he will have some more free time on his hands than he usually does. So what are we doing for Spring Break? The beach? Lake? Stay-cation? Not quite.

We are diving head first into some home renovation projects. Some indoors and some outdoors. These are not projects that we have any kind of experience with. None. Zilch. This could be disastrous amazing! So if we have no experience with these types of projects, how do we expect to have a good outcome? Here are a few tips for you:

  • Research. ReSEARCH. REsearch. Easy to say, but how? We are researching in these ways: YouTube, Pinterest, Blogs, Books, and Friends. Search for the type of project you are doing, and endless results should come up. This is not a “one and done” type of research. We’re piecing together tips and instructions from different sources that will work best for our house and our taste.
  • Measuring. Know exactly how much of each material you will need. Guessing is going to add to your frustration when you either have to go back for more or you buy too much. Frustrations = Stress = Bad Experience.
  • Pricing. This could go along with research, but it’s important enough to stand on it’s own. Know ahead of time how much you’re going to spend on materials. Simply deciding to walk into a store and buy what you find isn’t the best way to do things. You should shop around, price materials, and discover all of the options that are available to you.
  • Gather and prep your materials. I like to think of this as making a recipe for dinner. You’re going to make sure you have all of the ingredients before you start cooking it. Make sure you have all of your “ingredients” before you start your project. If some items can be prepped ahead of time, like priming something, go ahead and do it before the day you plan to do the project.
  • Make sure you have the tools you need. If you need a tool such as a saw or nail gun that you don’t have, make arrangements to buy it, borrow it, or rent it before the day of the project. You don’t want to spend time on the day you start your project to track one down. Tool rental places may have rented all of them out, friends may not be reachable, and impulsively buying a tool that you need will likely lead to overspending.

When you take the time to plan ahead and prepare yourself with knowledge and materials, your project is going to go a lot smoother than if you don’t.

Maybe next year on Spring Break we’ll actually take a break. 😉

XOXO,
Abby

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    How to Paint Your Doorknobs

    I’m so glad I painted our doorknobs! If you’ve been following The Great Door Painting Project (here and here), then you know that this has been an enormous transformation. The good news is that painting the doorknobs was the easiest part. Even if you aren’t painting your doors, painting your doorknobs is an easy way to update your home.

    This is a job that even a beginner can do. There will be two screws on one side of the doorknob. Unscrew them and twist each side of the doorknob in opposite directions while pulling apart.

    Find away to support your doorknobs before you paint them. I used a block of Styrofoam and set it inside of a cardboard box. I have seen some other methods, which I pinned onto my Pinterest board on doors. Don’t forget to paint the heads of your screws!

    This is my favorite spray paint for hardware. Rust-Oleum makes several different metal finishes in their line of “Forged Hammered Paint & Primer in One.” I have used this to paint the hardware and hinges on furniture as well. It doesn’t scream “I’m spray-painted! I’m cheap!” My favorite part of this spray paint is that it gives a slight texture and variation in color. You can order it from Amazon.com and have it delivered right to your door(knobs). hee, hee!
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    I recommend using this is short bursts to give the most natural finish. The more coats you use, the more variation in color and texture you will achieve. Just like I mentioned when you paint doors, your painted doorknobs will need several days to dry rock hard. Even if they are dry to the touch, wait before you reinstall them. I felt like mine were completely hard after 4 days.

    Super easy. Give it a try!
    XOXO,
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    Once You Go Black: The Dirty Details on Painting Doors


    A few days ago I posted some before & after pictures of my painted black doors. I love how it looks. It’s completely changed the feel of the rooms. Despite how much I grumbled about it, I’m glad I did it.

    I’ve gotten mostly positive feedback. It was a little funny when my mom commented, “What made you decide to do that? Well, it does take a little getting used to.” Translation: Why in tarnation would you paint your white doors black?? LOL, my mom rocks.

    Now I’d like to share some things that I did or thought of while painting. I was completely wrong in estimating how long it would take and how hard it would be, but there were a couple of little things that I did that did cut down on the time and make it easier.

    • Research. Check out my Pinterest board on doors. I read a lot on how to paint a door. You might think that sounds silly, but there are specific ways to paint a door. Read on.
    • Doors should be painted with semi-gloss paint, similar to your baseboards and millwork.
    • The more sheen (shine) there is to paint, the more it shows brush marks. Semi-gloss has a lot  of sheen. Hence, there is a specific order on how to paint a door.
    • More sheen also means that if you use a roller for any of it, you need a large nap, at least 3/8″ or more. Otherwise, you’re going to see roller marks. It will drive you nuts once it dries.
    • Consider: Do you want to paint the entire door, or just the side that shows in the hallway? My thought was, “I want a black door, not a white door that has a black side.” So I painted the entire door.
    • Consider: Do you want to take the doors off of the hinges or leave them on? Taking the doors off of the hinges will greatly increase your workload for two reasons. One, You’ll most likely need two people to put the doors off and on the hinges. Two, you can only paint one side at a time.
    • If you’re leaving the doors on the hinges, prepping them will add some time.
    If you leave the door on the hinges, be sure to tape them. Use an Xacto knife to trim the tape.
    Prepping keeps it from looking sloppy.
    Be sure to protect your floors. I taped down trash bags.
    Drips don’t leak through the plastic. You can tape onto any surface, including carpet.
    Paint can leak through canvas drop cloths or cardboard.

    • Each side of the door will need about 3 coats, even with primer.
    • Consider: Do you want to take the doorknobs off or leave them on? Taking them off adds time, but prepping (taping) and carefully painting around them adds time, too. I recommend taking them off. It’s not hard. I ended up painting all of my doorknobs and I’ll post about that soon.
    • Consider: It will take several days for the paint to cure and completely harden. Even if they are dry to the touch, they won’t be completely hardened for a few days. Ladies, think “nail polish.” Even if your nails feel dry on top, you know that it takes a few minutes for them to get rock hard.
    • Consider: Do you want to use a primer or a paint that has a primer already in it?

    Okay, now there are some things that I would’ve done differently if I could do it all over again:

    1. I really hate to say this (hangs head), but I believe it would’ve made a huge difference. 🙁 I wouldn’t have used Behr paint. I use Behr a lot for painting furniture. It is my go-to base for my homemade “chalk” paint colors. But, I never, ever, ever use it to paint walls. Ever. I always use Benjamin Moore paints. People often assume that Ben Moore paints are super expensive. They’re not. In fact, the gallon of Behr that I bought was more expensive than the last gallon of Ben Moore that I bought. Ben Moore paints are superior quality. It covers better. The color is better quality. It is better paint, hands down.
    2. Instead of a jet black color, I would have used a dark gray. I’m crushing on Dragon’s Breath by Benjamin Moore.

    I hope this helps you! The biggest pains (literally) for me were my knee and hand. It is a lot of up & down, and my hand was killing me from holding onto the brush for so long. (sooooo.long.)

    XOXO,
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    Distressed White China Cabinet with Homemade "Chalk" Paint

    Deadlines. Due dates. Time Frames. I work well under pressure. I know this about myself, so I’ve given myself unmovable deadlines to make sure I get stuff done.

    This fall I didn’t participate in any antique fairs. The kids’ sports schedules and Ken’s work schedule were a little chaotic, and I didn’t think that fairs were going to be doable this season. However I had a lot of inventory to get rid of. So I decided to throw a “Yard Market”, which is just fancy-talk for yard sale but with some above average inventory that you don’t usually find at yard sales.

    I advertised and my reason for doing that was because once I told the world I was having a “Yard Market,” then I had to do it. All was going well and smoothly, but I had one large piece that I still hadn’t tackled yet. I needed some help from Ken for this one.

    This china cabinet belonged to a family member that had tried a few times to sell it. As it was, it was average. As you can see it was dated 90’s oak, which isn’t in demand at all right now. I asked them if they would trust me to paint it and sell it for them, rather than just giving it away.

    It was an enormous job, from the inside out. Everything from the light fixture to the hardware got a new look. The glass even got some attention. There is no way I could’ve done this piece as quickly as I did without Ken’s help. We pulled an all-nighter!

    As fate would have it, a friend from college was looking for a distressed white china cabinet. So this actually sold before the Yard Market even started. (Win-Win!) Here’s a picture of it in her home:

    Hope you love it!
    XOXO,
    Abby

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    Wait for it…Wait for it…

    Once upon a time I painted my dining room three times in a weekend. Two of those times were in the same day. One of those colors was lilac. I make mistakes.

    Enter: A chifferobe. This chifferobe started out in a cherry finish. And, well, no one wants cherry furniture right now. So since Ken and I were newbies to refinishing furniture, we sanded it. I can’t believe we did, but yes, we sanded it. Entirely. It took a lot of time. And then (embarrassingly) we used a vinegar barn wood stain on it. It was horrible.

    After that the pig needed some lipstick, so we painted it white and put it in our antique booth. And there it sat. And sat. It got lots of compliments. And there it sat some more.

    So we brought it home and put it in the garage. And one day I decided to slap some antiquing glaze on it, which was also horrible. It was so bad that it might as well have been cherry finish again. I cursed the chifferobe and spat on it (in my head) and turned my back on its ugliness for months.

    Then last week I had a thought: Gray. And then I had another thought: Flat Spray Paint. Valspar sells some fantastic colors of flat spray paint at Lowe’s. So I picked up three cans and brought them home to introduce them to the chifferobe. But…gray is relative, apparently. And this wasn’t my idea of “gray” as much as “bluish ugly concrete primer color.”

    So glad I quickly realized that the gray spray paint wasn’t the color I was looking for.

    So, doing what I do best I went to Home Depot and picked out a nice shade of gray and mixed up a batch of “chalk” paint. And even though there was nothing wrong with the long mirror, I took it out. (hold the hate mail) I replaced it with some natural linen fabric.
    

    We added a knob to the door after this picture was taken.

    And now finally, finally, I love it. So I’m going to do what I do with all of my favorite pieces. I’m going to keep it (because I love it). At least for a few months until I decide that I love a paycheck more. And then I’m going to let one of you love it.

    Mistakes are okay. They aren’t sins. They’re learning opportunities. I’ve made so, so many mistakes in my life. But I’ve also learned so, so much. I’m thankful for my learning opportunities.

    Ephesians 4:22-24                
    To put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.

    XOXO,
    Abby

    Abby Smolarsky1 Comment

    A chair, Me, and God

    It’s raining today. It’s a typical Atlanta day in October, overcast and somewhere in between warm and cool. But the humidity envelopes you when you’re outside, so, for the most part, it’s basically warm.

    Today I take my project outside despite the rain. I have a chair that I’ve painted gray with some spray paint. I’m going to finish it with some antiquing glaze. I take the chair onto my little front porch, and together my chair and I are protected from getting wet.

     

    Since I’m outside in the humidity, it’s going to take longer to dry and finish once I put my glaze on. But it’s so peaceful. Amidst the steady rain, the birds are still singing and leaves are cascading from the tulip poplar in my front yard. I am away from the computer, iPad, and phone. I am away from the multi-tasking. It’s just me and the chair.

    It looks so much better with glaze. More finished. More natural and “relaxed”. Less “freshly painted.” Less sterile.

    While I am adding the glaze, I am thinking. I’m currently running a giveaway on my Facebook page, and Ken (my husband) and I were discussing a trend that I noticed. Every time I post something related to God people “unlike” my page. (The book I’m giving away has God in the title.) This makes me sad, and it makes me want to tell you part of my story.

    For years I prayed. I prayed for a lot of things, but something that I prayed louder, and longer, and harder for was this: Please God, point me in the right direction. Lead me down the path I should go. I’m not always good at picking up on small clues, God. So please make it obvious.

    For years God’s answer was “not right now.” About a year ago I was lucky enough to have God shout loud and clear. While “working” on the blog, searching for antiques, and repurposing I had a moment that with every fiber of my being, without a shadow of doubt in my mind, that THIS…this “Belle & Beau Antiquarian” is exactly what God wants me to do. In that moment I was 100% sure that I was doing the thing that God had planned for me. This is the path I should go down.

    I can’t say that since that moment I have experienced 100% easy success. I wish I could say since that moment that I have not doubted that I was on the right path. I have doubted. I have wanted to quit. I have experienced failure time and time again, in small ways and big ways. I have had many months where I did not break even. I have had months where I overspent and then spent months paying for it. I have had months where I have neglected the blog. But I always return to that moment of 100% conviction. Despite failures, I have had successes. People read this blog. A lot of people. People are interested in what I do. I have an opportunity. This is what God wants me to do. Now, I need to make sure that I do it HOW he wants me to.

    So like this chair that still needed a finishing touch, I still need some finishing touches, too. It’s hard not to take “unlikes” personally. But if you are “unliking” my page because I “like” God, then go ahead. The unlikes are certainly something that I will put in my “success” column.

    “Commit your work to the Lord, and your plans will be established.”
    Proverbs 16:3

    Hope you “like” the chair.

    XOXO,
    Abby

    P.S. Um, there’s a fabulous giveaway going on. You should really enter it!

    Abby Smolarsky2 Comments

    The {Final} Nitty-Gritty on Sanding. When You’re Done?

     

    I’ve noticed that a lot of times tutorials that go over how to use “furniture” (aka “chalk”) paint don’t go over what to do once the paint has dried. I personally have several more steps to go once the paint is dry on my furniture. I sand it, seal it, and often glaze it.

    Sand it when the paint is dry? For latex or spray paint, not usually. For “furniture,” chalk, or milk paint, yes. There is an incredible difference in the finish of “furniture” paint when you sand it after it dries and when you don’t. It becomes incredibly smooth and “finished” looking. The paint should dry 8 hours, or overnight, before you sand it.

    Depending on the look I am going for, I will either use 220 grit sandpaper or “00” steel wool. Usually using 220 grit sandpaper with my Black & Decker Mouse sander will give more of a distressed look. That means whatever the surface color was before you sanded it (wood or a different color) will show through on the edges and raised details. If I just want to “finish” the piece and I don’t want to distress it I will use “00” (double fine) steel wool. Even when using the “00” steel wool, be careful on the edges and details.

    DON’T freak out when you sand your painted piece. Paint dust will come off. Trust me when I say, do not sand indoors, even a garage. You will cover everything in a fine coating of chalk dust. The great thing about “furniture” paint is, if you sand off too much, just touch it up with some more paint. Also, don’t freak out if your paint color “lightens” up a bit. This is just the effect of the “chalk” or plaster of Paris in the paint. When you apply your wax the color will deepen again.

    Before you continue the process of finishing your painted piece after you have sanded it, wipe it down completely with a DRY cloth. Actually, most of the time I vacuum the piece with my shop vac when I’m done sanding. You can even use the final sanding process as a way to be creative with your paint. Once you have done a final sanding, you are ready to finish your piece with wax, polyurethane, or glaze. (or all of the above) 😉

    I will go over more info on using “furniture” paint in a future blog post.
    XOXO,
    Abby

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    The Nitty-Gritty on Sanding {Part One}

    I’ve had some questions about sanding furniture, so I thought I would do a series of posts about it. Sanding isn’t my favorite thing to do. However, it can be very rewarding when it is done correctly. Since this is such a big topic, in this post I will cover information about sanding prior to painting or refinishing.

    Before you start on a piece it is important to decide whether or not you need to sand at all. Let tell you when I don’t sand.
    • When I start with a piece that is unpainted, painted, or stained and I am planning to completely cover it in “furniture” (chalk) paint.
    • When I start with a piece that is painted or stained and I am planning to use a crackle finish, and I want the existing paint or stain to show through when it crackles.
    • Even if I am making repairs to the piece with wood putty or rebuilding a foot, for example, I only sand to make the repair even with the rest of the piece. I don’t sand the entire piece.

    I make my own “furniture” paint. Some people may call it “chalk paint.” My furniture paint does not require prepping the surface before you use it. It will stick, and stick well, without sanding. That’s the whole point of using this kind of paint — to save time and prep.  So if you’re painting the whole piece and you’re using “furniture” paint, don’t waste your time by spending hours sanding.

    Now here is when I DO sand prior to painting and refinishing:
    • I’m painting the piece, except for maybe the top of a dresser or a table top. In that case I will only sand the surface that isn’tgetting painted.
    • I’m using spray paint. Spray paint will show even tiny imperfections.
    • The piece is already painted, and I am planning to do a crackle finish that doesn’t include the current color.
    • The piece is painted and I want to remove the paint and stain it instead.
    • The piece is stained and needs to be re-stained.

    I get a lot of questions about furniture and most people assume that everything needs to be sanded. This is not the case. Remember, chances are if you are painting the entire piece you do not need to sand before you paint with “furniture” (chalk) paint.

     
    Come back in a few days for my post on how to sand.
    Hope this helps!
    XOXO,
    Abby

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    Keep Calm & Share Ideas

    A friend overheard me sharing my “chalk” paint recipe and couldn’t believe it. Why not share? I’m not trying to sell paint.

     
     


    I don’t mind sharing my paint recipe. If you bother to ask me, I’ll bother to tell you. The paint is super easy to make. What comes after that is the hard part. I believe in helping people get started. I’m not trying to sell paint. If you take that recipe and figure out how to use it, well, good for you! I want you to know that you can do this. There’s nothing special about me that you don’t have.

    Here’s the thing though: Don’t make the mistake of thinking that because the paint itself is easy to make that the process and finished product isn’t valuable. The process of using this paint is lengthy with multiple steps involved. While it doesn’t require that you spend a lot of time prepping the surface to be painted, that doesn’t mean that the piece didn’t need repairs first. The paint needs to cure in between coats. Once the final coat is dry there are at least two more steps.

     


    I was recently participating in an antique fair and I listened as one woman oooh and ahhhed over one of my pieces and her friend proceeded to talk her out of buying it. “Oh, that would be so easy to make. You could make that. You could have your husband do that. Don’t pay for that.” I’m absolutely sure that she could make it. I’m positive that her husband could, too. But I’m am 99.99% certain that they wouldn’t. She left that day without buying the piece that she admired and stood in front of for 15 minutes. Do you think she went home and made it? I’d be surprised if she did.

    These pieces aren’t found on a whim. I research and drive, and drive, and drive some more before I find anything decent to buy. Yes, buy, as in purchase. I buy the materials: paint, brushes, rollers, LOADS of sandpaper, plaster, repair materials, and many times new hardware. That doesn’t include the cost of gasoline and my time. And just imagine, I actually want to make a profit on top of that.

    I’ve decided that every time I blog about a piece I’m going to list at the bottom the amount of time it took and the amount I spent on basic supplies, not including the price of the piece. You can do this. And I hope you do. I want to inspire you to paint your own furniture and create your own decorations. But, please, please do not belittle the time, knowledge, and money that I have invested. And please, for pete’s sake, don’t come up to me at a fair while I’m trying to sell something and ask me how I made it. Not the time, folks.

    P.S. Y’all rock!
    XOXO,
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    Drop Leaf {Table} Like It’s Hot


    I love marking things off of my “list.” And this table has been on my to-do list for wayyyyyy too long. I have procrastinated doing this table like nobody’s (I’ll get to it) tomorrow.

    I paid more than I thought I should have. (We left it in the garage.)

    I thought it was going to be very difficult and time consuming to fix. (We dumped stuff on top of it.)

    I thought the existing finish was going to be stubborn. (We never even completely unwrapped it.)

    But you’ll never guess what happened. It’s the first piece that I have been able to refinish 100% on my own. As in, no one had to move it for me. No one had to hold it up while I did anything to it. I did it all. On. my. own. Oh, how glorious it is to say that. I hate asking for help. For anything. (Do you know that about me yet?)

    I sanded the top just to rough it up a little bit for some “tooth.” “Tooth” means something for the paint to grab onto. Chalk paint isn’t supposed to need priming or sanding, but like I mentioned, I was worried about the existing finish being stubborn and difficult. I didn’t sand anything other than the top.

    I make my own chalk paint. I used Martha Stewart Living in “Duck’s Egg” as my base.
    After that I used Valspar Glaze in “Mocha.” 
    Lastly, I used Krylon UV-Resistant Matte spray finish. I didn’t use a wax as I normally do because I didn’t want any sheen (shine), however I did want some protection on the table top. The trick to using this spray and having it be truly matte, with no spray marks, is to hold it at least 12 inches away from your surface. If  you hold it much closer than that you won’t have an even finish. As the directions on the can say, wait at least 2 minutes in between coats to avoid “white-ish” spots.

    It’s more green than in this pictures. Don’t know why this came out so much lighter.

    This table is perfect for our house. We like to have big family meals with the whole family, which is 15 and counting. If we open this up with the two leaves and combine it with our other dining table which seats 8. there will be plenty of room for everyone.

    I hope you love it as much as I do.

    XOXO,
    Abby

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