White Hutch~

I finally painted my hutch white~

This was one of the most difficult paint jobs I have ever done.

I gently aged it with sandpaper.

The table is a light grey, (looks white in photo.)

I hope You are having a lovely day!

Blessings~

Craft of the Day; Print Upon Enamelware~ Old French Chic DIY.

I LOVE enamelware. 

When I picked up this old enamelware tray from the thrift shop,(I  love old junk made beautiful) I wanted to turn this tray into an old advertisement sign;  but how to apply such delicate print????   Stenciling was out of the question; the letters were to small......

Then it occurred to me, what if I printed on tissue paper! It is semi see- through..... Yes!!!!

HOW TO:

-Take a regular sheet of paper, and apply glue all along the very edges with a roll up glue stick.

-Then, smooth (over that gluey paper) with the tissue paper, shiny side down, starting on one side & smoothing outward so that the tissue paper is adhered tauntly to the undersheet. Cut off excess.(It may have a couple of small wrinkles.)

-When dry, print upon it, & then with scissors cut all along the edges to free the tissue paper from the under-sheet.

-Carefully, gently, apply roll up glue stick to the back of the tissue print, holding the tissue paper with your fingers to prevent grabbing and ripping. Apply the glue in small sections....GENTLY

-Lay the print on the enamelware, starting with a corner and smooth- smooth- smooth it outward, eliminating the air bubbles as you go. (dull old enamelware will look the best!) If it tears , just smooth down. It looks great  torn.

-You will be able to see the scuffs and marks of the enamelware through the paper, making it a semi-opaque print, helping the print to really blend into the piece.

Be sure to click on the "free stuff" postcard on the right hand side for more great ephemera!

More added each week!

My Home~ Primitive & Vintage Decor.

****Be sure to check out the freebies section, (the postcard at the top), for AWESOME freebies for all Your crafting needs~****

Here is a little tour, of the Sampler Maker's Farmhouse~

Primitive dough bowl.

Old jars, primitive sampler pin keep, gourds and a bee skep.

Primitive/ vintage cow on board, whisk broom, rod  iron cloche.

Ironstone pitcher, lavender and old soap.I love old soap!

This particular one comes from the middle east. I collect soap from all over~

Wonderful mirror pin keep by Christine of the 1871 Farmhouse- my favorite Artist.

Primitive garden stitchery.

Grungy olde bee skep, and rusty egg wire egg basket.

Homemade chalk board, made with barn wood. Often used as a reminder board.

Primitive strawberries, and a faux chicken wire pantry door.

This cross stitch is a free pattern that I am offering on my free stuff page.

I stain boxes to look old using watered down tan & black acrylic paint. 

I print all my tags on brown paper lunch bags, to look old instantly~

I am always on the look out for interesting items at thrift shops and garage sales.

I try to keep my eye on the shape of things.....because almost everything can be painted.

I so enjoy triple pockets.

Bedroom- old board cabinet. Yes. This is a dumpster dive, one of my best hauls.

I used a bristle brush to speckle eggs, a fun craft.Each one is unique.

I rarely sew my farmhouse towels. I just make a cut to start out with, and then rip-em.

No-sew. I attach around a hook using a saftey pin.

My dining room table.

I added beadboard to make my kitchen look more country.

I added patches to pillows to make them look more interesting. I find linen all the time, in the tablecloth aisle 

of the thrift shop. 

Glass dryer.

I make my pillows flat and heavy by stuffing them with kiln dried/disinfected  soft wood shavings.

You can find it at the pet store, in the hamster aisle. I only buy the good brand though.

I love enamelware.

Big chunks of old soap in a vintage "terrarium" jar.

I love printing my own pillows. I also love making holes and tears in them!

Sometimes a "repair" is part of the art of the piece. You can Google 'antique grainsack repair'

to get some nifty patching ideas.

I decorate in white, grey and dull browns...but purple is my favorite.

Paint rags dyed in walnut ink. Look for these rags in the paint aisle of Walmart!

They are called "chameeze" I believe.

Well, I see everyone tearing the covers off of books these days.

I didn't "get it". That was until I ripped the cover off a book, and exposed antique typography

on the binding that had been hidden for a hundred years. Pretty neat it got to see the light of day again.

I make my prints by dabbing the paper heavily staining with a tea bag. 

Then I put a pillowcase over it and iron it flat quickly.

After I print on it, I crumple it.

Then I finish off staining it with charcoal and khaki green EYE SHADOW.

Yes. eye shadow. The non sparkly kind.

What else would mimic soot and grime so well? It comes out a beautiful antique color.

I make cupboards out of crates, and nail them right onto the wall into the studs. DONE.

I found space lacking on shelves and whatnot, so I took a HUGE barn board, screwed it to the wall, 

and used antique nails for the hooks. A great place to store my favorite things.I also find that things that 

hang downward get less dusty- or maybe it's just me.

I always scratch up my paint jobs on purpose.

30 years later, I found my childhood chair( with distinctive markings) at a thrift shop.

I could not believe my eyes. It was an awful color, so I stained it so I can display it always

and appreciate it anew, but the left the underseat unpainted, so I can always remember what

it looked like. Now I enjoy it everyday.

I make cloches out of chicken wire. It takes a lot of patience to snip out sections and rewire the 

chicken wire circles back together as I gather and graduate it to the top. Wear gloves, 

because you will scratch up your hands.

Every so often, I dye something with walnut ink and it comes out to dark.

Much to my surprise I used the wrong side out side, and it was the perfect faded brown.

18th century pewter. The plate has a heart someone hand carved into it. It had a story to tell.

I make my own faux hatpins. I use wire and glue a bead on.

Then i paint the beads with nailpolish.

My pantry.

My farmhouse kitchen.

I painted a large cork board, frame cork and all, then stretched chicken wire over it.

It is staple gunned in the back.

Sometimes I like the underneath of ironstone dishes instead of the top. I display them backwards.

I hammer my antique silver spoons(plant markers) on the sidewalk. They come out nice and flat.

I like decorating with galvanized things.

Nailpolished faux handmade hat pins. They look black, but they are actually a very dark wine.

I glue grain sack prints to old benches.

I see decorators put faux pears in vases, thought I would give it a try.

I grunge up my pots by gluing on fresh cat littler. I also did my bee skep this way.

I love mecantile prints~