Friends and a dainty little secretary desk!

I feel very fortunate and blessed to have so many good friends - you know, the kind that will always be there for you through thick and thin, the ones you can spill your heart out to, and best of all, the ones you get together with lots of laughter and have a great time whether it's rockin' at a concert or just hangin' out!

This looks like a FUN BUNCH of friends!

 

I've got friends that know how much I love a 'junky find' and they'll contact me to let me know where it's at! Recently, I was informed about an antique secretary leftover from an estate sale - and it had to be picked up that day! So, away I went to claim it before it was gone!



 

Here it is BEFORE:

It's got pretty good 'bones' - and it has the original key!

(although the lock doesn't work!)

It just needs some TLC! 

(Ha! Like that ever happens!)

 

 I think there used to be a decorative back piece on top.

Wonder what happened to it??



 



Inside cubby hole compartment for holding letters
and things is missing - hmmm...

 

And, the drop front desk part was damaged and
 held in place with stripped-out screw holes!

 

THAT could be a REAL PROBLEM!!
(remember those TLC words?)

 

 

Well, I created a new top piece for it....

 

Not knowing what the original top piece looked like,
 I went with a simple design
 (due to my level of construction knowledge!).

The wood finish was in pretty bad shape,

but I wanted to retain some of the
original appeal to this piece.

Due to the new wood top being
a different type of wood

I decided to paint the top and sides

a soft robin's-egg blue

to compliment the walnut color of the wood.

 

Of course it needed a little 'bling' to dress it up!
So I added wallpaper to enhance the interior backing!
This print has a lightly distressed floral design

that gives it the vintage look I was looking for!

 

 

Here's how it turned out!

The stripped-out screw holes for the
desk top did  pose a problem
cause me to pull my hair out!

 I'm still trying to find the right process

to correct that before I put it up for sale.

 

I think it would be the perfect
 accent piece to any décor!

You might even want to start
 writing letters, again!

 





XOXO

I brake for curbside finds!!

Usually, I have no plan when I find a project piece of furniture. I tend to create an image in my cluttered mind of how I want whatever I'm working on to look as I'm working on it! Sometimes I've got to re-think the process, walk away from it and work on something else until I figure out a solution! Here's an example:

How it all began:

This spring I was driving around on the town's annual 'Trash Days', (where residents can put out stuff they no longer want), just to see if there was anything of interest! I spotted a pile with a wicker chair down one of the side streets and decided to head up and check it out. The chair was in pretty good condition, so I stopped to pick it up and noticed this very tall cabinet laying on its side, partially covered by other items! It looked antique, and (at first glance) in fairly good condition! So, you know I had to think of  a way to load it up in my truck!!

 

I have to add to the story that I was on my way to work and not dressed for digging through trash piles, nor 'schlepping' big pieces of furniture around!

 

Anyhoo...as it turned out, the homeowner had recognized me and came out of her house to see what I was doing! BUSTED!! After a good laugh, her husband came out and helped load it up! Plus, an added bonus...there were glass inset doors that went with the cabinet that they hadn't put out yet!! SCORE!!

 

The work begins:

I debated about painting the cabinet. The interior had been painted a glossy black, which is always difficult to cover over. The exterior had been painted at one time and painstakingly removed, but white paint still showed in the wood grain.

 

So I sanded the black interior and re-painted the entire piece Antique White!

 

After applying one coat of paint, I realized there were hardware issues - of course, there's ALWAYS some issues!! That had to be repaired before going any further!

The doors were on swivel hinges - antique swivel hinges! The bottom metal posts were still intact, but the top was missing the hardware, except for the metal plate embedded into the narrow wood frame! Easy-Peasy removal, right! NOT!! Those screws are so locked tight, I tried every method I knew, and even looked up on Google! Any suggestions would be appreciated!

 

I had to 'walk away' to re-think this situation!

 

So I started working on another project where I was going to apply a wallpaper backing and decided that I might as well do the tall cabinet as long as I had all the materials out and then I'd only have to clean up once!

 

 

I LOVE this print - the lightly distressed pattern makes it look old!

(the other project wallpaper is similar, but a different color - you'll see in a future post!)

I got the wallpapers as remnants at a local carpet/flooring store!

 

I'll get back to this work-in-progress in a couple of days.

I envision this cabinet to have that 'Farmhouse-look' when it's done!

Perfect for the décor trend that's very popular right now!

 

Until next time...enjoy the rest of these summer days!



XOXO

Living up to the 'Junksister' name!

Over the years, I've repurposed, refurbished, repaired, and redone hundreds of items! I still can't drive by any forlorn item cast to the curbside, and I still get a thrill of the hunt for treasures in out-of-the-way places! It's just in my DNA makeup!! I can thank my mom for that - she loved to peruse all the thrift shops for unique and unusual items to fix up and paint to furnish our home.

Living here on Colorado's Western Slope, has it's challenges finding the amount of antique and vintage project pieces that are in such abundance in the Midwest. But, I've managed to find enough to work my magic on and turn them from sad to happy and beautiful again!

The first couple of years I participated as a vendor at a few occasional sales where some of my creations found new homes...

This fabulous farmhouse-style cupboard had sat out in a horse barn for years!

Caked with barnyard mud that smelled really bad!

It cleaned up nicely and got a fresh, new look!

I shoulda kept this one!!

Before

After

Even a once ugly old brown wood cabinet

can be made beautiful - dress it up

with some white paint and chicken wire!

It's new owner loves it!

I've got a big love for old dressers with mirrors!

This sweet petite little one went to a pretty little pre-teen girl!

This was a very large old window that I painted pink

and added the perfect nostalgic little rhyme.

Found a loving home!

  

I actually had to re-paint this old vanity a different color before it got sold!

I walked along the river to cut and gather armloads of

red-twig willow branches to make these wreaths! They were a big hit!

Guess I'll have to go cut some more in the fall!



Old wood window panes are very popular, even if

they're missing some glass! I'll have to make a trip back to the Midwest

to find more of these old barn window treasures!



I hope you enjoyed seeing just a few of my past creations - (you can see more on 'older posts'!) I have some NEW projects in the works right now that I think you'll really like! Stop by again, for more info on an upcoming SALE!

Until next time, take care, and be happy!


XOXO