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Guest room reveal...

6/28/2016

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If you've kept up with the blog you know that I recently purchased a house, gutted it and completely renovated it inside and out.  Check out the before and after of the exterior!  This is my first interior room reveal..eek!!  This is the guest bedroom.  It started out as a completely blank space.  We removed the closet in order to make room for a hallway to the master suite.  Previously, you had to walk through one room in order to get to the master bedroom.  Removing the closet created a new conundrum - how do I add closet space without making a small bedroom unusable.  Here is what I came up with:  

built in closet units

to know me is to know that I love an ikea hack...these are two malm dressers (I couldn't find this exact dresser, but this one is close) from ikea.  Once built, I had my carpenter add two large closets on top of the dressers.  The space in between each built in is the exact size for a twin bed longways (which is perfect - it won't stick out into the room too far!)
the lone malm dresser
malm dressers with closets built above
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once the built ins were complete I had to decorate the room.  Naturally, this involved a chalk paint® decorative paint by annie sloan project!  I had a small dresser from an old house that I love, however the finish wasn't right for this room.  Here are the step by step instructions of how I re-did my dresser!

refinishing the dresser and mirror

before:
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after:
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step 1: coat with paint in graphite.  dresser and inside of mirror... . for full coverage I suggest two coats.  The dry time in between coats is about 4 hours.
step 2: applying gold leaf accents.  check out our previous post on how to apply gold leaf - it's so easy I swear!  there are so many gold leaf accents in this room....the chest, the sconces, the mirror, the light fixture...the list could go on and on - I LOVE gold leaf!!
step 2: apply wax to seal.  I use a brush to apply annie's waxes.  they're so soft, I find this to be the easiest way.  Once I apply the wax to a section I immediately wipe back the excess with a soft cloth.  Applying wax is similar to applying lotion to your skin.  You want to rub it in evenly, leaving a thin, even coat everywhere. 
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putting it all together

before:
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after:
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voila!

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how to gold leaf anything...

6/2/2016

2 Comments

 
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for some reason gold leaf has gotten a reputation as being intimidating or difficult to execute.  In fact, it's dangerously easy. so much so that you're going to want to start gold leafing everything - which we are fully guilty of! here is our step by step tutorial on how to gold leaf anything - even this 1970's, plastic candle sconce! 


​Materials:
  • Any type of metal leaf sheets (we used gold however we have silver and copper also)
  • gold size
  • 2" chip brush
  • dark wax 
  • whatever you're leafing!​
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How to:
  • step 1:  applying adhesive. dip your 2" chip brush into a small amount of gold size. lightly brush gold size anywhere you want leaf - a thin coat will do.  let the gold size dry completely (it is dry when it is transparent and shiny) - this is key, you cannot apply leaf to wet size! 
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  • step 2: applying the leaf. once the gold size is dry, lightly "float" a sheet of leaf on the surface with either your hands or a dry brush. the size should "grab" the leaf and once it does use a dry, natural bristled brush to tamp the leaf down into the size.  repeat this step until your entire piece (or wherever you've applied size) is covered by leaf.  you can seal your piece with annie's dark wax to age it a bit and knock down some of the luster (which is what we did).   If you'd like an even more authentic look base coat your piece with chalk paint® decorative paint by annie sloan in primer red.  this color replicates clay boulle, which would be underneath traditionally gilded pieces - this will add even more authenticity to your gold leaf project (for silver leaf use graphite or napoleonic blue underneath)! check out the video below for our exact technique:
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voila!

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After
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