End Table Re-Do

I found this wood end table online for $15.  Oh what color shall I choose to paint?  The lines are simple so I think I will go a little brighter.  I have also decided to go with a layered paint look and moderate to heavy distressing.  



I will use what I have around the house.  Maison Blanc Vanilla and Annie Sloan Provence.  I will also use a clear wax finish.  

I started by painting some white paint in the areas that i will sand and want some of the white to show through.  I know there are different techniques out there but I always paint with the grain.  The exception is if there is a top with an inlay design.  In this case I use the crosshatch paint stroke.  

I did not fully paint the table as it would be a waste of paint.  I only want it to show through in certain areas when sanding.

After a light coat, I let dry and added a second coat.  I didn't add it very thick where I want the white to show through.  If I did, I might have to sand a while to find the bottom color. 

By the way, I use cheap vinyl outdoor table clothes for painting on.  

I also bought a new handle for the drawer at Hobby Lobby, but the holes didn't line up.  So unless you want to make several trips....measure.  "Eyeballing it" ....though my favorite doesn't always work so good. 

I decided instead of returning to the store, I would just work with what I had.  The finished product is really close to what I purchased.  I painted the pull with a black hammered metal spray paint and let dry.  Then I used the vanilla/white paint that I used  on the table to go over the pull.  I put a couple heavy coats.  I want to make the pull look like the paint has built up over time.  

I started sanding it hoping it would not take the black finish with it but that did not work like I wanted it to.  I used my fingernail to chip the top coat in the areas I chose.  It still shows original finish and also the black finish.  

Ta-Da

I scuffed and sanded the table being careful to get the look I want.  If you get too much sanded in an area or don't like the look, you can always paint back over it.  

I used the crosshatch stroke on the inlay and sanded in a circular motion between coats.  

I finished with a couple coats of clear wax.

The Trouble with...Fruit

Fruit is a great thing when its nice and fresh.  The trouble is that is doesn't stay that way.  Sometimes it can go bad in a day or two depending on what it is.  

I bought these strawberries 2 days ago and they looked fine in the store.

But now they where covered with brown spots.  I remembered seeing something on the net about baking strawberries and they would come out like candy....twizzlers to be exact.  I decided to give it a try.

I cut them up and put them on a cookie sheet.  Then into oven on 200 degrees for 4 hours.

I also took the time to get my dehydrator out and dry some of the other fruit that is getting old.  I guess I could keep it in the fridge but I don't like to eat my fruit cold.  I do however like to eat it dried.  Why don't I buy it that way you may ask?  Because it's darn expensive.  

I put a couple racks full of pineapple, some aging Halos, and 3 green apples.  This way I am sure to eat all of the fruit without waste.  This does not take very long to set up and only about 6 hours on the fruit and vegetable setting.  

Now back to the strawberries...

Doesn't look like twizzlers....but does it taste anything like twizzlers?  Uhhh.....NO.  And I really didn't expect that they would.  This was another way to dry them yet it did not work as well as the dehydrator.  They where still soft on the bottom.  I ended up putting them on the dehydrator for about and hour and a half.  

Here is the finished product...

This is a great way to make snacks, save money and prevent waste.  By the way, The pineapple is my favorite as it really is close to candy for me :) 

I Love Re-Do. Whether it be called refurbished, repurposed, recycled or upcycled.  I started out refurbushing houses before all the house flipping shows.  After the housing bubble burst, I switched to furniture repurposing.  Now it is everywhere.  I think I can speak for most of my fellow upcyclers, it is exhausting to constantly come up with ideas just to turn around 6 months later and find them made in mass by China and sold in the US chain stores.  Ugh!  I guess that is all part of the game.  It won't change until our thinking does.  

https://www.facebook.com/retroactivefinds/

If you visit the attached FB site you can see examples of things I have piddled with over the years.  

I have had some ideas over the years of things I would like to try. Some of them I have tried.  They expand above and beyond repurposing furniture and houses.  They have to do with repurposing your everyday life without feeling deprived.  How is this accomplished?  I haven't quite figured it all out but I think I might dedicate this blog to all things that might fall under this concept.  

I think it is important to give our lives value.  Not things in it.  Don't get me wrong....Im not a green absorbed guru nor do I want to be.  But I do like not feeling a slave to the buying system, getting so wrapped up in padding someone else's pockets.  I will be posting about all kinds of things that I have learned along the way.  I also want to complete a couple experiments to see what is or is not necessary.  

If you have found this blog and are of like mind, I am always interested in what others have learned.  I do understand what may work for one person may not work for another....so no judging here.  

And so it begins......