Finally, a finished piece I can post!!

It’s been crazy here with the run up for Christmas and the constant job hunting. However, I have managed to finally finish something, a chest of drawers. I bought this set of drawers from the same store that I got hold of the coffee tables that I painted and decoupaged last month. This set is going to be a Christmas present for my partner.

She has often said how much she loves my turquoise bureau and has mentioned that she needs a new chest of drawers. So it seemed obvious what to get her for Christmas.

Like the bureau, this set of drawers has been painted in 3 layers of colours: red, blue and turquoise, which shows through when the unit is distressed. The whole piece has been given a coat of wax for protection and the drawers have been lined with some wall paper that I had left over from a decorating project.

I love this chest of drawers, but I’m not the one I need to please. I only hope my partner likes it!!

In further news, I've got another couple of projects on at the moment, so check back soon as they should be finished within the next week or so.

Also, some important changes will be made to Furniture Craft in January and I will be announcing some exciting news, so make sure to check back in 2012!

Busy, busy, busy!! I’m afraid that I have no pictures to show at the moment. Not because I’ve got no projects on, quite the opposite really, I have a couple of un-finnished projects on at the moment!

I am currently doing a decoupage side/coffee table. It will look really good when it’s done, but it is taking longer than expected. Also, I bought a really nice little stool that I thought had a lot of character. However, I didn’t factor in the amount of work that it would take to make something of this stool.

It had been painted (badly) in white gloss by the previous owner, but it had a certain charm about it, so I bought it and proceeded to attempt to remove the gloss. I had forgotten how much work can be involved in removing gloss paint..... NIGHTMARE!!!!!

I started by attempting to sand it off, but quickly gave up and turned to a chemical paint remover. However, the paint was so thick that it required three treatments and loads of sanding and cleaning to get the blasted stuff off – a full day’s work for a little stool!

But never mind, the paint is off now and I’m ready to start decoupaging it. I am thinking of using some of the stamps that I’ve got left over to create a piece that matches the coffee table. It should look lovely when it’s finished, but I cannot help think that it has perhaps been a little too labour intensive?

I should hopefully have them finished soon and will post some pictures as soon as they are completed.

Winter Has Arrived!

Brrrrrr, winter has well and truly arrived in Cumbria. The nights are drawing in, the days are becoming ever shorter and it's now not possible to leave the house without a thick winter coat on (unless you're my daughter who seems impervious to the cold)! 

However, all clouds have a silver lining and with the end of the summer and outdoor season, I’m looking forward to spending more time on my various furniture projects, as well as taking photo's of Carlisle in the frost and snow. Carlisle looks fantastic in the snow, but even if we don't get any, the frost should make for some nice pictures!

Aside from the usual furniture projects that I seem to be continually doing, I have decided to have a go at decorating picture frames for possible Christmas presents for people, as well as having a go at making my own cards for all my family and friends this year. This will be the first truly homemade Christmas as I have virtually no money and lots of time on my hands. I will of course be buying my children gifts, but everyone else will be getting something homemade. I’m also considering making some of my own Christmas decorations as the ones I have stored in the attic are getting quite tatty and need replacing.

I will post pictures of anything that I make on this blog and, if I create something that I think works especially well, I will also make sure to add some step-by-step instructions.

Narnia Themed Christmas Present

Christmas is looming and I’ve been busy trying to come up with cheap gifts for my family. Aside from my kids, who will be getting bought prezzies, everyone else will be getting homemade or up-cycled gifts. The first gift that I have made has been this little nest of tables for my Mum.

She has mentioned on several occasions that she needs to get herself some new coffee tables, as she only has one remaining table from a cheap set that she bought a few years ago. I have been keeping an eye open for a set of tables that I could give to her for quite a while and, whilst I was exploring a newly opened second-hand furniture store near to where I live, I found these little tables. They were very tatty, but perfect for up-cycling and so were on sale for next to nothing.

All I had to buy was a tin of aged effect white paint and an old copy of ‘The Voyage of the Dawn Treader’ which I found in a used book store. I still had loads of primer, brushes, glue and rollers left over from other projects so the whole gift has ended up costing very little and I know she’ll love it!

I’ve added more pictures of the finished tables to the gallery. I’ll also be adding a link to my twitter page soon, so keep an eye out for this. I’ve just started another project today which I hope to have completed by next weekend, so pictures will be added soon and I am currently developing a shop on the website Folksy, which should be up and running in the next few days. So there’ll be lots going on over the next few weeks. I will add links to everything as they become available and remember to check out my regular mid-week Happy Wednesday posts for that little middle of the week pick-me-up!

VW Beetle Decal

Continuing with the theme of VW's, today's Happy Wednesday photograph is of a decal that I recently got from Dali Decals.

I saw a picture of it on their website and had to have it for one of my living room walls (which has loads of electrical wires inside it making it extremely difficult to hang a picture).

I love this decal and would highly recommend Dali Decals to anyone wanting a decal. It went up so easily and has become a real talking point when people come round to visit. I believe that they even make custom decals if you ask them!

Simon's Cat

I was having a chat with a very good friend today about cats. We both have a cat and love them and, after a couple of minutes, the conversation turned to the YouTube cartoons Simon's Cat.

These little animations are so funny. I find it hard to watch them and not see a lot of my own cats characteristics in Simon's Cat.

I have chosen my favourite Simon's Cat animation for today's Happy Wednesday. This was the first Simon's Cat animation I saw and I still think it's the funniest. I've seen it many times but it still makes me laugh out loud when ever I watch it!

Stamp Decoupage Stool

I bought  an old stool from a secondhand furniture warehouse a couple of weeks ago. I really liked it and, although it was a bit tatty, I thought it was quite quirky. However, I had absolutly no idea what I was going to do with it! During the same week, I bought a bag of used Danish stamps off EBay for another project and, when the stamps arrived, I was completely taken aback by how amazingly colourful they were (the pictures on EBay didn't do them justice). They were far too good for my other project and, seeing as how I had this tatty old stool that needed some TLC, the stamps could only have one destination. I often find it funny how inspiration can come from the most unusual places!

I used the colours on the stamps to create a circular decoupage design. The whole surface has been sealed beneath 5 coats of clear lacquer which I find gives a durable finish and does not distort or yellow the original colour in the same way that varnish sometimes does.

The legs were sanded back and given a coat of primer before 3 coats of eggshell paint were added. They were also given a coat of lacquer for protection.

I got so into this project that I completely forgot to photograph my progress, hence the lack of before, during and after pictures that I usually add. Oh well, there's always next time!

Another Happy Wednesday Arrives!!

Happy Wednesday everyone!!

Can't believe another week's gone by so quickly! For today's Happy Wednesday I have chosen my favourite video from YouTube. It's a slide show of classic VW Beetles. Okay, so the music's not the best in the world, but this video never fails to put a smile on my face (I am a little beetle crazy sometimes). I love it and watch it regularly, dreaming of the day that I'll eventually be able to afford a Dub of my own!

Hope you enjoy the video.

Current Projects

Hello people and wow, what a busy week!

A quick scroll through this blog and it's probably quite obvious that Furniture Craft is not a full-time job for me, it's not even a part-time job. It is more of a hobby that absorbs a lot of my time! I am actually a fully qualified physiotherapist, but have sadly been unemployed for several months as there has been some major shake-ups in the NHS recently and jobs in Cumbria are becoming few and far between!

However, this week I had my first proper interview for a long time so, fingers crossed something will come my way soon. I will however, still want to devote as much time as possible to re-funking furniture and will hopefully have a little more money to spend on Furniture Craft.

So I'm afraid that this week I have no finished pieces of furniture to photograph and post. I am in the middle of a couple of projects, one being a bookcase that I'm making from reclaimed wood and another  being a decoupaged stool, using coloured Danish stamps for decoration. I will post photographs when they are finished, hopefully by next week, and may be putting the stool up for sale online.

This blog is updated very regularly so keep checking back, bookmark Furniture Craft or better yet, join this site. I have no members yet so be the first and don't forget to check back each Wednesday for Happy Wednesdays!!

Keep smiling!! :-)

Not inspirational, but very funny!!

Ok, so the clip I have chosen for today's Happy Wednesday is not inspirational. Nor will it make you think deep thoughts or compel you to create wonderful pieces of art or poetry. But it might make you laugh!

So enjoy Futurama's Cylon and Garfunkel!!!!

Welsh Dresser

I bought this neglected old Welsh dresser from a house clearance centre near to where I live. When I saw it, the doors were hung the wrong way round and were falling apart, the shelves had missing screws, the handles were covered in a thick layer of grease and the whole thing was biffed and scratched all over. But despite all this, I really loved it!

Below are a few pictures from the renovation and re-painting process. Because of the damaged/missing parts, the doors and display section had to be completely dismantled, repaired and were re-assembled.

The original Welsh Dresser after I brought it home

The display section after it was dismantled and repaired

Primed and ready for painting

It was painted using an eggshell, distressed it and finished it with a protective coat of natural beeswax

The handles were replaced and hooks added to hang cups. I left the original top un-painted as I like the beat-up, scratched and stained look of the wood. This is one of my favourite pieces of furniture!

There are more pictures of the Dresser in the Gallery.

The First Happy Wednesday!

Of all the days in the week, Wednesday has to be the worst! The good feeling from the weekend has long since departed and it's still 2 full days until the next one. In a job I once had, we always called Wednesdays 'Tax-Man Day' as it was the day we effectively worked for free, to pay our national insurance and income tax. To this day, I still call Wednesdays Tax-Man Day!

Ugh, I really don't like Wednesdays.

I know loads of other people who have the same feelings about Wednesdays and that's where the idea of 'Happy Wednesdays' has come from (I'm afraid I've nicked the name from a long extinct Indie night at a club that I used to go to)!

So here it is. Every week I will post a picture, a piece of art or poetry, or a video that I find inspiring. I know that it'll take more than a picture or video to change Wednesdays to anything other than the worst day of the week. But if it can brighten up this day a little bit, then it's definitely worth it.

For the very first Happy Wednesday I have used one of my own pictures and haiku poems. I took this picture whilst out kayaking last year. It is a picture of a mountain called Cat Bells, as seen from my kayak on Derwentwater, near Keswick in the Lake District. I am very lucky to live so close to such inspiring and beautiful countryside. I wrote the Haiku to describe my feelings about the joy of kayaking in the Lake District. It is the only poem I have ever written, not really one of my skills but I think it works alright on this picture.

Please remember to check back next week for Happy Wednesday, which I promise won't always be my attempts at photography or poetry!

My Narnia Wardrobe

I have loved the Narnia stories for as long as I can remember! When I was little, I used to imagine that one day I would find an old wardrobe and be magically transported to Narnia, where I would fight witches, meet talking animals and learn to ride a Pegasus. I suppose I have never really stopped looking for the land inside the wardrobe and, when I saw a wonderfully old and bashed up wardrobe in a second-hand furniture warehouse a few years ago, I knew I had to have it.

I have seen plenty of old wardrobes during the many wasted hours that I have spent in second-hand shops and house clearance centres, but this wardrobe really caught my eye. If any had the potential of hiding a magical kingdom inside, it had to be this one.

So I bought it. And for several years I used it daily, never quite having the guts to do anything with it (I was very worried that I might mess up my favourite piece of furniture)!

However, a couple of months ago I decided to redecorate my bedroom and, whilst I was clearing out my bits and bobs, I came across 2 old and extremely tatty copies of The Magicians Nephew and The Last Battle. I thought long and hard and decided that, if I didn't do something with my wardrobe whilst the room was empty, then I probably never would. So the decision was made and I have to say that it was one of the best decisions that I have ever made!

Below are a few pictures of the finished wardrobe.

 

I decoupaged (I'm not sure if that’s even a word) pages from the books and placed some of the illustrations over the text. The metal handles, hinges etc. were spray painted in matt black (as they were a horrible rusty colour) and the whole piece was painted in antique white and distressed.



I painted the interior of the wardrobe in blue and stuck on lots of gold and silver stars to remind me of the magical world that can be found within my Narnian wardrobe.

I love my wardrobe and it is still my favourite piece of furniture! I've put more pictures of the Narnia wardrobe up on the Gallery page

The Saga of the Bookcase Continues......

I may have finally solved my book storage problem! I was out and about last Friday when I saw a big pile of old pallets at the side of a local plumbing centre. I couldn’t resist and asked the manager of the store if I could take some of them. I don’t think he was too happy that I was not buying anything from his store (either that or he was just generally grumpy), but he did very kindly alow me to take as much wood as I wanted. I just wish that I had a bigger car with a large boot!

On my way home, with a car full of fantastic weathered wood, I began to wonder what I was going to make with it. I have always liked the old style wooden apple crates and so I thought that I could make some vintage style crates for storage.

I’ve now made a crate and it looks really cool (I promise to post some pictures soon) and I’ve probably got enough wood to make another 3 or 4. After some thought, I have decided to make the extra crates and see how they look stacked on their sides. If they look as I imagine them, they could make a really unusual bookcase, and if they don't, at least I’ll have some vintage crates for storage!

I’ll keep you all posted on my progress!

Asterix Decoupage Chair

My Sister turned 30 last June - sorry Jo, but everyone now knows how old you are (hehehe)! Unfortunately, last June was not the best time, financially speaking, for a milestone birthday in the family. As I had just finished a lengthy degree and had not yet found work, it would be fair to say that I was completely and utterly skint. However, I had just had a clear-out at home which resulted in me having a spare wooden dining chair. So I decided to decorate this chair as her 30th birthday present.

The chair was quite rickety (which is why it had become a spare chair), so before I did anything decorative, I took the chair apart so that any lose, broken or missing parts could be replaced or repaired. While it was disassembled, I sand papered all the old paint off and gave it a coat of primer, ready for painting.

My sister loves Asterix and I happened to have a tatty old copy of "Asterix and the Cauldron" in my bookshelf. It really was a no-brainer as to what would be the perfect theme for the chair so, whilst the primer was drying, I began to decoupage the base of the chair with pictures cut out of the comic. The whole base was finished with 3 coats of floor varnish (I find it doesn't yellow as much as furniture varnish) and the chair legs and backrest were painted in a pale green eggshell, which really went well with the pale colours of the cartoon pictures.

Finally the whole piece was reassembled and given to my Sister.

Below are a few photo's of the finished chair.

Thanks for looking, more furniture to be added soon!!

I Need a Bookcase

I’m on a mission: to gradually donate all my horrible, boring and uninspiring flat-pack furniture to a local charity, whilst replacing them with interesting and unusual vintage pieces.

I have been really enjoying hunting for really cool unloved furniture, but I do seem to have come to a bit of an impasse. I desperately need to replace my 3 shelved flat-pack bookcase which, aside from being extremely flimsy and boring, is on the verge of collapse. I don’t really want to start a new large scale project until I have found something that could be used as a bookcase. That’s the problem, I’m running out of space!

I enjoy reading and love books. I recently had a book cull (which has made the local Oxfam store very happy) and almost halved the number of books I own. But it still isn’t enough. I now have books in draws, books in boxes and books in cupboards.

So, with storage space for new books almost non excitant, I made the only logical decision that any well adjusted and right minded individual would make. I bought a new book! And not just a little paper back, OH NO, I large hardback copy of Rachel Ashwell's Shabby Chic Interiors.

Although I am creating far more problems for myself than I probably should, in my defence I say only this: It is a fantastic book with loads of very inspirational ideas which will no doubt end up, in some form or another, in this blog.

I only hope I find a bookcase soon, before I find myself buried under hardback covers and pages of print!

The Turquoise Bureau

This Bureau was painted last summer. I bought it from a second-hand furniture warehouse and it was a horrible dark brown, as well as being pretty beat up. It was however, structurally very sound and it worked perfectly (they don't make them as strong as this anymore)! I believe it dates from around the 1930's, but if anyone has any further information on this then please get in touch and I'll change the date.

I painted the bureau in red, then blue and finished in a really funky turquoise and, when distressed, the two under colours came through the turquoise which gives it a lovely effect.

The whole piece has been finished in a coat of beeswax for protection.

 

I gave the inside a lick of paint as well, finishing it in the red and blue that I used as under coat for the outside of the bureau. Again, the inside has been given a coat of beeswax.

The handles were spray painted gold and distressed with using black acrylic.

My New Blog

Hello and welcome to my new blog!!!
For quite a long time now, I have been slowly re-invigorating some of the old pieces of furniture that I have had lying around my home. I have even begun to look for quirky second-hand pieces that I can repair and up-cycle into new pieces of funky furniture.

I have been regularly uploading images of my furniture to my facebook page and have received very positive feedback. Many of my friends have also commented on the unusual vintage furniture that I have in my home.

This is not to say that I have not made any mistakes while I've been re-funking furniture (I've made more than I can remember)! But I have thoroughly enjoyed the learning process and continue to develop ideas and skills as I complete more pieces.

So here it is, a blog to showcase my furniture. I hope, in time, to add lots of photo's of my finished pieces of furniture, as well as workshops and tutorials on how to re-funk your own furniture. I also hope to set up an online shop where some of my pieces will be available for sale.

Please follow this blog, or check back regularly, as new items will be uploaded regularly!

See you soon,

Steve.