I have a love/hate relationship with custom work. I love the work because painting is what I love to do. The more there is, the happier I am. But, when I am commissioned to paint a piece for a specific person with a specific style in a specific color my nerves go a little hay wire. What if they don’t like it? What if the color didn’t turn out the way the expected it too? What if it doesn’t match the rest of the stuff in their house?
When someone walks in and is awed by their finished piece I am more than gratified. When they cry because a family heirloom has been reborn into something they went from hating to loving, I am humbled!
Earlier in January, I was asked to customize six pieces of furniture. I was so excited. This wasn’t just slapping on some paint and topping it off with wax. This was REAL CUSTOM WORK! Decorative finishes and artistic touches.
The first big piece I tackled was this old buffet.
I stripped off two heavily applied coats of old paint on the top to reveal beautiful oak. The grain was so deep, it was impossible to get all of the paint out.
The base is two coats of Old Ochre Chalk Paint® with a coat of Clear Wax, touches of Dark Wax to shade the edges and gold gilding wax around the knobs and shadowing the edges of the drawers.
The effect, which doesn’t translate well in the photographs is the hint of shine that you see in the gold when the light hits it just right.
This entire piece has that rustic yet classic element to it. The MMS Milk Paint stained wood top keeps it a bit more formal, but the dark wax shaded along the edges add the rustic element and antique patina. It’s the gold gilding that give this a real pop and individuality that fits with the rest of the furniture that will be going into the room.
Read The Backlog of Custom Orders-Project 2: The Antique Hall Tree
