Caitlin and I were talking earlier this week and I was telling her that I feel like we should have some sort of big, epic 2018 announcement to share! But, that’s not the case. I’m relishing the fact that after seven years of business, we are at a point where things are moving right along almost on auto pilot. It is truly a blissful experience to not feel like I am constantly going one step forward while falling two steps behind. I have, in the back of my mind the major highlights of 2017 but feel like that is a post for a different day in the near future. In the meantime, 2018 has already been full of some pretty great things.

First, we have a new color to look forward to in the Miss Mustard Seed’s Milk Paint line.

Aviary is the name and it is a rich, smoky blue that is inspired after an antique aviary that Miss Mustard Seed acquired.

As is the case with any new color, I couldn’t wait to paint something and was fortunate enough to have this classic highboy donated by a sweet customer and friend.

Rather than going with the more characteristic chippy nature of milk paint on this particular dresser, I opted for a much simpler finish.

A clean, non-chippy look required about fifteen minutes of extra prep. First, a light sanding with 150 grit sand paper to scuff up the entire piece. Second, a rinse with clean water to remove any dust and dirt. Lastly, a generous amount of bonding primer added to the Aviary mix to provide extra adhesion.

The coverage was phenomenal with this color. One liberal first coat with a very light second coat.

I finished the entire piece with a light sanding with 220 grit sandpaper to smooth the finish and knock down any bits of powder that were stuck in the paint. Then, I sealed it with clear wax.

Having refreshed the knobs with trendy arrows and whimsical birds gave it the final touch and paid homage to the name of the color itself, which will be available sometime in the first quarter of the year (keeping fingers crossed).

The second great thing I have to look forward to this year is welcoming new interns to our team! I’ve interviewed several girls over the past couple of weeks and am really excited to introduce them and see what exciting things they have in store for us.

Finally, the most exciting event of the New Year was going to Kelly’s wedding last week. Having gone through the wedding and baby shower stage of life, it’s far more frequent for me to be invited to a 40th birthday party. Consequently, a wedding is particularly special and Kelly’s was so beautiful. Jerry and I were talking about getting divorced just so we could get married again…as a joke.

So, with just three weeks into the year it’s already full of so much awesomeness. I can’t wait to see what else transpires in 2018 and look forward to taking a look back at how far we came in 2017.