070709JJ's-Chest-of-Drawers.jpgYou might remember Hilary from about a month ago; she sent in her Angelus Vintage Modern Buffet Refinish Project with details of how she redid the vintage piece. Well she's been so kind to followup with a new project, this time color washing some drawers in "granny effect"...

070709JJ's-Chest-of-Drawers2.jpgHilary of Pink Pianos describes her project:

Here's another redo I thought you might be interested in. I acquired another vintage piece this time by Stanley furniture. It was solid wood and I truly wanted a drastic change from the "granny" look it had. I imagined I was designing for little boy's room and here's what I came up with.

I have been practicing some different finishing techniques. For this one I used color washing; it's a cool effect that can be applied to most wooden finds.

I went for this piece because of its shape. The drawers were solid wood along with the majority of the structure. I have been experimenting with some different color washing techniques and thought this would be a good chance to try them out.

A glaze can be achieved by mixing dry pigment or acrylic paint to a water-based latex paint. I had a white latex on hand. In order to keep the colors really saturated, I used 5 parts of acrylic and only a 1 parts latex base as a medium. Then added water, an old friend of mine used to say aim for the consistency of half n' half. 

I applied the paint to the strategically sanded drawers, let it set for a moment, then wiped it away with a damp sponge. As you can see, the pigment seeps into the wood leaving a gradient surface. I liked this feel for an old piece soon to be in a little boy's room! 

The numbers were something I added using charcoal and a font. They are a nod to artist Jasper Johns.
When finishing the piece, I sprayed on a Spar urethane varnish designed to protect against the sun and elements. This way the numbers would not smudge when wiped down with a damp cloth. This glazing technique could be used on any wooden furniture to give it a whimsical feel.

Thanks Hilary!

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