03 June 2008

Another furniture rehab...

I love finding old pieces of furniture that are neglected and worn (and cheap!). Sometimes all they need is a little love (and fabric and paint) to make them into something beautiful. They usually aren't valuable antiques, in fact, they rarely are. But that doesn't mean that they can't be beautiful.

Here's a little piece that I fixed up for a dear friend. She is decorating one of her little girls' rooms and I thought that she might like it. I'd better hurry up and take it to her before she has a chance to read my blog!

I found this ugly, ugly vanity stool at a thrift store for about $6.00. OoooooWeeeee - Look at that loverly sponge paint job! And that fabric? To die for!


As beautiful as she is, I thought maybe I could spruce her up a bit.

Her joints were a little loose but a bit of Gorilla Glue fixed that right up. A little sanding to get rid of the sponge paint texture. New fabric for the seat and...

Poof! Voila!



Me likey! I just love that pink and green toile. Kind of makes me wish I had a little girl too.

95 comments {Click here to leave a comment}:

Marie said...

Oh I likey too! I likey a LOT! That vanity stool is absolutely adorable!!!

Amanda Jo said...

That is cute!

So are you a primer & spray paint or a sand & paint kind of girl?

Anonymous said...

That is too adorable. I'm sure they will love it.

Blanca

Tiffany said...

What a pretty bench! It will be perfect in a little girl's room.

Nicole said...

You are good! That bench was hideous before, I really didn't think you could revive it. You did an awesome job, I love it!!!

Susan of Pink Portuguese Roses said...

Wonderful Job! I just can't get enough looking at it...LOL! That would go great in my daughter's room. Are you sure it's not for me? HAHAHA!

I'll have to keep my eye out for a chair like that.

Have a great day!

Susan
Pink Portuguese Roses

aimee said...

Just adorable. Usually when I see sponge painting circa 1992, I run screaming the other way. I really need to train my eye to look past sponge painting.

Your friend is going to LOVE it!!!

AJ said...

Ohhh!! I love it! Where did you find that toile?

Debbie said...

KIMBA!!! That is gorgeous! I am so inspired to do that with an old chest I have. I just love it!

Anonymous said...

I just love it!! I think you may have a one of a kind. Enjoy :o)

Jo said...

Wow, that is the perfect shade of pink for that stool. Great fabric too!

Anonymous said...

WOW I just love it. Great find. Enjoy :o)

My Three Girls (The A girls) said...

You have a great eye for things.I would have looked at it and ran the other way. Are you sure you do not want to move to NY and be my best friend???? So you can help me?

So is that paint from can or spray paint??? And the toile is so pretty, where did you find that?

I am just going to go through my life copying ideas from you and the Nester...hope you do not mind.

Kim said...

That turned out great and the fabric is so cute!

Joy said...

Sooooo Sweet! Great Job!

Kimba said...

Since some of you asked...

The fabric is just from Joanne. It was on sale for like $5.00 a yard. I think I bought 1/2 a yard and that was more than enough for this project.

The paint is just Rustoleum spray paint. It was their American Accents line and the color is Sweet Pea in the satin finish.

I sanded the stool a little to take off the texture from the sponge painting. Then I primed with white spray primer. Then a couple of coats of the pink.

If you could see it in person, you would see that is clearly not perfect. There are some little bumps and drips. The old paint was a little drippy and I only did a so-so job sanding off the old drips. I don't mind though. It just gives it a little character.

Susan of Pink Portuguese Roses said...

Hey...no problem! LOL! Sounds like something I would do...LOL!!!

I hope you'll come by again! I just posted a new entry.


Live...Laugh...Love!

Susan
Pink Portuguese Roses

Kat said...

Okay, you kinda scared me there for a minute. I thought you were really liking the sponge paint and fabric in the first picture!!

I love, love, love, love the end result. Love.
Kat :)

Anonymous said...

OK, my thrift store NEVER has anything with this much potential. Much less for six bucks! Love the bench. Actually, I need this for my foyer. Would you care to send it to me in Alabama?? :)

Love it!!
Brandi

Heather said...

Oh My! Me likey too!!! I am the same way- my husband says I am on some kind of mission to save every piece of ugly and neglected furniture. It is so gratifying! This bench is fantastic! You do very good work! I love the toile too! Your flowers/yard looks so pretty.
Thank you for the sweet and encouraging comment on my post today. The way you worded it was so eloquent........it made me feel........ not so silly!! You are such a doll! Thank You!!
-Heather :)

Tiffany said...

Pink and Toile...AHHHHHHHH I LOVE IT!

The Farmer Files said...

Those are my favorite colors!

Gretchen said...

LOVE IT!
The pink is perfect!

Please tell us where you find this good 'junk'!

Caren said...

Absolutely adorable! Like the girl above me asked, where do you find this stuff? For $6 I would have been all over that one too!

Timalee said...

What a difference! I need to start paying more attention to things like this at thrift stores, I would have never before been inspired to paint furniture pink, but this is gorgeous!

Gina said...

Lovely!!! Great job!! You're my kind of gal- I love to make old things new again!

Rue said...

That turned out darling! You really have an eye for these things :)

Have a great night and chin up. Someone will buy your house soon :)

hugs,
rue

Kimba said...

Some of you asked where I find my stuff. Mostly thrift stores. I have a great flea market type store near my house that I shop at alot. I keep my eye out for things that have been there for a while and the seller just wants to unload. That's I got the pink bench.

It had been in the sellers booth for a while and he kept marking it down and down. It had reached $8 then he put everything in his both 20% off. I pounced!

I've also been known to do a little trash picking. That's my favorite! FREE! I have a wicker rocker in my garage right now that needs a good bit of work but I think it will be pretty.

Mrs. B said...

Hi Kimba! That stool is GORGEOUS! I love the paint and fabric combo you chose. Beautiful colors!

You had asked me about my hubby's furniture building skills, and the answer is that he's just a regular guy that's good with his tools (snicker, snicker). It's not what he does for a living or anything like that. Usually I find a picture of what I want and we talk together about the design and he figures it out. Believe me, the furniture pieces don't come out exactly perfect, but for the price, I'm willing to live with a few imperfections! I bet your hubby could do it too!

Heathahlee said...

Hey, where'd my comment go? At least I hope this was where I left it, lol! If not, some person is wondering why I'm talking about ugly sponge painted furniture turned beautiful!

Deb said...

So beautiful, I love your choices of color. Deb

Kristen said...

Wow! I'll bet she will love it!!

Angie's Spot said...

Kimba, that seat is gorgeous! Wow! I wish I were that handy. My poor piano is in desperate need of a cute stool for players to sit on, but I could never do anything like that. I'm in awe of your craftiness!

Anonymous said...

Me likey the pink and green too!!! You are making me want to go paint something!

Unknown said...

I am in love with that piece of furniture!

Anna Maria Junus said...

I LOVE this. Not that I hated the other look, but this is so much better.

Love your blog by the way.

Jacki McHale said...

I just became a toile junkie with my daughter... awesome job on the stool by the way!

Jacki
via SITS

Unknown said...

What a beautiful job you did!

United Studies said...

I wish I had your talent!

Visiting from SITS...

ugagirl30 said...

Another great one. I have two girls, so great inspiration piece.

Anonymous said...

That looks beautiful! I have girls and if you'd like you can send it to me. :) It would definitely get some good use.

Anonymous said...

Perfect for a littles girls room!

John Deere Mom said...

That would look perfect in my daugher's room. Great makeover!

Kristi said...

That is adorable! I love toile - and I love making over furniture!!!

Unknown said...

That is so cute. I love doing that as well. Not so much at the moment, as we're preparing to move back to New Zealand.

Joanne's is one of my favourite places to go looking for decorating fabric or sewing fabric, for that matter. They have some great sales and so far,I have about 5 large Rubbermaid bins full of fabric for projects, etc, that will be making the rip home with me :-)

Sunshine said...

Saw you on SITS! Love that bench! You are my kind of girl! I give all my money to people like you! Ha ha...

-Bridget said...

Great job! That turned out just adorable. I think it's awesome you had a vision for what was a very fugly piece.

Sherri said...

That is so cute!!!

Sheri said...

WOW! Could you maybe do a "how to" on the upholstery part? I have a dressing table that I love, but the seat needs some new fabric and I have not a CLUE how to go about changing it.

EmBee said...

Love the architectural design of the stool... Any high-end store would price this piece over $200.

Wish I had the vision for pieces like this. Great Job!

Anonymous said...

Yeah, I'm jonesing for that fabric now. And the stool. Did you really give it to your friend or can I buy it?

Suzanne said...

What a beautiful transformation. I'm crazy for toile and the pink and green combo is so cute but difficult to find around here. I also would love to find a similar bench. Thanks for the inspiration.

- Suzanne, the Farmer's Wife

Mama Dawg said...

That is gorgeous. I like to do that kind of stuff, too. But nothing like what you've done. Wondeful job. Came to you via SITS.

Gina said...

Ok, Now could you do one in periwinle, pink, and limegreen? My girls need one, too. I'm going junking today- I'll have to see what I can find.
Gotta love SITS!

Finding Normal said...

So cute!

Tiffany said...

You already know how I feel about the toile and the pink.... D.E.L.I.C.I.O.U.S

Simply Stork said...

all that cuteness and no girl???(lol)

what a great make over...so cute :o)

~simply~

Anonymous said...

Beautiful transformation! You are inspiring!

Adiel | Rose Gold Lining said...

Wow, thats pretty good work!

One Crazy Chick! said...

A!MAZING!

Anonymous said...

It came out great!! Don't you just love Gorilla Glue? I use it for EVERYTHING!

Jennifer P. said...

Could you do that same kind of amazing transformation....but on my face :)?! Some days I just feel a little sponge-painted and green.

Lula! said...

My decorator said to offer you $100 for this. I'm thinking it's worth at least more. Koo Koo Bear Kids, Land of Nod, Pottery Barn Kids...are you LISTENING???

Cecily R said...

Oh, that is adorable!!! I DO have a daughter...two actually. Can we be friends so you will want to make me--I mean THEM one? I promise I am way fun to talk to on the phone and I will make brownies when you visit!!!

Claremont First Ward said...

Wow. I think my MIL has the original stool. You did wonders with yours!

Missy said...

Wow Kimba! That is gorgeous! Ok, so for the completely non-crafty, can you clarify how you got the fabric to lay so flat on the cushion? Seriously, I know you're probably cracking up and asking yourself: "is this chick for REAL?" Yep, I'm for real. For real non-crafty. (: You are going to force me to run out and try to find some bargains of my own...

KatBouska said...

Woo hoo. I love your before and after posts!



ps I think it's too soon to tell what's going to happen today. My numbers are definitely still high for me...I'll let you know late afternoon!!

Rhea said...

A much improved make-over!! LOVE it! The new color pops!

Melissa Lester said...

Adorable! I'm sure your friend will flip when she sees the bench. It will probably be her favorite thing in the room!

Maddness of Me said...

I love it. I wish I could see the forest thru the trees like that and thing of things to spruce up like that.

WheresMyAngels said...

I collect stuff and say I am going to do stuff like this, hasn't happened yet! Want to come fix it up for me~!! lol

Judy Schwartz Haley | CoffeeJitters.Net said...

wow! what a transformation!

starsgoblue said...

Beautiful work. I wish I was as creative as you!

Sarah Taylor said...

That's one lucky little girl! I like that it's timeless and will grow with her! Great job!
Sarah

Anonymous said...

That is so pretty! I love the fabric you chose. Awesome!

Alison said...

Just lovely. That toile is so, so cute.

Lex the mom said...

That is perfect for a little girls room. Scary, at first I thought you were serious about how purty it was right out the box...*shiver* You've made it into something fabulous, for sure!

Karen said...

So pretty! I love the bright pink...so unexpected!

Tausha said...

the bench is darling! Welcome to thrifts club. We are the girls we love thrift stores, garage and tard sales and other peoples free junk! We stand pround and united and love a great deaL!!
This is definately a peice to be proud of! I wish i was your friend!

Laural Out Loud said...

That bench is AWESOME! I love it! It made me realize just how much I need something like that in my daughter's room, lol. I guess I'll give the ol' creative thing a try.

Nichole said...

what talent and drive. i'm a starting but have a hard time finishing. great inspiration!

Lori said...

SITS sister here. Lovely job; I'm sure she will love it!

Melanie Dickens said...

Awesome job. I love to see the old made new.

scargosun said...

Oh! I love it!!! I might have to send you a couple pics of a desk I picked up last year that I wanted to make over. I am just not sure how to get started.

Anonymous said...

OMG-When I saw the first photo, I thought that was your FINAL project, and I thought, EW! Tiffany and Heather had lost their minds to be praising you. Thank heaven I continued to read! That chair is gorgeous, and I happen to have one almost exactly like it that I changed the fabric on. Left the wood as-is, though, and it's beautiful. Great job!

Insane Mama said...

Love the chair! Yikes, you are good! And I live for gorila glue, that stuff can hold anything

Michelle said...

Uh-oh! I think I'm about to feel inferior, but I'm ok with that!

The stool turned out gorgeous. And now I know what toile is ;)

Yep, a SITS girl!

Me said...

I LOVE it! Well done! You are my hero.

Anonymous said...

That's amazing. I love the color pink you used.

angela | the painted house said...

Argh! ADORABLE!

Beth said...

omg, i saw the before picture thinking that was the spruced up version. good thing i scrolled! love the fabric! :)Found you through SITS.

Cherie said...

I LOVE THIS!! I am a pink fein and you have inspired me. I have 2 boys and haven't let myself go there. I am so going there!!!!!!

Missi said...

I LOVE this!!!!

Tammy@InStitches said...

You had me at gorilla glue ! lol
I used that same fabric to make a roman shade in my Mom's log cabin, it's dreamy.

lisalott said...

I just love this..any tips on distressing furniture ?. I would also like to email you photos of my projects so that you can tell me how to fix them.