Friday Update ~ 09/04/2015

Somehow I have let two weeks go by with no updates or posts.  Things have busy and as you know, the blog is put on the back burner when work and life gets crazy.  I promise I am here, I am just working hard.  Instagram has become my favorite social media since it is quick and easy.  Be sure to follow me to get all the behind the scenes updates.

MASTER BATHROOM

The bathroom is prepped and ready for the new countertop to be installed today!  I am so excited.  The backsplash, sink and faucets should be done in the next week or two.  Also, remember that the second sink was on the right?  Here is a pic.

The two drawers under that sink were dummy drawers.  Just drawers fronts attached to the front of the vanity.  I took those drawer fronts and built an actual drawer for them.  I stole drawer guides from the guest bath to use with the new drawers.  

The goal was try to finish by September but obviously that didn't happen so new goal is finish by November.

FURNITURE

Furniture has been out of control!  It is such a blessing to have consistent work.  In August, I refinished the Ebony & Brass buffet and its matching china cabinet, painted the White & Brass dresser, painted two dressers navy, AND refinished a large dresser plus painted two end tables for my master bedroom.  Oh.  And I painted my bedroom a new color (remember it is getting a mini makeover).  Right now I am working on a large desk, sofa table and bed for a client and with all the rain this week I am behind schedule.  EEK!  Looks like I will be working this labor day weekend.

Ebony & Brass Buffet.  Be sure to check out all the before and afters.

White & Brass

China Cabinet progress photos.  The reveal will be next week.

The dresser I refinished for our bedroom.  Reveal will be next week.

End tables I painted for our bedroom.  Their reveal will be soon.

Navy dresser progress.

MISCELLANEOUS

The month is another busy one. Blittle's parents will possibly visit next week, the few last weekends of the month plus first weekend of October are booked with parties and weddings (all out of town), and there is a good chance I will be headed to Round Top the last week of September.  Plus, I still need to do a few things for my sailing class so I can enroll for the next round (hopefully take in October) and they have to be done on a Saturday.  

We are starting a new home project next week.  A while back I mentioned that we wanted to change our side yard to a rock patio area.  The equipment is getting delivered today and the guy will do the dig out work on Monday. I am a little nervous about this one.  Right now there is no real plan, budget or timeline (mostly because right now we don't much free time).  It should be cheap and easy but things don't always go as planned.  

The grass has never grown well in the area and it is a bit of wasted space.  We want to do a pebble/flagstone patio area with a large fire pit, more outdoor seating, and a dining area.  The grill will be moved over to this space as well as a smoker we want to build.  Most of those things will happen over time but the goal now is to get the patio area and fire pit done in time for oyster season.  Roasted and chargrilled oysters are on the menu for fall!

I hope everyone has a great holiday!  We will be laboring on this labor day weekend.  :)  

Next week I will posting some items available to purchase.  Mostly furniture and a few home decor items.  I have been purging through some things and now that most of our rooms are set up and decorated I need to get rid of the left overs.  Be sure to check my Facebook page and here to see what is for sale.

Ebony & Brass Buffet Makeover

So several months ago, a woman in my neighborhood contacted me about buying some furniture from her.  I am always in the market for furniture especially when it finds me...and is only a mile away.  A dining set that includes a buffet, china cabinet, dining table and 6 chairs was part of the purchase.  Originally I thought about keeping the buffet for me and using it as storage/dresser in our bedroom but it isn't the right piece for that.  Fast forward a few months and my mom expressed some interest in it.  She is currently trying to furnish their apartment in Houston and rearrange/change the furniture in their Mid-County home.

After some discussion, measuring, planning and trips to the storage unit, she decided to take the entire set!

Just a little note about the furniture:  The set has Max Barnett stamped on them.  Max Barnett was a well known furniture store in New Orleans that occupied the Art Deco building at 600 Carondelet until the 1970s.  The building was recently purchased and is currently being renovated into a hotel.  The licensing info I can find on Max Barnett says it started in 1908 but after the 1970s I am not sure what happened.


The furniture is great quality, heavy and well built.  It has been neglected a little over the years but I am hopeful all the pieces can be beautiful again.

The buffet had its makeover first and the result is stunning.  This is definitely one of the best before and afters of Fisherman's Wife Furniture.  I love that my mom wanted it stained (I didn't really give her a choice) and the wood was preserved.

Here are the before pictures.

Obviously the piece is in decent shape and is a pretty design but up close you can see the wear and tear its had over the years.

The pulls are brass so they were polished back to their bright, clean finish.  (See my How to Polish Brass Tutorial here.)

The entire piece was stripped and sanded before stain could go on.  Almost all the imperfections were fixed with sanding and I only had to fill a few places where the veneer damage was extreme.  Thankfully my mom helped out on this project!  Thanks, Mom.

She loves to paint furniture black.  Its a thing.  We don't even ask anymore what color she plans to paint stuff so I wasn't shocked when she said she wanted the piece stained ebony.  HAHA.  Of course.  The thing I love about Minwax Ebony stain is the rich, dark color still shows the grain.  The ebony stain and the mahogany wood are a perfect pair.  It took two coats of stain to get the rich color then I did 3 coats of clear coat.  

Pictures do not capture how beautiful this finish is.   

Here are the after shots.

Gorgeous! It has been given new life.

I mentioned before she bought the entire set.  So guess what I am working on this week?!

This guy was stripped and sanded today.  I am so excited to see its transformation.

SHARING AT:

Monday - Inspire Me Monday (Sand & Sisal,  My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia, Domestically Speaking, Sweet C’s Designs)  Made by you Monday (Skip To My Lou)

Tuesday -  Show and Share (Coastal Charm)

Wednesday:Wow Us Wednesday (Savvy Southern Style), Inspire Me Wednesday (Seven Thirty Three, Happiness is Homemade) Be You tiful (Art is Beauty)  Wednesday Before and After (The Dedicated House)

Thursday: What To Do Weekends (Crafts ala Mode ),  The Best DIY Party at the Handmade Hangout (A Glimpse Inside, Christina’s Adventures, From Gardners to Bergers, Redoux Interiors, Too Much Time on My Hands), Creativity Unleashed (Practically Functional, Shaken Together, One Project Closer, The Bold Abode, and The DIY Village)

Friday:  The Party Bunch (The Idea Room, 30 Handmade Days, Whipperberry, The 36th Avenue),  Anything Goes (Bacon Time),  Be. You. Tiful Link Party (Chic California), Creativity Unleashed (Practically Functional, Shaken Together, One Project Closer, The Bold Abode)  Fabulously Creative Friday (Jennifer Rizzo Blog)   

Brass is Back

My body is in shock and is protesting this cold weather.  I mean, really.  Did Mother Nature forget it is Spring?  It is mid-April in Southeast Texas and feels like 35 degrees outside.  Yesterday, I sewed curtains all day to be productive and hide from the weather.   Let's just say, it wasn't an overly productive day with the curtains.  I did however, get a few things done around the house and worked on a few little brass treasures I have inherited recently.

These are before pictures.

1920s Painted Cabinet

I have finished the cabinet...finally!  Illness, weather, other projects and a bit of lazy made this project drag on a lot longer than it should have but it is now ready for a new home!

Updating the Outside - The "To do" List

Hi all.  I hope everyone had an amazing weekend.  It was beautiful here.  Spring is around the corner and I can not wait.

Look what I came across this weekend!  I wish I had a place for it in my home, but I don't so it is available for custom finish.  Let me know if you are interested.  It had a 1920 stamped underneath.  I love that!  Its a great piece with tons of character.  It just needs a good home.

Drexel China Cabinet Makeover

Happy Wednesday!

Oh my, it's been cold!  This Texas girl can not handle it.  Lows in the 20s and only getting to the low 40s for a high is unbearable to me.  When I am cold my body gets tense and starts to hurt.  My friends give me a hard time for carrying a jacket with me everywhere I go, even in the summer.  I grew up in Southeast Texas (Beaumont area) and now live near Galveston and that is as far north as I can go.  My friends and I joke that we will never live north of I-10...silly Texans.  But seriously, for those of you who are enduring crazy low temps and just unbelievable wind chills, I hope y'all are staying warm and safe.

So because of my cold (illness) last week and the cold (weather) over the weekend and on Monday, I have been playing catch up the last few days trying to get some big projects finished up.  Remember a few months ago, I found 3 amazing Drexel bow front pieces.  If you don't remember, you can read about it here.  Today, I am going to show you the Drexel China Cabinet!

What A Week!

What a week!

Is there an echo in here?

Didn't last week's post start out with that statement?

Yes, it did but for a totally different reason.

Overflowing with Thankfulness....and Furniture

What a week!   I hope everyone enjoyed their holiday with friends and family.  My husband and I traveled to Southeast Texas Thanksgiving day to see my family, then traveled to central Texas on Saturday to visit his family.  For black Friday, I stayed home and worked.  I hate shopping so staying up super late, standing in line, and risking my life is not for me.

It was a big, BIG week for Fisherman's Wife Furniture!  I was featured by Furniture Flippin' on Wednesday (Read post here) and then my guess post for Remodelaholic was published on Saturday (Read that post here).  I am extremely thankful for both of these companies recognizing my (and my husband) hard work and creativity and helping me grow my business.  There are not enough "thank you"s to anyone that spreads the word about Fisherman's Wife Furniture!

Drexel, Bow Front Pieces

I know I haven't posted all week but honestly, I haven't had anything to post.  :(

A project I am working on now is a gift so I can't show pictures or talk about it which makes me sad because it is really cute.  I can't wait to show y'all.   Another project I am working on is prepping a boat for new paint.  Also,  Blittle and I started building a boat for a friend.   I didn't really think y'all would be interested in our boat projects so I haven't said much about them.

I did decide to put my available pieces in a store located near my neighborhood.  It is called Southern Shores Resale.  It is a cute store with all kinds of decor items for a reasonable price.  If you are in the area check it out!  It is located at 3129 Highway 6, Bayou Vista, Texas 77563.

A Few Updates

So, some how its been over 3 weeks since my last post.  Time flies when you are super busy!  Things have been crazy around here lately.  So crazy I really haven't bothered to take many before pictures or good quality afters.  Here is a quick overview of what I have been up to over the past few weeks.

 One client brought by this family piece and a bench that was made from an old bed.

Before

Before

After

After

I bought this dresser a while back and finally had time to work on it.

Before

After

After

After

Remember this dresser?

It was purchased for a baby girl nursery.  The client already had a creamy, distressed, glazed mirror and wanted her other nursery furniture refinished to match.  She had purchased a bookcase on Craigslist and ordered a Jenny Lind baby bed in white.  Now they both match the mirror and coordinate with the dresser.  It is going to be a super cute nursery!

Here is a desk that I refinished for a friend.  It is a family piece they wanted painted to match the beds in their girls' room.

Before

Before

Before

After

After

After

After

And another little project.  I have been working on changing this beautiful dresser into an entertainment center.  It already had a drawer front cut off by the previous owner.  She had started the project and couldn't finish so she contacted me to see if I could do something with it.  Since one drawer front was cut off, I couldn't use it as a dresser so I figured I'd stick with the entertainment center idea.  The dresser is solid wood (SUPER HEAVY) and has gorgeous lines.  I love it.  They do not make pieces like this anymore. I will post after pictures in the next few days.

I have been busy with several other things but they are not ready for posting.  Did I mention how busy the past few weeks have been?  On top of all of this, we went home to Texas this past weekend to watch my brother's girlfriend graduate with her Master's degree.  What an accomplishment!  So proud and excited for her. 

I will have the entertainment center finished in the next few days and will post a picture of it as soon as possible.   I hope everyone has a wonderful week and safe Memorial day weekend!