Drexel Accolade Nightstand makeover....

I cringe when I even think about painting any MCM piece but occasionally I bite the bullet and paint. Painted this MCM dresser and chest and have never regretted it...yet.

These little Drexel Accolade campaign "nightstands" are described as "MCM" but my research shows they are from the 1980s...so at best they are "vintage." (I cringe even more describing anything from the 80s as "vintage" since I graduated from college in the 80s!)

These little tables vary in "value." Originally my intent was to sell both as-is. But one had some serious "splash marks" all over it and as much as I tried I could not get it off. My only option was to completely strip and refinish the piece...or paint.

Since I am AGAIN working on the final stages of my den makeover, I decided to paint the one with the serious flaws and use it as a side table. I started to strip and stain it, but I really need a painted piece rather than stained....just my preference. I believe it is important to have a balance of paint and natural wood in any decor and in this case the scales tipped toward paint.

(I will remind you to use extreme caution when painting "vintage" or "antique" pieces...do your research and know what you have FIRST! Make an informed decision before you refinish or paint...you don't want to find out later that you slathered paint on a 1796 colonial side table or spray painted a Hans Wegner chair...just watch "Antique Roadshow")

You can use ketchup or lemon based cleaners to clean brass. Just Google!

The brass hardware on these little tables needed some serious attention!

One interesting tidbit I ran across was how to determine if you have solid brass or brass plated...a magnet...magnets won't stick to solid brass...if it sticks, it is plated...interesting. Mine are solid so that determined how "aggressive" I could be cleaning them.

I'm not sure if a "clear coat" was sprayed on this hardware or age had taken a toll (maybe both), but even my 1/2 and 1/2 mixture didn't cut it. In the end I used a toothbrush, 0000 steal wool, a heavy duty brass cleaner and a ton of elbow grease.

Then I gave the entire piece a little KSTP treatment...Kilz, sand, tack cloth and then paint.

I really like the look of "high gloss" so I went with a high gloss lacquer white...I think the brass really pops against the gloss white and hopefully it will look good with whatever couch I finally set my sights on!

One word of warning I hope all will take seriously...give paint time to "cure." Nothing is more frustrating than spending time and effort making a piece pretty with paint, only to mess it up by putting doo-dads on it too soon! Cure time IS important!!!!

I cleaned up the other and it may be sold...I may hang onto it for the time being to see if I can use it in the den...but I am not really into "matchy-matchy" so I may not use it...who knows. And besides, that brass is a booger to shine up so I'm not really looking forward to doing that again any time soon!!!

You may notice I have a mix of MCM and "traditional" in my den...and that is honestly how I would describe "my style"....eclectic or maybe "transitional"...a little of this and a little of that. It allows me to add elements I love without having to worry too much about the actual "style" of each piece.

Until next week....

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Oak trestle table makeover...

I bought a table at an auction this past weekend that may be difficult for me to sell...

Hang with me...I know it didn't look like a winner when I brought it home, but the vision was there.

The reason it may be difficult to turn loose of is because I have been contemplating giving my dining room a little "farmhouse" flare.

Again, that is not "my style." But if I can infuse a little bit of the current craze into my decor without a lot of expense and time (like I did here with my bed), I am willing to give it a shot.

For 17 years, my dining room has basically been a "walk through"...from the living area, to the kitchen, to the den....we always use the bar for meals. The table (that got a makeover here) is pushed against the wall for 364 days out of the year and only comes out for Thanksgiving dinner. With the inserts added it easily seats 6-8 with the addition of a few chairs and a bench.

But the antique trestle table fits right into my "I think I might" plan. It is the perfect size and style, just needs a little face lift.

The first draw back is it is oak. Again, NOT my favorite wood, but honestly oak is a great "farmhouse" wood to work with.

Second, I like my toes...they aren't the greatest toes, but they always seem to find anything that is out of place...vacuum cleaners, chairs, tables, an animal...whatever is NOT suppose to be there, the toes will find it. One of the reasons I am super careful moving furniture around.

The fact that there has not been a table in the middle of this room for 17 years may pose a problem for my toes.

To complete my vision, I would need the perfect chairs...not a huge deal because I see awesome chairs all the time at auctions. I may have to find a buffet for the wall...had one a few years ago and I kind of liked having a place for a little "fluff." And then there is the whole window, wall, rug, trim detail thing...hum.

Regardless of what I do in my own home, I know the table needs a little love and attention. So that was the project this week...give this little table a makeover as if it were going into my own home. Then if I decide to actually move forward with my vision for the dining room, I have the table...if not, someone else will get a beautiful antique dining table!

I easily stripped the top using this process...not a lot of finish left on this old beauty but it did have dark "water rings."

Several months ago a very wise reader commented on another table project and suggested using oxalic acid on water rings. I have never tried it and always just "embraced" the imperfections on antique pieces since nothing I tried worked well. But I did order the acid and had it on hand.

WOW!!!! Just wow. Worked like a charm. I made a paste with the acid crystals and water, dabbed it on the ring, and within 30 minutes, gone! I was a little miffed at first because it "bleached" the wood, but I scrubbed it with my 1/2 and 1/2 mixture and that disappeared as well!

I stained the top and applied three coats of tung oil finish...my favorite! I painted the base with homemade chalk paint, distressed a bit and sealed with polycrylic.

Just beautiful....for now I am going to take my daughter's advise...set it in place and mull it over. Maybe see how many times my toes find it!!!! No harm in letting it hang out for the time being (except for maybe a few toes!)

Right now my den is in disarray and I am trying to decide what I want to do. I gave my couch to my daughter so now I have no choice but to buy a new couch...part of the "den makeover" plan that started several years ago (remember, if you can't "see" it, get rid of what is there and live with a blank slate for a time) Since the reveal, the club chair has been reupholstered and moved to the living room to make room for Brian's big leather chair. The coffee table is laying on Mitchell's bed because we needed more room for Cleo and our grandpuppy, Zoey, to wrestle! There is a new rug...

The jury is still out on it...doesn't seem to be wearing well and not real comfy...hum. I like the look, just not sure I like THIS rug!

So taking on a dining room makeover just isn't on my priority list right now. I know if I am ever going to do it, I should probably hang onto this table since they cost a pretty penny new. But I also know that if I take the plunge I will have a sizable project on my hands...and my hands are pretty full right now.

Maybe it can just hang out for the time being! Never know when a bug attack!

Until next week....

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Our trip to New York City!

I am not a "travel blogger" so I rarely share my travels (not that I go too many places) but last week my youngest son, Matt, and I spent 3 1/2 days in New York City.

In 2005 the boys and I went to New York so Mitchell could do a photo shoot with Emmitt Smith. An awesome experience and the one day of sight-seeing hooked me....a city I never cared to visit became a city I couldn't wait to see again...it only took 12 years.

Matt and I met at Laguardia Sunday night...I flew in from Northwest Arkansas, he from Detroit. We hit the ground running Monday morning and spent three and 1/2 days walking, climbing, riding, standing and seeing....by the time we left Thursday afternoon, I wasn't sure I could manage walking to my gate, but we had a blast!

First, I got to spend time with one of my kids. That is, by far, one of my greatest pleasures in life. I watch worn out, stressed out parents with small kids and I know now that those tough years were worth every second...and I often wish I could go back and live every minute of that time! They go off to college and become adults and believe it or not, you miss them terribly...so getting to spend three fun-filled days with one of them is a true treasure!

I didn't take a decent camera (not that I know how to use my expensive digital camera) so all my pictures were taken with my I-phone. But that is okay....I think sometimes were are so busy trying to "capture the moment" with our cameras that we forget to take our eye out of the lens and really "see" the moment. Making memories is about living in the moment, not just capturing it on film (showing my age here...lol!)

But we did stop to take a few pictures along the way!

One place I desperately wanted to visit again was "Ground Zero." When we were there in 2005, the site was just a huge hole in the ground. I was amazed by the very existence of St. Paul's chapel across the street from the World Trade Towers....it seemed to be untouched by the massive destruction of the towers!

This little church, were George Washington prayed after his inauguration, survived that fateful day in 2001 and actually opened it's doors to the people who worked tirelessly in the days and months that followed. They have a room dedicated to 911 memorabilia, the most interesting to me was a pew from the chapel on which rescuers rested, leaving scratches and gouges from the equipment they wore. How tired they must have been....

When you looked west in 2005, across the serene cemetery that surrounds the church, you saw nothing...where the towers stood there was nothing but a gaping hole... an ugly wound on the landscape of our country.

A beautiful new tower and stunning memorial literally rose from the ashes. It is not the view that was there on September 10, 2001, but what is there is a testament to our country's resilience and strength....

The 911 memorial is...well honestly, I can not describe it. You have to see it for yourself. I am sure there are writers who could capture the magnitude and magnificence of the place, but I believe that every person will experience it differently...I don't think my words can do it justice.

As I walked around the memorial, I noticed little white roses stuck in a few of the names inscribed in the memorial. When I finally took time to read the plaques, I discovered why. Such a simple but powerful reminder of what that one day means to someone, somewhere.

We went into the 911 museum. It is a vast underground maze chronicling the events and people of that fateful day and the days that followed. I did not take pictures...I was too overwhelmed reading and listening and seeing to even think about taking a picture. The sheer magnitude of what happened, the lives lost and the final moments of their lives, the experiences of the survivors and first responders, and our country's collective reaction on that day and in the days that followed, completely overwhelmed my mind and senses.

One quick observation shared by me and my son. I know the museum is meant to be a "historical accounting" of that event...and I understand why certain things were included. But both Matt and I walked away disturbed by the inclusion of the pictures and history of the "terrorists" who were responsible for the events that unfolded and changed the course of history. I came home and did a little research on the "why"....it is one of those things my mind understands, but not my heart.

From the memorial and museum we headed south to Battery Park...beautiful park with the friendliest little squirrels. I have pictures of Matt hand feeding peanuts to the little guys when we visited in 2005. This one figured out real quick that Matt didn't have any REAL food...he then proceeded to attack him.

We took the ferry to Liberty Island and Ellis Island. Historical sites you have to see.

I took this picture from the main building on Ellis Island. I'm sure entering the harbor and seeing the Statute of Liberty was exhilarating...but millions of immigrants stood where I stood knowing that the final moments to their new lives were just a few processes away.

And that was just the first day! We went to the top of the Rockefeller Center (we did the Empire State building in 2005) BTW, my son (who is a pilot) is terrified of heights...so you can imagine what this view did to his blood pressure!

The view of Lower Manhattan from "Top of the Rock"

The architecture throughout New York City is simply breathtaking...from the simple little "5 floor walk-up" apartments to the magnificent churches throughout the city....

Central Park....

An absolute "must see" and if you really want to impress everyone rent a bike and ride ALL the way around the park. I'm still recovering a week later but by gosh I did it!!!

We rode a subway for the first time (only 2 stops but it counts!) from Grand Central Station. We walked across the Brooklyn Bridge. We visited the magnificent New York City library and enjoyed an evening in the park listening to a jazz band and watching the swing dancers. We toured the Intrepid carrier and saw the Enterprise space shuttle. We rode a water taxi. We took pictures with the Wall Street bull. We rode across the Manhattan bridge at night. We ate beef on a stick and breakfast in a cafe where the owner sat at the bar and visited in either Italian or Greek (not sure which!)

For us the absolute best way to get around New York and visit all the amazing sites was with a New York City Pass. It allowed us to ride all over the city and take in all the beautiful sights and sounds without getting crushed by the mass of New Yorkers and tourists on the sidewalks. The pass includes admission to anything you would want to see....worth every penny!

We didn't even make it to all the museums or Chinatown or the garment district or a Broadway show or any number of things we could have done...but I honestly think that might take several weeks...I was lucky to survive three full days!

New York is certainly not the place I would choose to live...but it is definitely one of those places you have to visit! Whether your passion is food, architecture, different cultures, history, entertainment, etc...it is ALL there!

Home again and back to the grind stone so next week I'll again start sharing what I know best....

Until then....