Refab-ulous Table

Let's take a table with some miles on it and make it look this fabulous.

Dixie Belle Paints rescued this well-loved wooden table.

Love the lines.

Here is the underside, after removing all of the parts:

Yep, the top of the table had a long crack in it.

Wood glue to the rescue.

Love the softness of the Buttercream.

Looking good.

A close up:

Realized there was an uneven place after gluing, so I added some Dixie Belle Swamp Mud to fill in the gaps. Sanded it down and painted a thin layer of paint over it. 
(YES, I placed the Swamp Mud over paint. These products are amazing!)

While the table top rested I did some rust cleanup. The hardware was all rusty, some vinegar in a bottle overnight did the job.

Looking pretty good now:

The smaller wooden pieces need some TLC next. See the piece in my vise? Yeah, we had another hidden crack.

Next up is the distress phase using the sander.

Love the way these curves look. Distressed and not:

Then a thin layer of Best Dang Wax over every part.

Thin layer of Grunge Glaze completes the look. You can see the difference against the bright table top:

Lastly another light layer of wax buffed on.

As I assembled the parts:

All together now:

The effect was spectacular:

This was great fun and the next large project awaits. I hope you enjoyed the process as much as I did.
Thank you and ciao for now.
-Trish Alger

Spooky Altered Bottle

I am in love with the entire DIY scene! I have scads of empty glass bottles in my garage just waiting for an opportunity like this:

Dixie Belle Chalk paint is perfect for covering glass bottles. A little Grunge Glaze and some embellishments are all it takes.

Ciao for now,
-Trish Alger

Fun and Funky Lamp Redo

Welcome DIY'ers!   

Today I am transforming a tired old lamp using Dixie Belle Paints. Join me in this quick tutorial and learn how you can give new life to an out dated old lamp. 

I began with a very beautiful lamp.  It was actually one of my favorite pieces when my house was decorated in the Old World Tuscan look.  I unfortunately, forgot to click a quick pic before I started painting.  The lamp was originally dark, gold guilded and very old Mediterranean style.  It holds a special place for me so when it no longer matched my current design trend I thought let's just make it fit as I just could not stand parting with it.  So, here you see it with the base coat of Dixie Belle Chalk Paint in Gulf,  still very pretty, but not quite what I was after as it was a little vibrant for what I was going for. 

 Next, I began sanding it using these amazing sanding sponges

   

 I then added a coat of Grunge Glaze. I painted it on using these great chip brushes and wiped away the excess with paper towel.  I cannot even tell you the difference the Grunge Glaze made...no need to clear coat, wait, what? Skip a step? Yes, that is what I said. If you desire the added protection of a clear coat, however, then please use this satin clear coat sealer. You will not be sorry.

   

   

I am so very pleased with this Dixie Belle redo.   

I can't wait to get my hands on the next one! 

Thanks for stopping by!

Steph S. for DIY Design Studios

Dixie Belle Self-Portrait Transfers

Hello, Trish here. I'm so excited to share my first DIY Design post with you.
As an artist I've always intended to do a true self-portrait, but frankly I'm terrible at selfies and kept putting it off. Then I read a book about the importance of family portraits and wondered, "why not?"

I read that chalk paints make the best transfer surface and well we here know what the BEST chalk paint is, right?!

The supplies are so easy peasy:
Dixie Belle Chalk Paint   
Dixie Belle Clear Coat Sealer    
Dixie Belle Grunge Glaze 
Stencil 
Substrate (such as a canvas or piece of wood )  
Toner copy of YOU!

I chose a couple of selfie pics that I did not hate, printed them in mirror format on my printer, THEN took them to a store to copy in black and white on a toner cartridge printer. (Very important to use a toner copy!) Trim out the excess...

I just happened to have these little canvases to try it out with. I also tried it on foam board and it worked fine.

Decide which awesome Dixie Belle Chalk Paint to use. I chose Buttercream. Placing the image face down in the WET paint. Brayer and rub it into the paint to smooth out.

Wait to dry completely. Does not take long. Wet your fingers and rub slowly and gently in a circular motion to rub off the top layer of paper.

I happen to love the imperfections, but if it would make you crazy...then start from inside edges first and go very slow. Keep it damp and eventually you will emerge.

Now, I did not wait for it to completely dry before I added the Dixie Belle Grunge Glaze and then the Dixie Belle Grunge Glaze and I payed for it later. I still had some small bits of paper left, but now it was trapped beneath product. 
Cie la vie!

Here it is with the glaze:

After the clear coat:

Of course I had to jazz it up a bit, using a stencil.

Just a touch though and added the year the photo was taken with a paint pen, because I'm sure I will forget.

Well, that sure was fun! Thank you for following along.
See ya next time with more DIYDesign Studio fun.
-Trish Alger