Telephone Bench

My sweet friend Jean has a phone bench from her childhood home she wanted me to refinish.  She wanted it lighter, but to still be able to see remnants of the original piece.  So, we chose to use Old White and dry brush it on.  Here is the after:  I would rather put the "before" first and then the "after", but facebook always shows the first picture as the thumbnail, so I do it backwards...

 And here's the before:

I used clear wax and then went back with dark wax and highlighted the spots that were worn on the original piece:

I think Jean was pleased the seat back was still so worn looking, just like it was originally.  Even though it's been made new, the bench has a sense of history!

 I added a few pops of grey and red just to give it some contrast:

Grey Table

This is the table that matches the grey hutch I just completed.   Can't wait to see what hardware she puts on it!  I also finished a black armoire for Jacqueline and completely forgot to take after pictures!  It turned out great, but it wasn't distressed, which is really the fun part about refinishing to me, so I think it just didn't occur to me to take pictures until it was too late!

Here is the before pic:

 And some close-ups of the after:

The only difference between the table and the hutch is that it was originally red instead of bare wood.  I primed it with BIN Zinsser, which I am liking better than Kilz, so that it wouldn't affect the color.  I chose to expose it in a few spots, though, and I really love the character it gives the piece.

Partying here:

Grey Hutch

 I am so pleased with they way this turned out!  The Grey is a custom mix of Paris Grey and Graphite and it has hints of Provence peeking through.  This is my first time to use the Provence color and it is gorgeous!  Can't wait to do a whole piece in it.  This is what the hutch looked like originally:

Good bones, tons of possibility.  Just needed a little glueing and clamping.

After painting the Grey over the Provence, I distressed, waxed, and then highlighted some spots with dark wax. 

 The shelves inside show more of the blue - I painted them Provence and then dry brushed the Grey on top.

This is a custom piece for someone and I will be starting tonight on a hall table to match it.  Can't wait!!