Painting Kitchen Cabinets

townandcountrykathy

Hi Everyone!

I love to paint. But I don’t exactly love to paint walls, ceilings and cabinets. But I will paint anything I need to for my Mom.

My Stepdad passed away in August so my Mom is moving into a small Mother-in-Law Suite on our property. Nothing elaborate. It is a metal building that used to house our trucking company office.

This is what Mom and I have been doing lately. I have not been doing LIVE videos on either of my FACEBOOK pages. But soon, I will begin again.

To begin, we painted her raw wood kitchen cabinets with KILZ. We painted one coat of that. Then Mom painted a couple of coats of white paint. But we noticed the paint had really gummed up. It is very humid here (rain too) and the weather was cool so it was not drying very well. I did not take a picture of this sad state of affairs.

So we had to sand off some of the gumminess. I watched a YOUTUBE video that I will link here and it really helped for us to follow his guidelines. We will use this process to paint some furniture we bought for my Mom too. He uses automotive primer and we will use that next time. I will also try the type of paint he recommends next time. (water based alkyd paint) But we used regular Satin Finish Interior paint.

Spray Like Finish On Cabinets NO SPRAY GUN

by Paul Ricalde

It was mainly our doors that had gummed up. So we sanded all the bad areas. We diluted our paint with warm water and mixed it up well.

I would paint a light coat on with a paint brush and then Mom would follow up with a DRY roller brush. She kept wiping the roller brush to keep it dry.

I was a little heavy handed with my brush on this one. But I wanted to capture the brush strokes and how those are NOT what you want on your cabinets.
Here it is before we dry roller brush it.
Dry Roller Brushing. We used a larger roller brush too.
Here you can see the difference. Half done on the left and half undone on the right.

We put on at least 2 coats like this. Sometimes three light coats. We had to use a heater to get our paint to dry. The weather was not cooperating.

Trying to get all the excess paint off. DRIPS are unwanted. lol.
Here the DRY roller brushing is complete. It is not a professional job by any means. But it is better than we had before.
Here are the mischievous doors after all is said and done. I will take pictures when totally complete. Weather, please cooperate!

I used the steel wool after the first coat of paint but after that I didn’t use it again. I think my paint was thin enough after diluting some of it.

Between coats, we store our brushes in ziplock bags or cover them with saran wrap to keep them from drying out. We do that with our craft paint too.

Youtube is a great resource for when you are DIYing a project. It really helped us!

Hope you enjoyed this blog of a different kind. THANKS FOR READING!!

Crafting and Creating is Great Therapy!!

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Should I Paint My Antique Fireplace and Mantel

townandcountrykathy

I had been looking for quite some time for an antique fireplace mantel.

Is it Mantel or Mantle? Here is what Mirriam-Webster says:

In modern usage, mantel refers to a shelf above a fireplace and mantle refers to a cloak or covering. … Mantel and mantle are now usually regarded as distinct from each other, with mantel used for a shelf above a fireplace, and mantle used for a cloak or other covering.

I see people use both versions so I wasn’t sure. Now we know. —E before L—

Moving on to my mantel. Should I paint it or not? It would involve sanding etc, etc.

Also what color should I paint it if I do?

Right now, I have it in my garage. That’s where I wanted it when I bought it. It is holding our craft decorations. I wanted it so I would have a place to display our crafts and to take pictures of our crafts. It is working fine for that. So I wonder if it should stay as is. I need your help deciding. Put a comment down below what you think.

It does need some repair work. Mom and I plan on doing that after the holidays. We are working on her little Mother-in-Law Suite right now. But we will have time later to repair it at the bottom. See some up close pictures below of the chippy paint and other blemishes.

I probably paid too much, but I didn’t think I would ever find another one. Right now, I have it in my garage. That’s where I planned to put it. (Or maybe a she shed someday) It is holding our craft decorations. I wanted it so I would have a place to display our crafts and to take pictures of our crafts. It is working fine for that. So I wonder if it should stay as is. I need your help deciding. Put a comment down below what you think.

Thank you for reading my blog!! It means a lot to me!

Crafting and Creating is Great Therapy!!

I hope you will follow me on all my social media and check out my boutique website.

Boutique Website:  shoptownandcountryboutique.com

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Dollar Store Tree Now One of a Kind

townandcountrykathy

Here is a wood cutout of a Christmas tree we bought at Dollar Tree. I was going to make tee shirts with it. I was going to place it on a tee shirt and spray bleach around it. But we turned them into cute stand up shelf sitters instead. (I did the other one in buffalo plaid)

I think I do want to try those tee shirts though. I’ll show you if I do. LOL.

Before I go into explaining this precious little tree, I want to tell you, I have decided to take pictures that make me happy. At all crazy angles. I was trying to get my pictures perfectly straight and perfectly brightened and perfectly saturated and perfectly sharpened so much so that I was no longer having any fun. Below you will see some crazy angles. Sorry, scroll past if they make you dizzy. 🙂

Picture captured on my patio cushions. Blends right in.

Guess what? We had leftover Grinch Green Paint from the Elf Stockings. So I used it for my little Dollar Tree Christmas Tree. I had snowflakes that I wanted to use as ornaments. And I had black buttons that I wanted to use as ornaments. So then I only had to find ribbon for garland that would look good with both.

I think these four made a perfectly cute ONE OF A KIND Tree.

  1. Grinch Green Paint
  2. White Snowflakes
  3. Black Buttons
  4. Black and White Polka Dot Gross Grain Ribbon
Up close and personal.
This picture is the best color picture. I just LOVE that black and white ribbon with the Christmas Trees on it.

We put a 2×4 on the back to make it sit up and be a shelf sitter. We painted the 2×4 and the whole back of the tree BLACK.

Crazy Angle…..

Thank you for reading my blog!! It means a lot to me!

Crafting and Creating is Great Therapy!!

I hope you will follow me on all my social media and of course check out my boutique website.

Boutique Website:  shoptownandcountryboutique.com

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Email:  towncountryboutique@gmail.com

FreeHand Buffalo Plaid on Dollar Store Canvas

townandcountrykathy

Hi Everyone!

The simplicity of this project is very FARMHOUSE. And the supplies I used are very simplistic too. Keep scrolling for the finished picture…..

  1. Dollar Tree small canvas
  2. Black paint
  3. Pewter gray paint
  4. Brush the size you want your plaid to be
  5. Evergreen greenery to make a simple wreath
  6. Holly Berries
  7. Wire Cutters
  8. Glue
  9. Hot glue
I used the wire cutters to cut my evergreen wreath the size I needed and to cut the holly berries off their stems.

As you may know by now, I am obsessed with BUFFALO PLAID. I capitalize it because it is an entity of it’s own in my mind.

I saw several pictures on the internet of Buffalo Plaid done in a messy, random fashion. I wanted to try it. So this little canvas (shown above and below) was in my stash and I decided to just free hand the Buffalo Plaid. I am glad I did. I plan to use this method to paint many backgrounds for other paintings or crafts.

I only used the one brush and just wiped it between using the gray and black paints.

I made my horizontal AND vertical stripes with the medium colored gray paint. Let the brush strokes show through. That is the look you should be going for. I did not even paint my canvas first. I choose a paintbrush the size I wanted the plaid to be. You could choose a bigger brush or a smaller brush.

I then went back with black paint at all the intersections. I did have to do two coats of the black to get the look I wanted.

I wish I had taken more pictures. I am new and learning how to blog better. I just get in the mood and begin a project without thinking that I need to stop and take a picture.

Then I added the wreath when it dried. I wrapped the evergreen greenery around twice and tied it with a red ribbon. I hot glued it on the canvas in a just a few places.

Then I added the berries in randomly with Elmer’s glue.

As always…..Thank you for reading my blog!! It means the absolute world to me!

Crafting and Creating is Great Therapy!!

I hope you will follow me on all my social media and of course check out my boutique website.

Boutique Website:  shoptownandcountryboutique.com

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Email:  towncountryboutique@gmail.com

The (Elf) Stockings Were Hung…..With Bells on the Toes

townandcountrykathy

These ARE NOT your typical, traditional stockings. But look how stinking cute they are. Grinch Green Elf Stockings with more of our whimsical polka dots.

We seem to be making a lot of whimsical projects lately. I guess this year has made us want to create things that bring a smile to our faces and joy to the heart.

Below is a picture of Mom painting the grinch green. I mixed a medium green paint, yellow paint and white paint to get this color.

Mom is working on the green color on the stockings.
Mom put a piece of a wood shim on the back as a way to hold the ribbon hanger

Below, I made the crossover type bow with many FUN ribbons.

The picture below really highlights the bells on the toes. We were going to put large cotton balls or something else on the toes. But I think the bells are perfect especially for a door hanger.

We were going to make two separate stockings, but decided to put them together and make more of a statement piece. They looked more fun together.

I hope we inspire you to get crafting. It is great therapy and these type projects are plain fun!

Thank you for reading my blog post!!

It means a lot to me!

I hope you will follow me on all my social media and of course check out my boutique website.

Boutique Website:  shoptownandcountryboutique.com

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Email:  towncountryboutique@gmail.com

Polka Dot and Rick Rack Christmas Tree

townandcountrykathy

HI EVERYONE!

Here’s another playful NON-TRADITIONAL Christmas tree to hang on your door.

This whimsical tree just makes you smile. And that’s what we need this year.

THINGS that make us SMILE.

Maybe you will want to make this tree or one similar for your children’s room door?

Here it is on my outside bricks.

This post is very short.

I am sorry, I only have 3 pictures.

Hope you enjoyed reading this blog post. Have yourself a Merry Little Christmas!!

Thank you for reading my blog!! It means a lot to me!

Crafting and Creating is Great Therapy!!

I hope you will follow me on all my social media and of course check out my boutique website.

Boutique Website:  shoptownandcountryboutique.com

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Email:  towncountryboutique@gmail.com

Buffalo Plaid and Rick Rack Whimsical Tree

townandcountrykathy

HI EVERYONE!

We had made another tree similar to this one, and it SOLD. But instead of using the grinch green garland, we decided to use the large rick rack.

Mom and I have sewn most of our lives. She began to teach me in fourth grade in 4-H. My talents were sketchy but I loved fashion even back then. I loved designing the style, the pattern, the fabric, the embellishments, everything. I no longer sew but I still love things like RICK RACK.

I think this tree turned out so cute. Mom cut the pattern out from thin underlayment wood. She painted the tree white first. Then she used fabric and mod podged that on the background of the tree. Sounds easy, but she had JUST enough fabric so she had to work with it to be straight and cover the whole surface.

Then she added the rick rack garland and I made and added the two bows. This will be a door hanger so we added a popsicle stick to the back and some ribbon to make a hanger.

Thank you so much for reading about this cute little tree!!

Crafting and Creating is Great Therapy!!

I hope you will follow me on all my social media and of course check out my boutique website.

Boutique Website:  shoptownandcountryboutique.com

Facebook:  townandcountrystyle&boutique

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Email:  towncountryboutique@gmail.com

Buffalo Bottom Pumpkin, Reverses to Snowman

townandcountrykathy

Buffalo Plaid….is it here to stay?

Here are my finished products. I loved mine so much but I sold it. I needed another one. So I made two more. Will I sell them? I am not sure……I hope so….

Keep reading about how we made them and more pictures of the process.

Below is a picture of the “twins”. Lol.

Below is a picture of the raw wood Mom cut. She made 2 pumpkin/snowmen and 2 bells.

Below is a picture of her painting it white. We could not find white paint when the pandemic hit. So I want to Lowes and bought Valspar Storm Coat Exterior Paint. It works great.

Below is a picture of me using my Chalk Couture Large Buffalo Print Transfer. I am an Independent Chalk Couture Designer. It was the first time I used it and it is not perfect but my buffalo print does not need to be perfect. I did mess up on the outer edge, but I washed that portion off and replaced it. That’s the great thing about Chalking.

Below is a picture of me doing the buffalo plaid the painted on way. The stripes go on first. So this is how I make my vertical stripes. I use painters tape and use small pieces of it to space it out. I find the center first and then go out from there. I usually do more than one project at a time. I kind of make an assembly line so to speak.

Below I am painting my Light Gray stripes on. I use two shades of Gray. You can just use the same color gray to do both vertical and horizontal stripes. I have a separate detailed post on how I do this. See my library of posts.

Here is the light gray up close.

Here are the two stacked pumpkins done. You can see the difference between the buffalo prints. I like them both. The chalking is much easier and quicker.

The below picture is where I added the lowlights and highlights and details.

It was nearly Thanksgiving when I finished these stacked pumpkins. Life gets interrupted. So I decided to put Snowmen on the back sides and make them reversible. I had to hide the stems of the pumpkins, so we decided to put hats on them. REAL HATS. Santa Hat on one and Beanie on the other. I used my own scarves/mufflers on them.

Here is the black scarf and hat Snowman.
Here is the backside of the Snowman.
Here is the Red Santa Hat and Scarf Snowman.
Here is the backside of the Red Snowman.

I hope you enjoyed the journey of our Stacked Pumpkins to Reversible Snowmen.

Thank you for reading my blog!! It means a lot to me!

Crafting and Creating is Great Therapy!!

I hope you will follow me on all my social media and of course check out my boutique website.

Boutique Website:  shoptownandcountryboutique.com

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Email:  towncountryboutique@gmail.com

Approved by Santa

townandcountrykathy

Good Morning Everyone!

I hope this reading finds you doing well. And I hope this post cheers you up. This Santa is very cheerful.

This picture made in PicMonkey is a little blurry. I will post the original right below.
Less Blurry

I made this with a Chalk Couture Transfer. I am an Independent Chalk Couture Designer. I was worried about this transfer because it is so detailed with his whiskers and the holly and berries. But I think it turned out great. Especially the red against the white with some green accents.

I transferred this onto a wood surface. I painted the wood white and sanded it before, between coats, and afterwards. I then waxed it with Valspar Sealing Wax. This prevents the background paint from coming up with the transfer when you are finished.

A picture of my Valspar Clear Sealing Wax.

After it dried I began my chalking. I began by chalking the title SANTA in red. I put a fuzzing cloth or in my case just a fuzzy type of placemat between the wood and the rest of the transfer. I didn’t want my chalk to dry too soon. The mentors recommend doing this if you have a large or detailed transfer.

I worked on the red holly berries and then worked on the green “approved”.

I let each color or section dry before I replaced the transfer and worked on the Santa itself. The last thing I did was the holly berries and leaves on the cuff of his hat. Since it was in the middle I let everything around it dry first.

If you want to learn more about Chalk Couture, please visit my Facebook Page, Town and Country Chalk Creations.

Thank you for reading my blog!! It means a lot to me!

Crafting and Creating is Great Therapy!!

I hope you will follow me on all my social media and of course check out my boutique website.

Boutique Website:  shoptownandcountryboutique.com

Facebook:  townandcountrystyle&boutique

Facebook:  townandcountrychalkcreations

Instagram:  @town_and_country_boutique

Pinterest:  Town&CountryStylebyKathy

Email:  towncountryboutique@gmail.com

Hang Tag Door Hanger

townandcountrykathy

HANG TAGS are so popular this year. After making some other projects, we had enough wood to make these two hang tags. They aren’t very big so we combined them into one door hanger.

Mom decoupaged with red and black….and….black and white….buffalo plaid scrapbook paper.

Then we found that the Dollar Store Joy Ornament looked really good with it because it too had the red and black buffalo plaid.

The finishing touches were the evergreen, pinecone and holly picks. Also from the Dollar Stores.

Below is a picture with the whole door, so you can see the size.

Besides the decoupaging, this was an easy peasy decoration to make.

MAY YOUR HOLIDAYS BE FULL OF JOY THIS YEAR!!

Thank you for reading my blog!! It means a lot to me!

Crafting and Creating is Great Therapy!!

I hope you will follow me on all my social media and of course check out my boutique website.

Boutique Website:  shoptownandcountryboutique.com

Facebook:  townandcountrystyle&boutique

Facebook:  townandcountrychalkcreations

Instagram:  @town_and_country_boutique

Pinterest:  Town&CountryStylebyKathy

Email:  towncountryboutique@gmail.com