New Workshop Schedules and Descriptions!

 Here is my new Workshop Schedules for December and January! I'd love for you to join us! Reservations must be made and paid in advance. Any cancellations must be made 48 hrs in advance in order for workshop fee to be transferred to a future workshop. Minimum of six participants necessary. 

Call 623-337-0793
Email Me to book!

The Giant That Took Over My World

So when you last left the center of my world....me.....I had just made the decision (under duress) to purchase (well actually won at auction) a huge behemoth of a china cabinet made in the 1960's. Please read about it HERE if only to understand the thought process that goes into such a carefully constructed plan. 

So now I owned the danged thing and I needed to get it home. Dear GMan looked at me in "that" look with his head cocked to the side and said "Where are you going to put that thing"? Which isn't really a legitimate question in this phase of the acquisition process now is it? I had no idea and of course....no....it wouldn't even come close to fitting in his SUV. So we made the emergency call to our dear friends Theresa and Larry and sweet Larry came to our rescue. Without spending too much time on nonsense like how to get it home, the boys hefted and heaved and hoed the thing into the truck and I tagged along carrying my purse and the glass shelves....I HELPED!!! Really I did!!! Did I mention this was the middle of summer and about 115 degrees here in Phoenix? I was sweating in places I didn't know I had and I wasn't even the one doing the manual labor!

I had them drop it right in my dining room because that seemed a reasonable place for it which is where it remained until October. Yes....October. This piece of furniture just NEVER ENDED! I kept painting and painting and painting and there was no end to it. 

So the first thing to do was choose the color and I was wrestling between Letterpress Grey and Bohemian Blue both of which I adore but I'm super glad I chose to do a combo of the grey and accents of Beadboard White. 

The first thing I learned is that this cabinet had NO solid wood anywhere on it. It was a very poor wood veneer done in the 60's when they basically laid contact paper over pressed board. It happened, however to be in excellent condition but I knew that my beloved paint which covers EVERYTHING with no prepping, priming, or sanding might need just a little bit of extra grabbing power so I prepped for a bit of light sanding with a sanding block. 

And then I took the back panels off so I could paint the inside unobstructed. 

So after I painted the back panel in the lovely bright white Beadboard White I put the panels aside and started painting the cabinet in earnest. 

I'm not sure if it was the number of coats or the sheer size, but this guy wore me out and I thought I would never finish it. I honestly did tons of projects in between just because the immensity of it. It will probably be my last china cabinet. Here's how it turned out.

I think he turned out handsomely and I'm so glad he doesn't live in my dining room anymore. He went quickly to a new home and I know they are enjoying him where he BELONGS.....not as the white elephant in the middle of mine!

A Tale of Two Auctions

We've already identified that I am not patient. I am also deeply affected by shiny things. Let me be the first to inform you, oh dear reader, that these are a deadly combination. At least when one is attending a furniture auction. Or better yet, TWO furniture auctions. 

Case in point. 

Over the summer my friend and partner-in-crime decided to attend a local furniture auction that I have bought from in the past. Their auctions were always on Saturdays which meant that I would do a write-in bid and that was that. Sometimes I won....but mostly I lost. It may or may not be because I'm so danged cheap. I'm not admitting any fault. 

But with my new business and life of leisure, I don't always work Saturdays so we decided to attend. I did my due diligence and the day before I previewed the furniture pieces (but not the box lots) and made notes as to the items I was interested in and how much I was willing to pay for them. 

I was prepared! 

So Sam, G-Man and I showed up bright and early to preview the box lots and make our notes. We decided to divide and conquer (mostly because all the ones I was interested in were later in the auction and I don't have the patience to stand and wait) Sam bidding on box lots and I would bid on furniture. It went wrong from the beginning. The very beginning. The bidding was fierce and items were going for retail pricing and above. It was borderline ridiculous. But something stopped me. 

After the 10th item I was interested in went for 3x what I would be willing to pay for it and I lost a few good deals because I wasn't first bidder, I decided to throw caution to the wind. I would be first bidder on everything that came up....that way if other bids followed I could bow out....if they didn't....I would have gotten a bargain, right? Seems reasonable? Yeah....to me too. 

Until the next item. 

Up went my bidder number! 

And then.....crickets.....just crickets....of course except for the annoying yip and cadence of the auctioneer pounding in my ear. 

And in the blink of an eye it was mine. All mine. 

Then I decided it might be a good idea to take a look at what I had just bought. Since it was a china cabinet. 

A humongous china cabinet. 

A gargantuan lump of a huge 1960's china cabinet. 

Heaven help me. 

Check back tomorrow for the end result!