Quite Simply...Beautiful Things Feature and a Happy New Year!

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas!

Our Christmas turned out to be a little different than we had planned.  Christmas Eve day landed us at the urgent care for our youngest, then Christmas morning around 1:00am took us to the ER followed by being admitted to the peds unit.  Influenza B, Strep throat and an ear infection, followed by LOTS of meds, I think we are now ready to ring in the New Year!  Thankfully, she is doing much better now.

What a crazy week we had and it's already 2013, how did that happen?!  

Last week we did not host our weekly Quite Simply...Beautiful Things Linky Party so we would like to share all of the posts from the last Link Party.  

Quinnspirations

Sledding in style with a vintage snow sled painted in Primer Red and the stencils in Olive and Old White.  Great Christmas decoration!

Wydeven Designs

An antique market chair and ottoman get a makeover with Old Ochre and Dark Wax worked into the crevices with a toothbrush.  The detailing looks great with the neutral striped linen fabric!

SmartGirlStyle

DIY Ombre Rushed Duvet Cover perfect for a girl's bedroom.  Get the steps to make your own professional looking duvet. 

Restoration Redoux

This huge undertaking turned out amazing!  Persistance pays off with multiple layers of Annie Sloan Chalk Paint™ and not giving up, impressive! 

Stiltskin Studios

If you love a girly, feminine look...you'll love this Can Can Chest.  Soft pink and Paris Grey shake things up with golden gilding.  This dresser certainly Can Can!

Secret Garden

A lovely pink metamorphosis, so haute couture dont you think?!

"Vintage Goods"

Snowmen made out of old quilts and buttons, so cute.  Unique and no two are alike.

Reloved Rubbish

Pair of Union Jack Chairs with Chalk Paint® painted right on the vinyl with a watered down Old Ochre wash for a faded look.  It's genius!

Imperfect Patina

Lovely $15 two tiered table painted in Graphite and the Union Jack painted in Pure White & Paris Grey. Very nice color combination!

Snob Interior Design

Duck Egg painted on a tray, jar lid, back of glass plates and watered down in bottles, very pretty.  Pure White with Dark Wax on the chalkboard windows look old, like it!

By The Way Jenn Gray

Added texture to a quatrefoil frame with Chalk Paint® in Primer Red, French Linen and Old White layered in just a way to give an old weathered look.

Renovating and Building

Finch pottery made to look ravaged by time and use. 

They are beautiful.

Love seeing all the Quite Simply...Beautiful Things!

image via Pinterest

We hope 2013 brings you all of your New Years Resolutions and More!  Can't wait to see all the projects created this year! We will resume our regular Link Party next Tuesday.  Enjoy the first day of the New Year!

Quite Simply...Beautiful Things

Weekly Link Party

Quite Simply...Beautiful Things

Our features this week:

The Little Cottage On The Pond...

Your dresser turned out just beautiful.  The stained top and distressed base is a lovely combination!  I also enjoyed your pictures of Gruene, we were there back in 2007 for my brothers wedding.  Such a quaint little place, enjoyed the Gristmill too!

Imperfect Patina 

An old school desk for only $11 and look at the results!  Miss Mustard Seed in Tricycle with Holiday inspired words.  Nice job and thank you for Linking Up!

It's time to Link Up this week!

Please share in our Link Party, here are the details:

1.  Feel free to share all your beautiful things!

2.  Please post a permalink to your post only, not your entire blog.

3.  Please help spread the word about our weekly Linky Party- Grab our button on the sidebar.

4.  Party closes on Thursday, December 20th at 11:59 pm. We will pick more people to feature.

There will not be a Linky Party next week, we will be spending time with our family for the Holiday.
We look forward to Linking Up again in 2013.

Happy Holidays!

Chalk Paint® Link Party and a Winner!

Wow, you guys have been busy painting away!  

Loved looking at all the beautiful and inspiring projects linked up.

First up, our winner of the Jeanne d'Arc Living magazine giveaway....

Rachel from Shades of Blue!  

Rachel, please contact us HERE to claim your prize, congratulations!

 I am just in love with this two toned look that Kristen from Sophia's Decor created.  I think it is the balance of masculine and feminine and the contrast of the dark stain and Pure White Chalk Paint with a little Florence for accents.  Gorgeous!

 Next, be sure to check out this fabulous Chalk Paint kitchen makeover from Katie at Sweet Girl Expressions!  Such a big change from the plain maple before.  Pure White cabinets with Graphite on the island, so much lighter and brighter and just stunning!
 I hear you Katie on distractions and it taking all summer, we are still working on ours!

Do you have something you painted with Chalk Paint™ decorative paint by Annie Sloan?

Please share in our Link Party, here are the details:

1. Our blog is dedicated to Chalk Paint® Please only share pieces using Chalk Paint decorative paints by Annie Sloan. It can be anything you want, as long as you used Chalk Paint!

2. Please post a permalink to your post only, not your entire blog.

3. Please help spread the word about our weekly Chalk Paint Linky Party - Grab our button on the sidebar

4. Party closes on Thursday, October 25 at 11:59pm MST. We will pick more people to feature and a winner!

Chalk Paint Link Party

 We have so many exciting things happening right now, I can't wait to share them!  We are in the middle of completely gutting and remodeling our kitchen (can't wait to share all the details and photos!), and we are working on many new and exciting things for our business and store.  Lots of long hours and late nights, but oh so worth it!  We have been gathering ideas inspiration everywhere, and here is what inspired us from last week's link party...

I am just blown away by this faux zinc finish that Amy at The Salvage Collection created with Chalk Paint™  Using a base coat of Graphite and then adding some metallic paint to the Clear Wax, she  rocked the zinc finish!

Leanne from The Burlap Cottage did an amazing job repurposing a changing table into a kitchen hutch!   Yes, you read that right, can you believe it?!?  Using French Linen and Pure White and a great vision, she upcycled her existing furniture into something more purposeful.  What a beautiful transformation, Leanne.

Do you have something you painted with Annie Sloan Chalk Paint™?

Please share in our Link Party, here are the details:

1. Our blog is exclusive to Chalk Paint™ Please only share pieces using Chalk Paint decorative paints by Annie Sloan. It can be anything you want, as long as you used Chalk Paint!

2. Please post a permalink to your post only, not your entire blog.

3. Please help spread the word about our weekly Chalk Paint Linky Party - Grab our button on the sidebar

4. Party closes on Thursday, July 12 at 11:59pm MST. We will pick more people to feature for next week.

Annie Sloan Chalk Paint Link Party

We hope everyone had a beautiful Memorial Day and enjoyed the long weekend!

Amanda from Reloved Rubbish transformed this great buffet with Louis Blue and Old White accents along with a Graphite top. It is so charming, don't you think?

Shari at Turnstyle Vogue surprised us with this color combination.  Versailles, Provence, and Barcelona Orange.  She drew her inspiration from the colors in the bedding and they were just perfect!  It is just stunning...are you surprised by the color combination too?

Do you have something you painted with Annie Sloan Chalk Paint™?

Please share in our Link Party, here are the details:

1. Our blog is exclusive to Annie Sloan Chalk Paint™ Please only share pieces using Annie Sloan Chalk Paint™ It can be anything you want, as long as you used Chalk Paint™!

2. Please post a permalink to your post only, not your entire blog.

3. Please help spread the word about our weekly Chalk Paint Linky Party - Grab our button on the sidebar

4. Party closes on Thursday, May 31 at 11:59pm MST. We will pick more people to feature for next week.

Chalk Paint - going industrial

I have been waiting to share this for a while, I am so excited about our new lamp. A local artisan made this lamp out of pistons from an old John Deere. I just love the industrial look of it!

He is quite a talented artist and I am so honored to feature his work in our shop.

He asked me to finish the base, I chose Graphite with a wash of Paris Grey over the top.

Topped off with a mica lamp shade.

It is such a unique lamp! He made it just playing around one day when I spied it. He wasn't sure anyone would be interested in it, but I talked him into letting me bring it into our store and see what happens.

What do you think?

Personally, I can't wait to see what he creates next...

Annie Sloan Chalk Paint Link Party

We are currently doing some advanced training with none other than Annie Sloan herself! We have learned so much already and can't wait to finish up and share with all of you.

Theresa, Momma T, did a fantastic job on this Union Jack dresser she just completed for her son's new bedroom. Napoleonic Blue, Emperor's Silk, and Pure White make a great combination. And I must say, Theresa you are an inspiration! You do have many irons in the fire and our prayers are with you and your husband; thanks for sharing your creativity with us, we are honored.

Sky Blu Pink really took this one up a notch or two! This was a very dated 70's dresser turned sophisticated with Graphite and Old White. Is it any wonder that Francine sold it in one day's time? Gorgeous!

Do you have something you painted with Annie Sloan Chalk Paint?

Please share in our Link Party, here are the details:

1. Our blog is exclusive to Annie Sloan Chalk Paint. Please only share pieces using Annie Sloan Chalk Paint. It can be anything you want, as long as you used Chalk Paint!

2. Please post a permalink to your post only, not your entire blog.

3. Please help spread the word about our weekly Chalk Paint Linky Party - Grab our button on the sidebar

4. Party closes on Thursday, March 15 at 11:59pm MST. We will pick more people to feature for next week.

Chalk Paint Floors and Lacquer

You have heard that Annie Sloan Chalk Paint can be used on just about anything. We wanted to share our experience of using Chalk Paint on floors.

Below is exhibit A - our store. The commercial grade basic carpet wasn't doin' much for us and it had a lot of wear and dirt patterns to it from the previous tenant. So one evening after closing the store, we jumped in with both feet and ripped out the carpet.

Of course, we had pulled up a small area in the corner to check and see what was underneath, just concrete! We were good to go. Then, look what surprise awaited us in the back. Yup, that's linoleum flooring from 30 years ago! And, yes, it was glued down like iron!

We worked into the wee hours of the morning and wished we had some dynamite to blast the cursed linoleum off. After way too many, and I mean many hours of stripping it down and questioning our sanity of our little project, we finally came up with this.

We had decided to use Graphite and stencil some patterns on with Old White

Fortunately, this went really quick and easy.

Rolled on the Chalk Paint and it covered beautifully!

And we just had to try out Annie's new water based Lacquer

Check out the after

We rolled the Lacquer on with a sponge roller in no time flat. We used only one coat since we want the floor to wear and have more of a natural patina.

Very little smell, even in an enclosed area

The stencils took some time but we think well worth the effort

I love how we can just sweep and mop the floor now.

Are you ready to do your floors?

Annie Sloan Chalk Paint Linky Party

Our weekend was spent playing in the snow! Here is a foot of snow, followed by 8 more inches the next day. One of the blessings of living at 7200 feet is snow days!

Wow!! Check out this amazing chalk painted kitchen makeover from Whimsical Perspective. Laura finished this makeover in just a few days and with 4 quarts of ASCP. I love the color combo of French Linen and Old Ochre.

Gail's Decorative Touch put the finishing touch of Primer Red and Graphite on this china cabinet and transformed an ordinary piece into one that will be cherished.

Do you have something you painted with Annie Sloan Chalk Paint?

Please share in our Link Party, here are the details:

1. Our blog is exclusive to Annie Sloan Chalk Paint. Please only share pieces using Annie Sloan Chalk Paint. It can be anything you want, as long as you used Chalk Paint!

2. Please post a permalink to your post only, not your entire blog.

3. Please help spread the word about our weekly Chalk Paint Linky Party - Grab our button on the sidebar

4. Party closes on Thursday, February 9 at 11:59pm MST. We will pick more people to feature for next week.

Annie Sloan Chalk Paint Makeover

Since becoming retailers for Annie Sloan Chalk Paint nearly a year ago, most of you know that we just opened our store front last fall. After being a shop at home window covering business for 11 years, this has been quite an adjustment. The first order of business was to redo and update the shared lobby in our building. The building is amazing, it is from the late 1800's and has so much character; we absolutely love the charm. The lobby on the other hand, really needed a facelift. I think the last time it was updated was in the 1980's.

Here is the before...

It almost had the feel of a waiting area for a Mexican restaurant. Especially the row of tiles beneath the benches. Don't get us wrong, we absolutely love Mexican food, but we were looking for a softer, more european feel.

Being on a very tight budget, we had to get creative.

Now, the after...

We reupholstered the bench cushions using a large drop cloth and made pillows out of burlap and the leftover drop cloth material.

To add interest and to help break up the monochromatic theme, we Chalk Painted the pillows using various stencil designs. We used French Linen, CoCo, and Graphite on the pillows. Yes, you can use Chalk Paint on fabric! Because the paint is so highly pigmented, it just fades ever so slightly each time you wash it. This fading only adds to the beauty of the look.

For an even softer tone on tone look, we used Old White on this pillow below.

And of course, the tile had to go. It was so easy, we did lightly scuff the tiles with 150 grit sand paper, just to scratch the surface. It only took a few seconds. Then painted with Country Grey. We painted two quick coats of paint, stenciled a few, and then sealed with wax. It is durable and has held up great even with people sitting and kicking their feet up against it.

What a simple, easy fix for changing the look of the room.

We found these gorgeous lanterns and could not pass up the opportunity to use them. Added a mirror, a lamp, and a few accessories and mission accomplished.

Here's a quick peek again at where we started...

Goodbye Mexican restaurant, hello european elegance....

Stay tuned as we share more ASCP makeovers of our store