Black Lacquer Buffet gets a Whole New Look with Tarnished Platter Blue Gray, White Glaze & White Wax

We seldom have time for custom work anymore but I made an exception recently for a client who originally had purchased one of the other buffets I had painted.   After she sent me the picture of what she was looking for, I realized what would work better was a piece with more ornate details.  With that look in mind, we started searching for the perfect piece.  She found what she was looking for at Fabulous Finds in Middleville, Michigan.

Here’s what it looked like when it was delivered to our shop.

I know, I know ~ some of you may like furniture sprayed with black lacquer.  Me ~ not so much.  Thank goodness we all can choose or this world would be pretty boring.  Look away if you’re a big fan of lacquer, ‘cuz it’s about to disappear.

I hauled out my mouse sander to scuff this piece up a bit prior to painting.  Did I have to ~ probably not, but I prefer to lean on the side of caution.  A quick scuffing only took a couple minutes and gave the new paint a little more to bite into.

To recreate the look of the piece in her picture, I started with white using Navajo White by American Paint Company.  I busted out my spray gun for this project.  That saved a ton of time on, especially on the chunky ornate legs.

Base Coat of Navajo White

 

I sprayed over that with a coat of American Paint Company’s new Limited Edition color called Tarnished Platter.  It’s a pretty, gray/blue color, deeper than Dollar Bill.

Paint Drying after being Sprayed

It looks funny in the picture because it’s half wet, half dry.  American Paint Company Paint colors dry lighter than they look when they’re wet.  Once dried, I went to town distressing the buffet to reveal some of the white paint underneath.

Distressing

I used sand paper and a damp rag creating different types of distressing.  I love how a damp rag not only distresses through the layers, but how smooth it feels afterwards.  I can really get lost in this process.

Distresssed before any finishes are added

During the creative process, I do a little ~ step back ~ check it out ~ do a little more ~ repeat…  Cath was in Florida at the time so I could only work on it when I wasn’t swamped in the store so I probably spent more than a week just doing this.  Because I was doing this piece for someone else, I wanted to make sure I didn’t distress too much so I shared pictures with my client each step of the way.

Can I just say, it wasn’t working for me at this point?  What I mean is, it lacked the character I wanted to achieve.   I wanted to present Jami with a couple differenet options of how to finish it but I really wanted her to be there when I did it so she could tell me yah or nay.

We decided to go with a white glaze and a white wax.  I applied a slip coat of Top Coat to the entire piece prior to glazing.  By doing this, it allows more working time while glazing and prevents any one area from grabbing onto the glaze.  Do you have to do this?  No, but it helps with American Paint Company Paints because it’s so porous and absorbent.

Slip Coat of American Paint Company’s Top Coat

I have to admit, I’m a sucker for a waxed finish so I was excited to share the glazing and waxing with Jami.  I mixed a little bit of Navajo White Paint into APC’s Clear Glaze and started brushing it on the surface.  On parts I used my brush, on others I used a rag and simply wiped on and wiped off.

Adding the White Glaze

The glaze isn’t a sufficient finish to seal and protect a piece such as this so I sealed over this with a custom mixed white wax.

Applying White Wax with my favorite Vintiquities Wax Brush

Before wax is buffed, it looks dull and flat

You can see in the picture below where I’ve started buffing the lower areas.  See the difference in the sheen? I give all the credit to my drill buffing brush.  It does a fantastic job of buffing and takes the strain off my hands.

 Here’s some more detailed shots

 

It was so fun working with Jami.  She was so appreciative of everything which made the project a lot of fun.  Just this morning, she sent me a picture of it all set up in her entryway.  Thanks again Jami!  Enjoy!!

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Join us on March 13 & 14th for our free demos!

Friday, March 13

1:00 p.m.  Free Paint Demo, sign up here

4:00 p.m   Free Paint Demo, sign up here

Saturday, March 14

12:00 p.m.   Free Paint Demo, sign up here

2:00 p.m.  Free Paint Demo, sign up here

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Save the Dates!

March 31 – April 2nd ~ Go junkin’ with us at Round Top Texas

May 29 – 31 ~ Furniture Painting Weekend Retreat – Waukesha, WI

Stay tuned for times & all the fabulous details…

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A hui hou ~ Shelly

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I’m linking up to my favorite parties!!

Domestically Speaking – The Power of Paint Party

Miss Mustardseed – Furniture Feature Friday

Funky Junk Interiors – Saturday Night Special

a hui hou!

Shelly