Friday, November 4, 2011

French Twist










Do you remember this summer 
when I posted photos on some of the finds
we gathered while out driving through 
the Illinois countryside?

I bought two of these tattered iron chairs,
they had a nice shape, 
and sweet Andie at Divine Theater
commented that they had originally 
come from Pier One! 
 (I knew they were not old, but didn't know the source at all.
Oh well, they were a steal for two.)

Well, I decided to give Annie Sloan a crack at them.




I painted them Paris Gray 
and they were still pretty boring.
So I took some black paint 
and mixed it with some of the gray
and just free-handed some 
French looking symmetrical  "swirlies" 
on the backs of the two chairs. 
A little French twist?




After they dried, I dry brush stroked them 
with more gray Annie Sloan paint. 
Then I wiped them with a really damp towel
to remove the darker paint a bit.

After applying clear AS wax and buffing,
and then adding a mix of clear and dark wax
and more buffing .... this is how they look.








My thoughtful hubbie  ♥  
bought me these car wax
mitts and they are AWESOME for the wax! 





Remember the movie, "The Karate Kid"???

Wax on ..... Wax off.
Wax on .... Wax off.

I think I made Mr. Miyagi proud.


:)



They will go into the shop this weekend! Keeping my fingers crossed maybe someone will want them?




Photobucket
Linking up with Kim at SavvySouthernStyle!







Linking up with Honey at 2805

31 comments:

Rosemary@villabarnes said...

Awesome!!! You gave them a beautiful French twist. I love the swirl pattern.

Divine Theatre said...

I think those were my chairs! I recognize the weathered seat! I LOVE what you did with them!

xoxo

Andie

Divine Theatre said...

The gloves are perfect! I am going to get some to paint the cane on my chaise! Thanks for that superb idea!

xoxo
Andie

Amy Chalmers said...

The chairs came out nice! I love the free hand~tres magnifique!

Kim @ Savvy Southern Style said...

Look at miss artistic you. I love them. I be they sell quickly.

Deserae said...

Wow, they turned out fantastic....I can't believe you free handed the pattern!!!! I am sure they will sell quickly :o)
~Des

Lisa @ Fern Creek Cottage said...

They look gorgeous! You did a wonderful job! So pretty!

Richard Cottrell said...

I think these chairs are just the bomb, and so hard to find. You done good as usual. Richard from My Old Historic House.

Penny from Enjoying The Simple Things said...

Wow! I love how they turned out. You did a great job! Question....how to you clean your mitts after using them?

Pamela Gordon said...

I think they turned out beautifully! Love the design you painted on them. I'm sure they'll sell fast. Have a great weekend.

ℳartina @ Northern Nesting said...

Gorgeous Alison!! I know you will be making a quick sale on those beauties!! Martina

Ann from On Sutton Place said...

You are amazing. Free handed the french swirls? Never in a million years could I do that. These turned out to be show stoppers. Well done. Love the wax mitts too. I have to admit the wax step usually gets the best of me. Maybe getting mitts will help. Happy Weekend Alison!

The enchanted home said...

You are soo creative, just love what you did with the chairs, so French and delicate and beautiful! Great job!

Debi said...

Love your free-hand design. How snazzy! It would be hard for me to give up those chairs. How do you do it?

Courtney ~ French Country Cottage said...

Oh these are just darling!! Well done!! :)

Kelly said...

I bet those chairs will sell soon because they're so pretty and unique.

Janet said...

They came out beautiful: I love them :)

Pinky at Designs by Pinky said...

Beautiful job, Alison!!! They look gorgeous and I am sure they will sell quickly! XO, Pinky

Marty@A Stroll Thru Life said...

Love the swirls Alison, they look amazing. Hugs, Marty

La Vie Quotidienne said...

What wonderful and interesting shapes these have and what you did with them is so nice. I would snap them up in a minute! (-:

FABBY'S LIVING said...

Fabulous dear Alyson!! Your chairs are stunning otherwise you wouldn't be interested either a lady with such good taste as you! Thank you for coming and leaving me such generous comments. I have a new post, hope you come over for a piece of cake. Love, FABBY

Babs said...

Tres chic!! Hope that means "very chic" as my 9th grade French is long gone. LOL Your French twist chairs are fab and you're an artist too. Who knew? :)

Honey at 2805 said...

They are beauties, Alison! I always did like French twists. The mitts are such a good idea!

Thank you for linking your creative project and tip to Potpourri Friday!

Tattered Tiques said...

Alison, they turned out beautiful!! We also just started buffing with those mits. Love them.

Our Hopeful Home said...

So, the art collector is an artist herself! I'm so impressed by talented people like you! I'm sure they'll sell, they're so pretty with the delicate swirl pattern....thanks for linking up over at Club G.W. {Goodwill} with Charm Bracelet Diva. It's good to hear from you, friend!

xoxo
Kathleen

Sarah said...

How cute! You are so clever. I love the French twist.

Ann@A Sentimental Life said...

Oh my what a transformation! They are gorgeous!
Great finds in the Land of Lincoln

Connie the crafterbug said...

Wow! You did an awesome job!
Connie

Jacqueline~Cabin and Cottage said...

I'm impressed with your artistry! They turned out just beautifully! Love your mitts too! Haha!

Carole said...

You made them look like a million bucks. Good luck with your design project....those photos are drool worthy.

x
Carole

Michele Smith said...

They look great, I love what you did to them. I am sure they'll sell quickly.