A Renew to Start 2022
Craft with a Craft
I’ve had this idea for a “Craft with a Craft” (beer) for a while. In fact, I wrote a post and attempted some directions. It was sort of a sewing tutorial. I had Mac (a non-sewer) proof it and we decided it might be too hard to follow. Here is my latest attempt at “Craft with a Craft.”
I have lots of guilty pleasures. This project combines two of them. Firstly, I love to peruse the internet checking out DIY before and after makeovers. Something about seeing how far something has come and the efforts people put into them, make me happy. Second, I do love to look for cheap furniture to fix up. It’s kind of a problem. We have a basement full. Before life got so busy, I would redo furniture all the time, but in the last few years I haven’t been as motivated to spend my spare time on furniture projects. The problem with this is that I still like to look for thrift furniture. While I would like to say that cleaning up our basement is on my list of 2022 resolutions, I’m not quite that motivated. I figured I’d start with one piece of furniture. I decided to start with this little chest that I bought off of Facebook for $5. No joke!!! FIVE BUCKS! I mean, I couldn’t pass it up, right?! It’s small, so I felt like it would be easy to renew and useful in the end.
Paint
I have used chalk paint in the past. There are a couple things I really like about it: you do not have to prime, it can go on thick, it gives your piece texture and depth, and a little can go a long way. If you like a very smooth or shiny look on furniture, chalk paint is most definitely NOT for you. I like a slightly rougher look and I like the waxy matte finish, so it works for me. For this project I used Rust-Oleum Chalked Ultra Matte Paint in Linen White. They have some other cute colors like Blush Pink that I would recommend. For the drawers I only put one coat, because I had other more exciting plans for them!
For my painting process I sipped on Guava Rodeo by Oskar Blues (6% ABV). I was warm that day and I was in the mood for a fruity sour! This is a very easy to drink sour ale, fruited with guava and tangerine giving it a sweet and sour taste as well as a pretty color! I chose to sip from my favorite pint glass featuring crafty artwork from Vital Industries.
Fabric
Another thing that brings me joy is beautifully designed fabrics! If these designs happened to feature flowers, it’s an added bonus! I have quite the collection. I also have some precious scraps left over from a quilt my mother made me. I selected nine fabrics. I tried to go with an overall theme. I guess I landed on: “fabrics that make me happy, have flowers, and bright colors.” Tree flowers are my favorite and I was able to find two scraps just the right size, featuring tree flowers!!! I also love insects as well, so you can see I found a fabric with some stunning moths and tiny flowers. I cut each fabric scrap to fit over one of the drawer squares. Then the fun and, for me, challenging part: arranging the fabrics.
From right to left and top to bottom, here are my fabrics (starting with top left):
Bossy in Meadow from the Bright Eyes collection from Anna Maria Horner
Full Bloom by Bari J. Unfortunately this one is out of print. I am crazy about the tree flowers and this fabric is my two favorite colors (pink and green).
Soul Blossoms Fuchsia Tree Chartreuse by Amy Butler. This one is also hard to find.
Soul Blossoms Twilight Peony by Amy Butler (middle left). Another one that is tricky to find. We used it in the bathroom of our first house, so it’s a special one to me.
Tea Rose in Silver from the Cameo collection by Amy Butler. I used several from this collection that are hard to find. You can find this one laminated, which would make for a neat table cloth.
Sinister Gatherings in Powder by Anna Maria Horner. I actually bought this one for my project, because I couldn’t resist the moths! I had no idea that this fabric can be hard to find as well, but I did find it on Etsy!
Harriet's Kitchen in Sugar from the Cameo collection by Amy Butler (bottom left). This one was even hard to find the name! The design reminds me of German folk art, so I love it!
Cheering Section in Sunny from the Bright Eyes collection by Anna Maria Horner. Isn’t the name great?! Good news here! You can buy it right off Amazon!
Fairy Tale in Sky Blue by Amy Butler. Another hard to find fabric, but I love the name and the tree branches donning flowers!
Mod Podge
To adhere the fabric squares to the wooden drawers I chose Gloss Mod Podge. I read a few places that chalk paint can actually be a great way to prime a surface for Mod Podge! To start, I coated the desired square with Mod Podge and then lay the desired fabric on top. It takes a bit to dry so if you are not happy with your placement or if you have wrinkles or bubbles to smooth, it is easy to rectify! After I was happy with my fabric placement I put an additional layer of Mod Podge on top. Allowing the surface to dry at least 24 hours is ideal, especially if you decide to top with a clear coat. I did not apply any sort of clear coat. I Mod Podged a filing cabinet almost ten years ago and it has held up great without any additional products. It is important to keep in mind that water can damage a Mod Podged surface, so be sure to use a coaster under that cold beer!
Before thinking about knobs I wanted to clean up the strings left behind on the edges of the fabric. If I had used paper, I could have skipped this step.
Knobs
I had a hard time deciding on what to do about knobs. I felt like if I just painted the old knobs, they would obstruct the pretty fabrics. There are limited knob options in our small town, but I did find these at Lowes. I felt like the golden brass color looked modern and didn’t detract from the florals. This step was tricky as I had to poke through the Mod Podged fabric. A sharp pair of narrow scissors seemed to work best. I tried to make all the holes big enough, so the fabric didn’t twist as I screwed the knobs on.
Inside
Lastly I wanted to show the inside of the drawers some love. Since the brass knobs had a golden color, I carried this theme into the drawers. I tend to save pretty wrapping paper and find that if I haven’t reused it, it can make great drawer liners!
My top drawer is lined with a gorgeous wrapping paper I picked up at Blush years ago. I was happy to find that I still had a big enough piece to fit! The middle drawer is lined with a pale pink wrapping paper from Target featuring tiny gold dots. Again, this was an old scrap I was happy to have enough of! I lined the bottom drawer with wrapping paper from this Christmas, so I have happy memories associated with it. The pattern is called Canopy Gold and is from Rifle Paper Co.
Celebrating my Renew!
To celebrate my completed renew/”Craft with a Craft” project I grabbed the brightest can from our fridge. It happened to be Key Lime Pie Sherbet from Triple C Brewing Company (4.8% ABV). You definitely get the lime, vanilla, and graham cracker with a kick of tart!
It felt good to make some space in our basement, but it felt even better to get my creative mind going again! This project brought me a lot of joy! I had a lot of goals for this past December. I had planned on baking cookies and doing cookie and beer pairings, but life happens. Allowing myself some wiggle room was good. Allowing myself some creative time was GREAT!
I haven’t quite nailed down my 2022 resolution(s), but maybe focusing on the word RENEW is a good start.
Cheers to 2022!
