Springtime in Paris

A couple months ago I purchased a rather expensive stencil from Royal Design Studios called "Springtime in Paris". I had initially rented the stencil from a fancy paint boutique in town, but decided I needed to buy my own when the stencil was no longer available. I am not kidding, when I say that ANYTHING I stencil with this poem sells within a matter of days. The actual stencil is in French but I was able to find a translation online.

 

Springtime

 

Look at the boughs,
How white they are,
It’s snowing flowers!

Scoffing at the rain,
The sun dries
The weepy willow.

And the sky reflects
In the violets
Its pure colors…

The fly opens its wings
And the dragonfly
With the golden pupils,
And the wasp-like corset,
Unfolding its silky wings,
Has resumed its flight.

The water happily babbles,
The tiny fish wriggles
It’s Springtime again!

 

- Théophile Gautier

 

Here is a vintage steamer trunk that I recently painted white, distressed slightly and then stenciled.

 

 

 

 

Before I painted it, it looked a lot like this trunk, which I still need to paint.

 

 

Here is a pedestal table that I painted in a similar fashion. When I found this lovely table it was languishing in someone's yard. The leaf of the table had been utterly destroyed and what remained had been left leaning against the side of the house. The base of the table was being used as a birdbath stand. When I asked the owner if I could have it, they joked about paying me to take it off their hands. My husband helped me reconstruct the underside of the table and attach the necessary hardware. Afterwards I sanded the tabletop with a hand sander and then applied two coats of "Old White" by Annie Sloan. This was followed by a light sanding and a coat of clear wax. I stenciled the top with a poem and then gave it another coat of clear wax.

My most recent project was a custom paint job for a previous client. Her husband had found this darling vanity in a house that was destined for destruction. Last summer she bought a dresser from me and wanted this vanity and side table painted to match. I was more than happy to oblige her. I just LOVE this color. It is called Florence by Annie Sloan. To attain this look I thoroughly washed the piece with a cleaner called tsp, lightly sanded it and then applied one coat of Florence chalk paint. Afterwards I sanded the piece again and then applied a coat of clear wax followed by a coat of dark wax.