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Stencilled Old World Chest of Drawers

*This is a sponsored post. I was provided with product and/or other compensation for this project by Royal Design Studio. However, the opinions are mine and I’m sharing my real life experience using the product.*

Hello, friends! How are ya? I’ve been busy with lots of projects lately, including giving a makeover to a chest of drawers we’ve had for a few years. This piece was previously painted white and needed some refreshing after being used in my daughter’s room for several years. Things didn’t go exactly as I had planned for this project, but after a bit of frustration and then some creative thinking, it turned out pretty much how I had envisioned it.

I was going for an old world look…something that looked like it had been painted by an artisan years ago.

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I used the Antoinette Damask Wall Stencil since I’m not very good at freehand drawing. If you like this idea but want something a little different, there are other similar stencils from the Allover Damask Stencils Collection. I chose this one because it had the old world look I was wanting.

I had never used a stencil this large before, or an allover type, so I was very grateful that the included instructions were so thorough and easy to understand. 

The first thing I did was give the piece a fresh coat of Benjamin Moore Harwood Putty, which I had leftover from the Union Jack dresser that I finished recently. After that dried, I placed the stencil where I wanted it and attached it with tape.

Instead of just painting a different color in the stenciled area, I applied crackle medium with the plan of having a crackled damask design. That was the plan. But things don’t always work out as planned.

The crackle medium dries clear, but has a glossy finish. Things were going as planned up to this point.

The next step of the plan was to add a coat of Benjamin Moore Gray Wisp to the entire piece, and the stenciled area was going to be the only part that was crackled, showing the Harwood Putty through the cracks. It didn’t turn out exactly as I had hoped. 

I was disappointed, to say the least. I have used the crackle medium before and had great results. I think I must have had too much paint on my brush for this project. Live and learn, right?

Ugh. Not exactly something to be proud of.

After a glass of wine and a good night’s sleep, I came up with a solution to the problem and Plan B. I decided to use the stencil again on the crackled areas and paint it with a light coat of the Harwood Putty. I  applied a light coat of the paint using a pouncing technique. I didn’t want a heavy coat, or a very even coat. 

Success! This was what I had been trying to achieve.

I lightly distressed the whole piece with a sanding sponge next. The left side of the photo shows how it looked. Next, I waxed the entire piece with brown wax to highlight the crackled areas. The right side of the photo shows how it looked after the brown wax was applied. 

Here’s a closer view of the finished design. Now it was beginning to look like how I wanted. This look might not be for everyone, but it’s one that I really like.

I’m not in love with the drips and runs, but it does seem to add some character and more of an aged, imperfect look to the piece, don’t you think? (I’m trying to find the silver lining for those areas.)

The brown wax highlights the crackled area and makes the design from the stencil stand out nicely.

Here’s a closer glimpse at the distressed areas. You can see the green paint that was on the piece when we got it from the junk store. I like the different layers of colors peeking through. The hardware was painted in Modern Masters English Brown.

So that’s my latest painted piece, and an example of how sometimes things don’t always go according to plan but that doesn’t mean that you should just give up! 

What do you think? It’s a totally different look than what I usually do, but I really like it.

Have you used a stencil in a painting project before? 






Thanks so much for dropping by.  Have a lovely weekend.

To see more of my painted projects, go here.

XOXOX,

Angie


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12 Comments

  1. I really like the effect — and I always find that a glass of wine helps me find solutions. I am trying an antique artisan look and I think a stencil might just do it. Thank you for sharing.

    1. Thanks, Marisa! I agree. Wine makes decisions much easier. 😉 Good luck with your project. I'd love to see how it turns out!

    1. Thanks! For now, it's not for sale, but it might be at some point in the future. I'll add it to my shop page if it goes up for sale, and show it on my facebook page as well.

    1. Thanks, Cynthia! They do have great designs. I'll be doing a stencil project again since this one was so easy. Thanks for dropping by! ~ Angie

  2. I love the way it turned out, and I'm a big fan of the glass of wine and a good night's sleep process of problem solving.

    1. Thanks, Graycie! They're the original pulls that came with the piece. Aren't they unique?

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