Becolorful

A Blooming Bistro Table

The American Red Cross Red Boa Ball was earlier this month and I had wanted to create something that I could donate to the silent auction. I settled on the idea of painting one of these Ikea LINDVED bistro tables for the event.

 

They are a nice size for a small patio grouping and they come pre-painted in an easy- to- cover shade of clean white. They really are a virtual blank canvas just begging for color.

I spray painted the entire table first with Rust-Oleum 2x spray paint in glossy Spa Blue. After the paint had dried I drew on my design with white chalk. This allows me to make pattern changes with out having to repaint the table top.

 

Once my design was laid out it was just a matter of filling in the leaves and flowers with various shades of craft paint. Then I went back and outlined some of the elements with a sharpie marker to give them more definition and impact.

Next I added some stripes for interest using a flat edge one inch brush. Using this brush is a time saving short cut to avoid having to use painter's tape.

 

Finally I created a bit more interest and color by adding some dots. I like to use a pencil eraser because this helps me to be sure the dots are fairly uniform in size and shape.

 

 

 

 

Sometimes I think a project is complete and I go ahead and take some pictures for my portfolio. It's when I look at the pictures that I occasionally  realize something isn't right.

I thought my table was complete...

 

 

but then I knew it had too much open space. What to do? Fill it in with more dots!

Much better.

:D

 

I was able to complete this project in an evening and I'm happy to say that the money it raised was worth the effort.

xoxo,

p

JDRF Clock

 

This past summer I was given the opportunity to share in a spectacular milestone. The chairwoman of our local Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation chapter was celebrating her tenth year as the gala chair. She is one incredible woman and her outstanding and note worthy fund-raising efforts have garnered attention from other charitable organizations and other JDRF chapters across the country. Her family wanted to commemorate her ten year commitment to this cause by gifting her with a clock that had been in their family for years. They wanted to have the clock highlighted with the graphically designed themes from each of the years that she had chaired the event. This is where I came in. My job was to come up with a plan of incorporating ten different event invitations in ten different color palettes, and pull them all together into some sort of cohesive design.

It proved to be a bit of a challenge but with plenty of time to pull my design together and a little brainstorming with my artistic son over a couple glasses of wine, I was able to complete this fun and creative effort.

 

Here are a few shots I took of the clock while it was still in my studio where the lighting for photos is pretty atrocious and the lack of a cleared space is glaringly evident.

I was told that her favorite theme had been the "Wild About A Cure" so I put that front and center.

 

The right side of the clock was the most difficult for me and I must have repainted it three times.

 

 

 

 

The left side had a couple fewer elements so it was easier.

 

 

 

 

Ta da!

 

 Thanks Lavonne, Lorie, and of course, Nette.

xoxo,

p

Kid's Art Just Makes Me Happy

 

 

One of the things that kept me busier than usual these past few months was co-chairing a charity event for the American Red Cross. Like a lot of these events, ours also included a live and silent auction.

While I was helping to pull together auction items I remembered that last fall there had been a mulitple home fire in our area. This fire affected five families and some of those families had elementary aged children. The Red Cross responds to every home fire and I thought it would be meaningful and logical to approach the elementary school that these children attended and ask them to contribute an art project. They enthusiastically agreed and the resulting artwork was absolutely incredible.

Kid's art is usually so colorful and pure and these pieces were no exception. There was definitely a heart theme going on here and each painting evoked a feeling of hope and gratitude.  I thought what better place to show them off and share them with others than here on BeColorful.

Approximately twenty five fifth grade artists participated in this project. A few of pieces were stand alone and frameable.

 

 

 

 

 

 

But what to do with all the other paintings? There were elements in each and every one of them that were unique and noteworthy. So I decided to cut the remaining pieces up and take selections from each of them and incorporate into a larger collaged canvas.

 

The cut out images were applied to a 40x40 canvas that I had painted red.

 

 

 

The overall look was colorful and dramatic but it is when you look closer that you notice all the fabulous details that are so wonderfully uplifting.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There were four art pieces that were auctioned off at our Red Boa Ball and we raised almost $1500 from these four items!

 

 

 

 

 

Kid's art must make others happy also. Thank you so much to the fifth graders and staff at Hiawatha Elementary School for contributing to our Red Boa Ball and helping the American Red Cross in such a significant way!

 

This is an event and hopefully an auction item that will be repeated next year so follow BeColorful or the Red Cross here or on Facebook for updates on the

Red Boa Ball 2015 

xoxo,

p

A Barrel Top Lazy Susan

 

When I was asked to paint up this wine barrel lid that was to be re-purposed into a lazy susan I knew it would be a fun project. The client wanted  to go with a with a wine theme and I immediately knew what I wanted to do. She requested that some of her husband's favorite wines be incorporated into the piece so I began by laying out my design and then printed out the wine label images from my computer. I painted the design and then decoupaged the labels onto the painted bottles, added a few grapes and glasses for interest and voila! A neutral palettes and design that will hopefully be appropriate in either a kitchen or casual dining space. If they didn't want to use it as a lazy susan it could lean against a mantel or be hung on a wall.

I added the names of different varieties of wine with a black sharpie for some added depth to the lettering and then highlighted with a gold paint pen. It is critical that you allow the paint pen to cure well before adding a clear coat or the paint pen will bleed. I learned that the hard way on a previous project. 

:D

 

 Off to a good home!

xoxo,

p

A Colorful Table That Could Use Some Direction

Two years ago I painted this table for a Traveling Door show. It was one of those pieces that I painted thinking that if it didn't sell it would be something I would be able to use in our home. I had the perfect spot for it. Well it sold so I bought another table just like it (IKEA Lindved) thinking I would paint it for myself but never got around to it. Forward two years and I am currently co-chairing a fund raising event for the American Red Cross, you know the kind, with live and silent auctions. So now I've decided to paint up my second table and donate it to the auction. I have already spray painted this second version a pale aqua but now I'm second guessing myself. If it stays aqua what other accent colors should I use? I'm thinking a lime green or maybe yellow? Since it is a metal patio piece I am envisioning a floral design again. Maybe I'll go with a variety of flowers and colors. I obviously want to to pull together something that will be appealing to the greatest number of bidders. What are your thoughts? If you could design this table what would you like to see here?

Xoxo
P

What I Love Today- Shape Tape From Frog Tape

Oh the things I could create with this.

My mind is whirling with projects.

There are three options; chevron, wave, and scallop.

Ooh la la.

:D

xoxo,

p

A Sassy Style Update For A Rescued Jewelry Box

A friend of mine from high school recently asked me to create an animal print dressed jewelry box as a gift for one of her friends. Thank you Lisa for thinking of me.

I found this neglected relic at a local G.W.

 

 

 

It had good bones but needed a bit of TLC.

I thought the cane doors were unnecessary and gave this piece a bit of an 80's vibe that didn't need to be revisited so I removed them.

I painted the entire piece black and then went to town with the requested animal print theme. 

 

 

Lisa asked if I could also bring some dashes of red into the design so I added a bit of a deeper red to the top drawer and a red and copper treatment to the ends.

The insides of the drawers to this piece were an 80's country blue. It wasn't working with my design. When I have done smaller pieces like this I have replaced the lining with new felt but this jewelry box had nine drawers and that seemed a bit daunting.

I figured I had nothing to lose so I tried spray painting the interiors of the drawers. I have to say the result was amazing. It looks better than if I had tried to recover them.

 

I will definitely be using that technique again in the future. Adding felt to just the bottom of each drawer is easy to do but wouldn't be necessary.That said, I did do this treatment to just the top drawer for a bit of stepped up style.

 

Lisa, happy birthday to your friend.

I hope she likes it.

Thanks again,

p

Linking up my post here:

 

Hollywood Regency Cabinet 2.0

 

 

You may remember that around the time that I decided to update our dining room with black walls I also repainted a vintage piece of furniture we had so it would work better with our new look.

 

 

 

I loved the look of this old Victrola cabinet but it came up short in the storage department. In April it was time for the The Traveling Door 2013 event and I realized I  didn't have as many pieces as I usually do to show so I started looking around the house for pieces I had painted and decided to take this newly repainted number too. Well, it sold and although that made me happy there was now a real void at this end of the room that made parting with it a little bittersweet. I have actually sold the last three pieces that I have painted for this space so I am learning to not fall in love with or get too attached to any of them. 

:D

I knew I wanted to repeat the black and white look that worked so well here and I really like that whole Hollywood Regency vibe so when I found this white cabinet at a freight salvage store I knew it needed to come home with me.

 

 

The process was the same. Just like its predecessor, I  taped off a Greek Key type pattern and with some left over black paint I gave this little white sideboard a new black and white look. I call it my Hollywood Regency Cabinet 2.0

 

 

 

 

After adding in a little bit of bling with some hardware via the Hob Lob I like to think the look is complete.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hopefully this one will be around for a while.

:D

 

If you are looking for the Motivated Monday linky party it will post tomorrow morning at 9 am Central.

Thanks so much for stopping by.

xoxo

p

Bye Bye Paint Pens

I'm breaking up with all of my paint pens.

 

Yep, adios, vamoose, bye bye.

At a cost of three to four dollars per pen I hate to think how much money I have spent on these frustrations over the past few years. They take forever to prime, they dry out way before their time, and they inevitably puddle at critically disastrous moments. The trouble is I like to incorporate quotes into my painted creations and these paint pens seemed like my best option for adding text... until now.

It has been months since I visited Michael's.  I have been trying to use up some of my supplies but I have a Traveling Door event coming up and I needed to do a bit of restocking. I was amazed at all the new, or new to me,  products I discovered. These were my absolute faves.


 

The six piece dauber set makes even and easily round

polka dots a breeze.

 

I used them on this jewelry box and know I will be getting a lot of use out of these babies.

 

I haven't used the extremely narrow paint tape yet but it is something that I have dreamed about forever. It is rather pricey but if you can buy it with a coupon and use and perhaps even reuse it strategically it won't seem so extravagant. I am guessing the results and fine even lines I can achieve with this will make it worth the investment.


 

It was this little creation, though, that made me smile last night.

After trying not one, not two, but three white paint pens and experiencing pen fail each time which meant having to repaint a section of my project with each disaster I decided to give these a whirl.

I loved them. I bought mine at Michael's. There are six to a package and you just screw them on to a bottle of craft paint. I use various brands of paint and these tops have worked on all of them.

Success!

 

I rinsed out the top immediately after using and it cleaned up easily.

So, paint pens, you were a speed bump in my creativity but you are now clearly in my rear view mirror. I see much smoother roads ahead.

:D

LInking up my thoughts here:

Survival Kit Painted Wine Box

Even though our Traveling Door Show has been postponed I have been continuing to paint away. I occasionally buy clearance items that need a bit of TLC but sometimes I am fortunate enough to be able to recycle something from home like this wine box. Last Christmas Mike received a bottle of wine from one of his vendors in this great wooden box. The wine is long gone but I thought it would be fun to do something with the box. It was just a plain cherry stained box with the vineyard's logo on the top until I gave it the BeColorful touch.

I kept it rather subdued this time and blues are a total break out color for me. 

I painted the entire box a navy blue then added the silver stripes using painter's tape. I am not very good about planning ahead. I should have painted the lid silver too and then use my Silhouette machine to create a mask that I could put down and then cover with the blue paint. That would have been much too easy. So since I already had the top painted blue I still used the Silhouette machine to create the letters. I forget the font that I used. Then removed the letters from the vinyl to create a stencil and filled that in with silver paint using a small round sponge brush.

Open it up and you have an emergency survival kit that just might come in handy over the upcoming holidays.

:D

 

Don't want to wait for the show? 

You can view this and more of my work by clicking on the

BeColorful Designs Album at the top of the right margin.

So glad you stopped by.

xoxo,

p

Dorothy Draper Inspired Bowl

I bought this bowl a while back knowing I would paint it for The Traveling Door show that is coming up soon.

It was a Hobby Lobby find with nice lines and finished in brown with a bronze glaze. Not bad, but not very interesting. I wanted to give it a new, more exciting life. So I gave it the BeColorful touch. :D

 

I've been influenced by the glamorous style of Dorothy Draper so this was my nod to her.

Black and white stripes on the outside

 

 

and gilded gold and green argyle on the inside.

 

 

 

Dorothy, if you are looking down I hope you approve.

xoxo,

p

The Wine Cabinet Reveal

Yes, it seems like I have been working on this piece forever but I think I can now say that I can put a big bold check next to the  finish wine cabinet line of my to do list. 

In my defense there was a lot of wood burning on this piece. I like to do the burning out in the garage because of the lingering smell. Plus it has been ungodly hot this summer and some days it was just too beastly to be out there in the heat with a hot burner.

When my friend first brought me her cabinet it looked like this.

 

She likes a colorful folk art style and to give me a bit of direction she gave me this inspiration image. 

 

 

... and this is what I came up with for her.

 

 

 

She wanted to incorporate some wine themed words and phrases into the piece so I added them by burning them into the edges of the front and top of the cabinet.

 

The word Slainte means Cheers in Irish and is a nod to her heritage.

 

 

These are the two sides

 

 

 

 

Even though the back will most likely seldom be seen, I couldn't leave it bare so I added a simple design here too.

 

 

Finally, I always like to add some fun to the interior of a piece like this. This time I  dressed it up with some metalic stripes and  polka dots, a couple bottles of wine and a cork screw and a cork.

 

 

 

I haven't done any trompe L'oeil for awhile. It was fun to revisit this technique.

 

Now it's ready to hold all the cabernet, pinot, malbec and saugvignon blanc she can fit in here.

This piece was beginning to feel like a permanent fixture in my painting garage. I will be just a little bit sad to see it leave.

Looking at the pictures makes me think I deserve a glass of wine.

Cheers to that!

:D

xoxo,

p

 

LInking up my wine cabinet creation here:

 

 

 

 

 

Wine Cabinet. Progress Part 2

Slowly but surely I am making progress on this wine cabinet.

I burned my design into the cabinet and then painted over it.

My next step will be to go back in and reburn some of the details that filled in with paint. I still have the borders and feet to finish painting. 

As for the top, it has already been burned. I just need to decide on a color scheme.

Any ideas?

xoxo,

p

A Repurposed Silver Box Gets the Toile Treatment

Last year I had done another silverware caddy for this same client.

 

 

On that first box we left the interior intact and I tried to suggest some alternative uses for it

but this time she wanted the second box gutted and painted. I wasn't able to paint it because of the residual glue. When I tried to sand it I found the wood lifting too. So I opted to line the box instead. Hobby Lobby carried the larger sheets of felt that I needed for this project.

 

 

My client had sent me a picture of a red toile pillow from her bedroom and let me know that she wanted this piece to coordinate with the rest of the room. So I used that photo as my jumping off point. Knowing that the other colors she wanted to incorporate were black, white, and a silvery blue I delved in to come up with something I hoped would work for her.

I actually printed out her picture and enlarged it so I could see some of the detail work since toile is not my usual painting style.

Then to pull the blues and reds together I did a border of flowers utilizing both colors.

 

 

The black and white border and feet are my nod to the flirty and fun and the blue and black damask reflects a more classic style.

 

It was a bit challenging to pull together the whimsical look she likes with the more traditional elements but stretching the brain is always a good thing.

xoxo,

p

 

Not Your Run of the Mill Candlestick

 

 

There is nothing shy about this candlestick.

Created from an old table leg

it is epic in its height,

 

 

boldly colorful,

and daring in its mix of patterns.

 

 

 

Topped with a sassy candle

 

 

 

 

 

 

or a bottle of your favorite bubbly,

this big and bold number will garner some attention.

 

xoxo,

p

Linking up my colorful candleholder here:

 

A Vino Inspired Lazy Susan

Lazy Susans are one of my favorite pieces to paint.  I have done a number of them over the past couple of years for The Traveling Door.  I think what I like about these pieces is the blank smooth canvas and that the round layout is a bit out of the ordinary and challenging in that it needs to make sense from every angle as the turntable moves.

I start out with a plain wood lazy susan. This one is from Ikea.

I sand it to roughen up the wood a bit so the paint will adhere better and then I paint the entire piece with a primer.

I like to use Glidden's Gripper.

 

After the primer is dry I lay out my design by drawing it on the white primer.

Recently I have started using a woodburning tool on a few of these pieces to give them more dimension and texture. When I do add the burning I  finish drawing my design on first and then I burn the lines I have drawn. It works best if I keep my subject matter  on the simplistic side. Then, with the design burned into the wood, I go back and fill in the outlines with my painting. It is a bit like coloring in a coloring book. Sometimes I have to go back in and reburn areas that fill in with too much paint and lose their detailing. Occasionally I just go back and go over some of the lines with a black Sharpie to give them more definition.

Depending on the look I am trying to achieve I will either add an antiquing glaze if I want the piece to have a softer aged feel or I will add a gloss poly coat if I am going for a clean crisp shiny look.

This lazy susan  with its wine theme got the glaze treatment and then a satin clear coat for protection.

I like how this piece evolved with its patterned backgrounds and wedges of black and white. Usually my best designs are by accident.

 

:0

So glad you stopped by.

xoxo,

P

This piece is available for purchase and sells for $42.00.  For more information you can contact me at [email protected]

Repurposed Art - Finials

 

 

Earlier this month I participated in an artisan event called The Traveling Door with a group of my artsy friends.  Each of us has a different style and medium that we bring to the table. When people ask me what kind of art I do I usually tell them re-purposed or functional art. Typically they don't want to admit that they don't have a clue what I am talking about. It's a funny thing, when you say the words art or wine to someone.  We often get all uptight about our knowledge or our perceived lack of knowledge on the subject. Why do we do that? Why is art so different from cooking or technology? I digress. Anyway, I can tell when they aren't with me because their faces kind of cloud over and their eyebrows knit and I can almost  see them thinking, " Is she for real? Is she making this stuff up? "  So then I start going into my schpeel of what it is that I do. Usually their eyes glaze over with boredom so I try and keep it short but occasionally I get someone who seems truly interested.

So not knowing which category you fall into, I will try and keep it short.

Re-purposed or functional art is taking something ordinary or sometimes hideous and giving it a new life by painting, staining or embellishing it to create something that is one-of-a-kind.

For example, this was a finial that I found in the clearance aisle at the Hob Lob.

Understated and classic yes, but also a bit of a yawn. In the Spring I like to work with brighter colors but for the Fall sale
I tend to stay with more neutrals or deeper colors. So this time I went with metallics.

I actually had two of these finials. Things get crazy right before a sale and I don't always get individual pictures of everything I painted. So the only after picture I have is a display picture from our Traveling Door event.

A little paint, a little bling for what could be holiday flair and voila! A noteworthy accessory for an end table, bookshelf or mantel. 

Those are some coordinating candlesticks in the background and a lamp base that is a BeColorful take on an Ikea lamp.

But back to the finials.

I forgot to take a before picture but just like the other pieces, this one also started out as solid black.

 

To do something like this yourself you only need a good primer. I don't have a favorite for small pieces like this. Sworn to fun (whatever is on sale) and loyal to none is my motto here. You will also need an array of craft paint colors and maybe a paint pen or two for the finer details.

I like a piece like this that has lots of ins and outs or definite start and stop points for varying the pattern. Then let your imagination fly. Polka dots, stripes, swirls, hearts, stars, what ever floats your boat. :0

 

 

This one also got a few subtle sparkles to dress it up for the holidays but not so much that it couldn't be left out all year.

 

 

 

 

When you are finished give it a light coat of a clear finish. For a small piece like this I prefer a spray.

 

The beauty of this kind of project is that you can choose the element and the colors that will work in your home and then add coordinating pieces as you go.

So glad you stopped by.

Have a great Thanksgiving.

xoxo

P

 

 

 

 

I am also asked where I find my pieces. Some of them come right out of our home. Some from discount stores and thrift shops and every now and again someone thinks of me and gives me some of their cast offs.  I also do commission work which is always exciting and eliminates the having to coming up with a piece to paint.

 

 

Mixed Media Wall Piece

This is my AFTER picture.

I bought this metal 30x30 wall art from TJ Maxx a couple of years ago with the intention of painting it for The Traveling Door.

It had some hideous bird design on it when I bought it but I liked the three dimensional effect of the metal squares.

I painted the whole thing black probably a year or more ago and then for some reason it just sat. I think I knew I wanted to do a design with wine bottles and maybe I figured that would sell better at our Fall event than in the Spring.

I painted the wine bottles onto the "canvas" first and then printed out wine labels in sizes that would fit the bottles and decoupaged them on.

 

I added some stenciling detail to two of the squares and a subway art treatment with the wine facts on two others. 

I then went back in and added a few more painted details and thought the piece was finished.

 

The more I looked at it though, the more I didn't like the contrast of the wine glasses and bottles with the subdued gray and black colors so I ended up glazing the piece with a warm brown.

I think I added too much glaze because some of the detailing was lost so back in again, adding more detail. 

Geeze, I didn't think it would take me this long to complete.

Finally, though, I was satisfied.

 

 

NOW I can add it to my finished projects for 

The Traveling Door.

:0

xoxo,

P

A Lazy Susan For the Holidays

Twice a year I participate in an artisan event called

The Traveling Door.

As usual, I am way behind when it comes to the number of pieces that I have painted for this sale.

Will I ever learn? Probably not.

I did finish this piece earlier this week and since the sale is in November I thought it was appropriate to include a few Christmas items. I usually do a few lazy susans but I have never done anything with a Santa so this was a change up for me.

I think he turned out kind of fun.

 

 

 

 

So chalk up one more to the "finished list"

and now, 

it's back to work for me.

:0

xoxo,

P

Linking my whimsical Santa here:

 

 

Layers of Spray Paint Update A Glass Vase

 

Sometimes I think up weird projects.

This was one of them but I was pleased with the result.

I had a plain glass vase that I probably received with a floral arrangement.

I taped it off and spray painted it gold.

Then, without removing the blue tape, I added some circle shapes cut from my Silhouette machine and spray painted the entire piece black.

There was a bit of bleed and some touch up was needed.

I didn't have a gold craft paint that was the same metallic level as the spray paint so I just painted over all the gold spots and gave it a shaded effect.

Next time I would try painting the entire piece first, even though the clear glass wouldn't show through and then add a layer of stripes and finally a layer of pattern.

There are so many options here that I think I will give this type of technique another whirl.

Thanks for stopping by.

xoxo,

P

LInking up my vase to

The Project Queen