Get a Swedish Gustavian look w/ Annie Sloan chalk paint

oh. my. word.

i’m absolutely in love with this look right now.  i found this perfectly-shaped headboard with a matching dresser on Craigslist.

it was a lovely Bombay piece in pitch black with gold details.  just not my style, but the shape and detailed wood work were perfect for my next Gustavian-inspired pieces.

i usually paint at night after the kids are in bed, so the pix are dark.  and i don’t have a fancy workshop, just the garage, so you get to see it in all its glory.  🙂  i started with Annie Sloan’s Paris Grey in very thick strokes, painting first in a uniform fashion, then haphazardly to try to cover as much of the black as possible.

what i’ve noticed about the Swedes’ take on Gustavian furniture is that the finish is very non-uniform and imperfect, which suits me just fine.  i then took a soft rag and patted it in areas on the piece.  you can see my finger marks in some spots.  whoops!

here’s the cute matching nightstand that i painted, too.

i was trying to achieve a gray-ish, blue-ish hue, so after the Paris Grey dried, i used Minwax Wood Stain and haphazardly painted the piece to give a blue-ish layer to it.  note that the container i chose to hold my paint wasn’t working and leaked all over!

after applying the Minwax, i used a 0000 steel wool (the finest grade possible), and ever-so-lightly dragged it in places to let some of the black show through.  again, i used a soft towel to lightly dab to remove any excess paint and attempt to remove any brush strokes.

then i whipped up a color that i’m calling Charleston Blue.  it’s part Coco, Napoleonic, Pure White and water.

i used the Charleston Blue on the trim detail so that it would be a bit more defined at the very end.  this lighting isn’t doing the detail any justice!

but here, you can see the color a bit better in this jar.  yes, i have issues and hoard jars.  look! it’s coming in handy now.

then i wax the entire piece in clear wax and used a Pure White wash over the wax while it was still tacky.  i used way too much paint here and left it on too long b/c i needed to snap the pic.  i recommend doing a dry brush technique instead of using this much as it took off most of the other layers that i’d already painted.  

working in small sections, i dry brushed the Pure white and followed up with the towel dabbing technique.  then i used a brush and dabbed on more of the MixWax in spots where it looked like the black was showing through too much.  then i let the whole thing cure overnight.

next, i used a Louis Blue + Pure White wash to bring out more blues in the piece and did a final layer of dry-brushing and towel dabbing.  i finished it all off with a hand-painted P toward the top.  i didn’t make the letter too large as i knew our pillows would come up pretty high on the piece.  i found a great list of tutorials on how to do image transfer at thegraphicsfairy.com, but in the end, i just hand-painted it b/c of my impatience.

note to self, when using a tripod and self-timer do to a selfie, be sure your crack isn’t showing, and that you remove the hair clips so you don’t look like a freak.

then i got to waxing with clear wax.  i brushed it on with the wax brush, then rubbed it in getting in a great arm workout.  i only used a single coat of wax. the buffing makes the piece so smooth and silky to the touch.  if you do a few coats for higher-trafficked pieces, the more you buff, the more sheen you’ll achieve.

ta-da!

 

the shabby chic guest room is now looking much more European!

and the nightstand turned out well, too.

i used the Charleston Blue to accent the piece, but wasn’t too careful with the brush strokes as i wanted it to have a rustic feel.

i love the layered look.  the dabbing and blotting technique, along with the dry brushing wash colors over clear wax definitely does the trick!

yummy.

calm.

peaceful.

Gustavian bliss.

have a great week!

linked to:

Sunday: It’s So Very Cheri

Sunday: My 1929 Charmer 

Sunday: Under the Table and Dreaming

Sunday: Marvelously Messy

Sunday: Craft-o-Maniac

Sunday: Keeping It Simple Crafts

Sunday: Three Mango Seeds

Sunday: Finding Silver Pennies

Monday: The Girl Creative

Monday: Boogieboard Cottage

Monday: Our Delightful Home

Monday: CRAFT

Monday: Coastal Charm

Tuesday: Homes to Stories A to Z

Tuesday: Cedarhill Ranch

Tuesday: Elizabeth and Co

Tuesday: Dometsically Speaking

Tuesday: Today’s Creative Blog

Wednesday: Savvy Southern Style

Wednesday: Handy Man Crafty Woman

Giveaway Thursday: Someday Crafts

Thursday: The Brambleberry Cottage

Thursday: The Charm of Home

Thursday: From My Front Porch to Yours

Friday: Miss Mustard Seed

Friday: Fridays Unfolded

Friday: Shabby Nest

Friday: Romantic Home

Friday: Redoux Interiors

Friday: 504 Main