Saturday, August 22, 2015

Painting a French Metal Basket with Chalk Paint

Today, I wanted to share a little project of mine "in process";
transitioning from Summer into Fall.
And since this is a French-y iron basket I will say, "En cours".
See, you get your French "phrase" for the day, 
and a little view of what I'm up to.





I bought this basket back in 2004, and used it on my Dining Room table at the old house, probably until around 2011. As you can see in this photo, it was matte black iron finish, and since it was Christmas it was holding faux poinsettias. BIG pink poinsettias. After I wore it out on the Dining Room table, I had it on our hearth, but I tired of the "black", which didn't really show all the pretty scroll-y iron work. So it went in the storage room.




When we moved, again it went on the top shelf in the storage room. I would look at it, and think, "it's such a pretty piece, but it needs to be lightened up". The reason I hadn't done anything about that was because it was packed with moss, and a floral designer had created it for me. I didn't want to take it apart to paint, because I knew it would be a booger bear to repair...I was right. It was a mess, because the moss was old and hardened and pretty much crumbled into a million pieces when I took it out.





But I knew if I didn't jump into the project, it would stay black,
 and that meant staying on the top shelf of the storage shelves.
So I did the best I could, and "en cours" made a huge mess.
Let's see that would be..."un énorme gâchis"



I used a small trim paint brush and did two coats of Annie Sloan Chalk Paint. It's just a mix of Coco, Old White, and Paris Gray. I keep my everchanging leftover "custom color" paint in a Tupperware bowl with lid. I wanted this more taupe than gray; now it shows up so much better than the black.




Yes, those are White Sunflowers,
and I have been on a quest for them for 3 years.
Finally found some.




I'm going to be using this on my Dining Room table
 this early part of Fall,
so that's what I'm working on today.

I have an un énorme gâchis to clean up,
There are cats running through moss, faux and dried flowers, sticky labels,
and all sorts of debris that comes from flower arranging.
but I love it.



I'm still tweaking this mess,
just wanted to check in and share my project for the day,
"mon projet pour la journée".

Have a good start to the weekend,
I'm hoping to get a bit more "Fall" done before I clean it all up.

Joining in Here:

Show and Share at Coastal Charm
Amaze Me Monday at Dwellings
Tweak it Tuesday at Cozy Little House
The Scoop at Cedar Hill Farmhouse
Wow Us Wednesday at Savvy Southern Style
Create Dream Inspire at Lehman Lane
Share Your Style at Common Ground
Your Turn to Shine at Anderson and Grant
Inspiration Gallery at Craftberry Bush
xoxo,


16 comments:

  1. What? You're not going to tell where you found the white sunflowers? Quelle dommage! (haha) You ended up with a fab arrangement!

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    1. how do you say Michael's in French? te he!!

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    2. In French we say Michel ! :) Congratulations for your French...

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  2. Debra,
    C`est Magnifique!!!
    I adore the lighter hue on your basket,dear friend!!!
    New Autumnal Floral Arrangement sounds divine!!!
    I'll be watching for more of your Early Autumnal Decor!!!
    Fondly,
    Pat

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  3. Loving, pinning and sharing! Might as well add - copying :>))))

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    Replies
    1. I always love "copying", I do it myself!! thanks Donna!

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  4. It looks so good and with the white sunflowers - terrific. It's such a pretty basket, to pretty to be on the storage shelf.
    Have a wonderful weekend and I am so ready for FALL and hopefully some rain.
    Mary

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  5. Love the transformation of the basket from black to white!!!

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  6. Beautiful Mon Aime!!!! The basket is gorgeous. Love the white sun flowers too.
    Have a wonderful week end.
    Kris

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  7. The basket looks wonderful with it's new colors.....and those white sunflowers are perfect!
    Cindy
    Edith & Evelyn Vintage

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  8. I love that arrangement using white sunflowers. I've never seen white sunflowers before. Those would work well in my decor too. Your wire basket reminded me of one that I have in my basement that I love but haven't brought out to use in a long time. It's one of those things that you have to have room for but you don't want to part with it either. I like how you lightened yours up with paint.

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  9. How beautiful, it looks like you are getting into the fall season :)

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  10. What a fabulous basket…and it looks great white…even better with the contrast of the moss, then black. Wonderful photos…nice job! Love all the textures you used. Thanks for the inspiration---going and painting three wire, thingies, right now!

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  11. Gorgeous! I painted a black metal basket white a few years ago and was amazed at how much better the lighter color looked. I love how the moss looks through the basket. You created a beautiful display to transition into fall!

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  12. Loving the white sunflowers Debra. Such a perfect arrangement!!
    I love popping over for a little inspiration. Beautiful as always :)

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