My Old/New Clock

I use to have a little bench outside that I use to use for all sort of stuff eventually the elements took its toll on the bench and became of no use.  Over the year it just sort of laid there and each time I meant to have it trashed, something came up and I forgot.

When I was looking at my foyer wall the other day I kept looking at my clock. 

 I think it's a nice clock but I always felt something was missing, it was just hanging there....and then the other day I thought about that lonely worn out bench outside.

It was the perfect for what I wanted to do.

I cleaned it up and managed to tone down most of the red.  I then took some ocher & sienna pigments and washed over the board to make it appear even more rustic.  

With that done I took a neck chain that I had purchased while away on vacation but hadn't worn for a few months and...

... spray painted it to look old & rusty using brown & then hand painted sienna in various spots.  I love the statement my new/old clock now makes.

BEFORE

AFTER

If you look closely at the top left, you can see the sand that's embedded in the wood.  When I showed this off to a friend they queried why I didn't patch it up & painted it to make it look new; you should have seen their eyes when I mentioned I painted over it to make it look older...(smile)

I love the character it has added to my clock.  So the next time you see an old piece of wood just lying around LET YOUR CREATIVITY FLOW!

Drift Wood - Chalk Paint

My friend and I went walking on the beach last week when I came across driftwood from a coconut tree.

Of course, being at sea for a while it had darkened

     FRONT

     BACK

My friend thought I was crazy, seeing as how we're surrounded by coconut trees, but it was something about this piece that caught my eye and I just had to have it.

To be honest, I didn't know what I wanted to do with it, but I knew I wanted to keep it as natural looking as possible.   I first became familiar with chalk paint when I read  Begin Again Furniture  blog where Allie talked about her experiment making her own chalk paint; she painted a beautiful chair.  I had also did some reading on Anne Sloan Chalk Paint and I liked the natural soft look it gave to furniture.  Of course, ASCP isn't sold here in the Bahamas so as usual I had to improvise.

There were several variations of making your own chalk paint but I found on No Minimalist Here blog where Sherry talked about using Calcium Carbonate, Whiting Powder or Plaster of Paris mixed with your paint.  I couldn't find the Calcium Carbonate or Whiting Powder but I did find some Plaster of Paris.  But before purchasing the Plaster of Paris I remembered I had some Lime at home, and because its suppose to be high in calcium and/or magnesium carbonate I decided to give it a try.  I figured, it's a piece of wood and not furniture, so what was there to lose?  I went with Sherry's formula 1/3 lime, 2/3 paint. 

Here are the end results

I initially painted it red in spots before applying my chalk paint.  I wanted an aged look, so I decided to go with crackle - (can you see the red peeking through?)

I then started distressing

The final results (BACK)

Why does this remind me of a baby's bottom????

Final results (FRONT)

I used a glaze to seal it and added a tint of color

Displayed on my Kitchen Counter

Not only did the chalk paint keep it natural looking, it allowed a beautiful flow of color formations.  The next time you go strolling on the beach LET YOUR CREATIVITY FLOW!