Makeover: Patio bench

This is the 'before' of the bench: all sanded and ready for painting.

I'd been wanting to do this for the longest time, and I finally got up the nerve to actually start on it! 

The bench had been in the rain and the sun, and the paint was peeling, and it needed re-painting badly. Chuan will never let me paint anything without first sanding it, so sand it I did.

Then, it was on with a couple of coats of paint, and more sanding - to make it look old and weathered! Yes, you will be forgiven for thinking me totally mad.

Below, you'll find the 'AFTER' pictures: including the last one, with my three girls testing it, to make sure it is still a good place to sit :)

Just before the Chinese New Year break, I started on some projects, but as they were in various stages of 'complete' I didn't want to post pix of them here.

First off: I started to play with my stained-glass painting kit, and this is what I did:

I worked with Folkart's Gallery Glass, and this is what I got. I did the designs on an old plastic chopping board that I no longer use. I piped on the 'leading' (it almost broke my hand, I tell you!), and when it had set (I left it for 24 hours), I filled-in the colours. Like I learned on You Tube, I used a skewer to mess about with the colours, making sure they reached right up to the leading, and left no holes.

Because this was the first time with Gallery Glass, I didn't want to buy individual bottles of the stuff - so I bought a set of five bottles, plus one black 'leading' bottle. 

The paint dries clear, and is sparkley and so very stained-glass-looking! Unfortunately, I am not good enough of a photographer to know HOW to take a picture of this, and do it justice.

I left the lot to dry, and today, I used a razor blade to lift them off the plastic, and put them up on a mirror. After putting them on, struggling with trying to take pictures of them and failing, my husband came and noticed that one of my fish was 'dead': because I'd placed it upside down! Nice :(

XIN NIAN KWAI LE !!!

This is the year of the BLACK, WATER DRAGON - and I did find some black dragons online (free ;)

But, this guy was the most beautiful, so here he is, wishing one and all: 

HAPPY CHINESE NEW YEAR!

Wonderful stained-glass site

I found this site accidentally when I went Google-searching for stained glass designs. Yes, I have ideas about doing some stained-glass work, so I was doing a bit of homework :)

Isn't this beautiful? There's a free pattern for this on the site! How cool is that?!

The Stained Glass Lady

It is an amazing site, and has tutorials and ideas and pictures... and FREE patterns! Hahahah! For someone like me, who's taken up this hobby after I've retired, money is always scarce. And, anything 'free' is the first thing to catch my eye! Too often, 'FREE' comes with a catch, but it's ok, I live and I learn.

Please visit this site, and pay it forward like I have. It has so much to offer, and I've only just skimmed the surface. I'll be returning to find out more about the delightful craft of stained glass.

I'm also adding the site to my blogroll, so that I can come back anytime I want :)

Another lazy susan

It's just 'acting' here: I haven't given it its final top-coats yet! ;)

The other lazy susan I painted, went to my dear friend Lita.

After painting hers, I was dying to paint one for myself - so I set about painting-on the background (blackboard paint), and sanding it, and readying it for a design.

But, what should I paint on it? "Not roses again, ma?!" my daughter had said, when I told her I was painting grandpa's old medicine cabinet. So, roses were out.

Roses aren't my favourite flower to paint. Nor are they my favourite flower in all the world. I think, daisies are. But, roses were the hardest to learn, and once I'd learned them, I kept wanting to paint them, because I am terrified that I will somehow forget how to, if I don't! Hahahahah!

So, roses were out, and I'd already painted quite a few daisies lately - so I settled for sunflowers, which fit in nicely in my wood-y kitchen :)

Originally, the daisies were painted white. But, they were too 'startling' against the very-black background, and pulled the focus away from the sunflowers! So, I mixed a yellow glaze (the sunflower yellow, and medium) and painted a couple of coats over them. That's mellowed them somewhat, and keep them in the background nicely.

Re-purposed medicine box

Years ago, my dad made this little box/cupboard/cabinet - and it housed our medicines, and served as our medicine chest. Over the years, it got old and dusty, and when he passed away, and mum moved out of the old home, I couldn't bear to part with this. After all, he had made this, like so many other things in our house, and I couldn't bear the thought of it being left unwanted somewhere.

So, it has sat in a storeroom, gathering more dust, until my husband decided to clean it, and give it a nice, bright coat of paint. He used the left-over paint we'd painted our walls with, and it looked spiffy and new.

BUT: The red cross that dad had painted on the front door was hard to 'hide'. Even after a third coat, you could still see it peeping through!! That's the power of red, or dad's painting!!!

So, Chuan suggested that I paint something on it. And I did.

Here's a shot of the newly-painted box. See what I mean about the cross??!!

I slipped-slapped scrollwork on the two side panels.

A view of the door, and one side-panel. I 'edged' the door, and the side panels in gold
metalic paint (which doesn't photograph well; with or without the flash). Especially,
on the door, it sorta lends a 'frame' to my roses. I also splashed metallic gold on the knob ;)