Les Deux Oiseaux Bistro

Les Deux Oiseaux Bistro on a surprisingly warm day in November. The perfect day to enjoy an 

al fresco meal of crusty bread, bleu cheese and fruit. 

I am learning that my trash-to-treasure posts are very popular. And this one definitely started out as trash. 

If you recall, the house came with 2 ugly boring lamps sitting on 2 even less attractive TV trays. You can look HERE to see what I did with the lamps. 

The TV trays were never very fine. The top is a plastic surface meant to look like parquet, I guess. The legs are starting to rust. 

The underside gives a really good idea of the condition and a look at the original masonite. 

I started by painting the top with Annie Sloan Chalk Paint in Old White. This took 2 coats.

I wanted this to have a weathered look, so I used the blow dryer to create a cracked finish. That discoloration is rust or mold or something bleeding through the paint. This probably sounds strange, but I like the discoloration.

I wanted to make these look like signs so I could hang them on the side of the house when they are not in use - decorative and functional!

To find printable French signs, I went HERE

Since I was going to be applying the image face down, I selected two that were mirror images with words and pictures. To make my selection, I printed out all the ones I liked and held them up to the window so I could read the words. Don't skip this step or you could have a surprise. This one of The Two Birds Bistro was my favorite! I also like the sign for Patisserie (Bakery) & Confiserie (Sweet shop). You can see the second one behind.

I printed out my two choices large enough to fill an 8.5 x 11 piece of paper. Then I took them to the office supply store and had them enlarged to 11 x 17. This is just regular laser jet printing.

I applied another coat of paint, just where the paper would be. I put the paper face down on the wet paint, covered it with a piece of plastic wrap for protection,  and then made sure all the air bubbles were out by using an old wallpaper roller I had. I let it dry COMPLETELY - about 4 hours. 

Now the fun part! I just spritzed it with water and rubbed the paper away with my fingers.

Sorry, I forgot to take a picture of the black painting. I used some of my old chalk board paint to cover the rusty fake gold on the legs and edge of the top. 

You can see how the paper comes off to reveal the printing that has stuck to the paint.

I used a pencil to sketch a faint line where I wanted to create an edge, then used an old artist's brush to paint on the French Linen. It is freehand, so the look is rustic.

I wanted to make the Old White a little more gray and make the cracking stand out, so I did a wash with half water and half Paris Gray, quickly wiping away as I did it in two stages. Because I plan on using these outside, I did not use dark wax. I don't know what it would do, but wax is not recommended for exterior use.

I had to work quickly, so there is not a picture. But you can see the shadows it created here.

Now it's time to relax and enjoy a light meal before I attack the Patisserie & Confiserie sidewalk table. I thought they deserved a new name!

New Life for an Old Sofa

According to my mother, this was one of my grandmother's first (and favorite) furniture purchases when she married in 1926. From Mom's childhood perspective, it was originally upholstered in brown "horsehair" that was itchy to sit on. All of my memories of the piece had a skirt covering the legs. For the last 25-30 years I have tried to talk my mother into exposing these great legs! So she gave me the sofa and I did it. 

And this is what I received. Fitting for Halloween - orange and scary. 

My mother had it upholstered in an indestructible orange fabric in 1968. Fur from every dog my parents ever owned was embedded in the fibers. That gray shading on the left is dog fur. Yuck. 

As I stripped off the fabric, I found small toys, game pieces, 37 cents in change, a TicTac, and an M&M - I microcosm of Grandmom and Grandad's life. I also found thread from the original greenish-brown velvet upholstery.

The wood was originally stained dark brown, but I forgot to take a picture. I painted it with Annie Sloan Chalk Paint in Old White, used clear wax and dark wax, then distressed it with sandpaper. The final touch was gilding wax.

 I remember this teal colored fabric from my childhood. My grandmother also used linen slipcovers in the summer, which I remember. 

The small samples are from Fabricguru. Selection and prices are good, and my order arrived in just a few days. I had to pay for the samples, but they gave me a discount code that more than covered what I paid for the samples. I will use them again.

If you look closely, you can see the gilding. The speckles on the wood are original to the piece - I guess their version of distressing. The blue fabric was what an earlier upholsterer used in lieu of burlap. You can also see how dark the original stain was.

I did my first upholstery shortly after college with help from a library book. Now I use Youtube.

My favorites are a series of 7 videos beginning here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YskrFzNoPKg

He is restoring a sofa the same age as mine. This is how the professionals do it!

A professional would have had straighter lines, but that would easily have been $1000.

I ended up finishing the edge with the same fabric I used for the upholstery - not nailhead trim or gimp. I felt like the sofa would be too busy. I like how it turned out.

I can hardy wait for my living room to be finished.  I will be refinishing(and sharing) some chairs from my other grandmother to create a room with a French cottage feel.

I bought the needlepoint pillows at Marshalls or TJMAXX many years ago  and would love to find more. I found a few on ebay, but they cost more than what I paid for them brand new! Any suggestions??