Creative Tea Time


Wow! What a wonderful Saturday full of amazing and inspiring women! I have to say, I was honored to attend Creative Tea Time. Located in beautiful Dana Point, California the day couldn't have been more perfect. When walking into the event, my breath was literally taken away by all of the beautiful details that Tracy from CremeDeLaGems, Meagan from Fairly Fabulous & LeAnn from Lele's Little Soiree had worked so hard on. Truly, every little detail was perfection! From the draping vintage sheets and tissue poms to the vintage place settings, centerpieces, buntings and craft displays. There was even a "TEA-pee" for the water dispenser, how cute right?! I can honestly say that I am bummed that I didn't bring my BIG girl camera for this event... the prettiness was overflowing!



The day started off by finding our place settings which were beautifully marked with our adorable name tags on perfectly wrapped "swag" boxes, and let me tell you, the swag that we received was over the top! I cannot thank the sponsors of Creative Tea Time enough! We all were spoiled!









Each one of us choose 6 craft projects to do, which proved to be challenging while mingling and getting to know all of the other ladies! My projects included a hand stamped spoon, a hot air balloon, a mason jar winter snow globe, a hand painted sign, a bunting banner & an embellished pumpkin. I sure didn't think that I would be able to finish 6 craft projects in just 7 hours, but I did & even with time left to spare!





Throughout the day there were giveaways, food and yes, more giveaways! In conclusion, all I can say is WOW. Again, a HUGE thank you to the ladies who worked tirelessly to put Creative Tea Time together! And thank you to my girl Rebeca from A Sweet Little Note who was my shotgun riding car buddy & kept the day full of conversation and laughter. 


To all of the ladies I met: y'all are inspiring! I walked away with so many memories and confidence. You ladies have shown me that accomplishing this little creative dream of mine IS possible even while being a stay at home mommy too :)


Many of you have written and have asked where I purchased by beautiful top for this event. After hours of searching the internet I finally took the leap and purchased this peplum top from KIYONNA.COM
Right out of the box it fit amazingly! I highly suggest if you are a plus size girl that you check out their clothing line! To die for!




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Thomasville Dresser Makeover

I have been meaning to post this furniture makeover for quite some time now,
and just realized how far I have fallen behind with my blogging lately!
(apologies everyone!)

My Husband actually scored this find while helping a friend move and brought it home to me for a little labor of love. This was the very last piece of furniture that I painted before discovering chalk paint, so lets just say this massive project was a pain! Oh latex paint, you have many wonderful uses, but painting furniture is not one of them! This dresser took me about 2 weeks to finish and almost 7 coats of paint. Not to mention the hours of hand sanding that took place before even painting. Time consuming to say the least. But once this beauty was made over, it was gorgeous! 

This dresser has now been SOLD and is being used as a beautiful entertainment center.
I get so excited seeing my pieces go to good homes and being loved!








Here is a reminder of the before & after:


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Vintage Nightstand Makeover


While searching my favorite re-sale sites I came across a beautiful headboard for sale along with this chunky nightstand. I had a definite direction on what I wanted to do to the headboard, but when it came to the nightstand, I was stumped. After sitting in my garage and staring at this thing for almost 30 min, I finally had a vision! I went with Annie Sloan French Linen for the main part of the piece and Annie Sloan Old White for the trim and hardware. The paint sticks to the metal with no problems. I sealed the whole piece with a coat of clear wax after hand distressing. For the inside of the drawers, I used some left over sea foam green latex paint and applied 3 coats with a roller. No need to seal the drawers because the paint had a semi-gloss finish to it. Shortly after finishing this piece it found a home, at my Dad's house of all places! He and his girlfriend fell in love with it and will make the perfect accent piece in their guest bedroom.







& one of my biggest regrets: not taking a before photo :-/
...but I did manage to snap a few on my iPhone during the painting process



What you you all think of the after?




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Meeting Annie Sloan


I still can't believe that I haven't blogged about this yet, being that this was one of the best moments of my life! Yes, I am a total Annie Sloan groupie & felt like I was a 12 year old girl at a Justin Beiber concert. After waiting for over an hour out in the fog & rain (my hair and makeup were a complete mess!) it was finally my turn to meet one of my biggest inspirations, Annie Sloan! This woman is such a role model of how to make your hobby, talent & love of 'crafting' into a profit business. I love how she refuses to ever sell her paints in big name stores and simply supports local small shops & artists. She talked about her book and all of the wonderful furniture transformations collaborated inside of it. If you haven't picked up her latest book yet, do! It's packed full of amazing ideas. Although my time meeting Annie was short, it left a lasting impression on me and gave me inspiration to keep going, to follow my dream and to really lose myself in the painting process & enjoy it!

(don't mind the blurry picture, my Husband is a 'photographer in training' Ha.)




To see where I met Annie & where I buy my paint from [CLICK HERE]
To find a local Annie Sloan retailer/ stockist near you, visit:
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Drop Cloth Chairs


These past few weeks have been very busy, between Easter festivities and having a sick bug circulate through our family, I quickly realized that I have fallen a bit behind on my blogging! ...But there have been plenty of new projects taking place in the Ciani home! 


Last night I was finally able to finish up a set of 4 of these beautiful vintage Thomasville dining chairs. I bought the set a few months ago off of a local resale site for only $20! Yes, that's 5 bucks per chair! Can you believe it?! They ended up sitting in my garage for quite some time while I contemplated on which direction to go with them. Well, I am happy to say they are finally done and turned out even more beautiful than I expected! Seriously crushing hard on these babies ;) 




My inspiration came from THESE CHAIRS by City Farmhouse 
I found them to be so beautiful, clean and classic.

All that was needed was 3 coats of Annie Sloan - Old White, 
some leftover craft paint & a small drop cloth






I purchased my drop cloth from Lowes for about $10. There are ones that are cheaper, but I wanted one that was a bit larger so I could also create some pillows with the leftover fabric. Drop cloths are great for seat cushions because of their durability and they hold the paint really well! (duh, that's what it's made for.)
Each chair came out to cost approx. $12 each
Talk about a deal!


The numbers I chose were: 22, 19, 53 & 78
These numbers have a special meaning to my husband and I. Adding personal touches to your home make it unique and is always a great conversation starter at parties/ get-togethers!

After finishing the chairs, I realized that I forgot to take step by step pictures on my 'BIG' camera...
most often I realize that I do this because I only have a short period of time to get projects done while my little one is napping or after she has gone to bed, so I usually turn to my trusty iPhone.




Thanks for stopping by!
xoxo, Jenn

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Step by Step: Annie Sloan Chalk Paint Tutorial


Have you jumped aboard the chalk paint movement train yet?
Well, if you are anything like me, you probably have a whole album on your Pinterest account FULL of gorgeous painted & re-furbished furniture that you have been lusting over, wondering... "How did they do that?!" After months of staring at many gorgeous pieces of furniture ART (all transformed using chalk paint) I decided to take the leap and try Annie Sloan out for myself!


It is no secret that I have been re-finishing furniture for quite some time. The process is tedious & time consuming, but I love every second of it & feel so accomplished when I see the finished product. Being that I am a huge perfectionist and loathe the sight of brush marks, most pieces require me to buy rollers, paint pans, sand paper, sanding blocks, primer & various other supplies for each piece of furniture that I re-do. Not to mention the fact that regular latex paint requires about 3-4 coats for a smooth finish (before distressing). You can only imagine how much time I was spending sanding, priming, painting & waiting between coats drying. As many pieces of furniture that I re-finish in any given month, I was in desperate need of a better & faster way to get the look that I wanted, but in much less time.

Annie Sloan Chalk Paint to the RESCUE!!!


I honestly cannot even begin to tell you how much I love this stuff! Quick drying time, no sanding, no priming, no need to use rollers, brush lines virtually disappear, 2 coats will mostly cover anything, will stick to most surfaces, even metals and plastics! Yes, the paint is expensive. But shortly after starting on my first piece I realized how little of this paint you really use, which means that every penny I spent on this tiny quart will go a LONG WAY! Seriously, this stuff is a God send & a genius invention! Thank you miss. Annie Sloan.

If you follow me on INSTAGRAM
you may have noticed my latest instabomb of all my chalk paint reveals & many of you have been asking for a tutorial on this amazing stuff, so here we go...

STEP 1:
Find a piece of furniture that is plain ol' wood. The darker the stain the better, but any old piece will do.
Don't worry about scuff marks or dings, these all add character to the piece.


STEP 2:
Give your piece of furniture a good cleaning. Wipe down the surface with a damp cloth & remove any hardware (if needed)


STEP 3:
PAINT. Yep, that's right. Get your brush, dip it in the paint and just jump right in and paint. It doesn't matter which way the brush strokes go (the second coat will take care of that)



STEP 4:
Apply the second coat, this will cover the piece nicely and will fill in any missed areas. After this coat is dry you will notice the brush marks slowly disappear. (You can apply a 3rd coat for a more polished look)




STEP 5:
Sand it. I use a fine sanding block to sand the whole piece of furniture by hand and then use a small piece of 120 grit sand paper to distress the areas that I want more 'worn'. You will sand the parts of the furniture that would have naturally gotten the most wear over time (edges, corners, etc.)








STEP 6:
Apply the wax. Annie Sloan offers two versions of wax, a clear and a dark. For my piece, I used the clear. I also opted to buy her wax brush which is also quite pricey but SO worth it! You will smush the tip of your brush into the wax and cover the end of your brush (as pictured). Then work the wax onto your piece of furniture in a circular motion (like waxing a car). Make sure to cover every nook and cranny.




STEP 7: 
Wipe off the wax with a cotton rag, muslin fabric, paper towel or anything that is free of color. When I am waxing, I work in small sections, waking on and then wiping off. You will notice a difference in your piece of furniture as you wax. The paint slightly darkens & the distressed areas become darker and more noticeable. Waxing your furniture seals it for protection, gives a matte finish and smooth to the touch feel. 


STEP 8:
Step back and enjoy your beautiful work of art!


WHERE CAN I BUY ANNIE SLOAN?
I have gotten many questions as to where one can buy Annie Sloan chalk paint.
I bought mine at a cute & quaint little store near the beach in San Clemente, CA called
THE ABODE



For those of you not located in California... or near this location.
You can visit AnnieSloan.com
for a full list of retailers in every state that carry her products,
or do a simple web search...
there are many websites that also carry her paint and products as well.
Happy Painting!!!
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