{Project: Nursery} Furniture Paint

Today I will be sharing a few pieces of furniture that have been transformed for the cupcakes room. I might sound like a record player by repeating myself, but I was very adamant that Kinsley's nursery did not have a matchy matchy feel. I wanted a unique, eclectic and vintage room with antique pieces that you can't just go to Babies-R-Us and pick out. For me it just isn't my style although I know it's a great option for those mommies-to-be who don't want to spend much time or thought on picking out furniture. To each his own... this is just how I wanted to do it.

Crib
I knew I wanted a Jenny Lind crib. It screams vintage to me with it's spindles and antique vibe. You can buy these brand spankin' new for around $150.00 (depending on where it's coming from) but I got my crib off craigslist for $50.00! Sure it was "used" but after cleaning it good with hot soapy water, it looks as good as new.  We bought a white one, which is what I wanted, and I'm keeping her in all her white shiney glory to avoid the matchy matchy look. Kyle and Marley helped put the crib together a few weeks ago and we've been practicing getting our pretend baby in and out of the crib. It's fun to visualize :)

Changing Table
I had been torn between getting a "changing table" or using a dresser to make a changing table. I had both pieces so it wasn't a matter of finding something to use. In the end, I went with using a changing table made specifically to change your baby. My mom found a Jenny Lind changing table on craiglist that originally was $10.00. After the lady who was selling it took a closer look at the changing table, she noticed a small crack in one of the shelves and offered to give it to us for free. Yes, FREE!!!! Kyle went and picked it up and stored in Steamboat's Shed...aka my mom's garage. My mom did the honors of priming that sucker (which took her 4 hours to do because of all the spindles and tiny details in it) and painting it her new beautiful Cincinnatian Hotel Abbey blue! I don't have a true "before" picture to show you it's true chocolate brown color, but here's one with just a little bit of primer on it.

BEFORE

 

DURING

 

AFTER

Dresser

My mom scored this awesome antique dresser at a garage sale for $60.00. It is the perfect piece to include in the nursery to give it that vintage look. Again, this was your usual wood stained walnut color and I wanted to transform it into Cincinnatian Hotel Abbey blue. First we had to take all the knobs off because those were going to be painted the Sweet Sixteen color. Then Kyle and I gave it a good clean with hot soapy water to get all the dirt and grim and spider webs off. Then Kyle did the honors of priming that sucker and I went to painting the knobs. After a few coats of primer and paint (which turned in to many more coats due to some circumstances that arose) the dresser turned out AWESOME!!! I couldn't be happier with how it all turned out and looks so good in the nursery :)

BEFORE

 

DURING

 

 

AFTER

If you're planning on painting anything for your nursery, here are some tips to keep in mind:

• always paint in a well ventilated area and wear a mask
• we painted in my mom's garage with the door open so we had plenty of air circulating & I wore a really sexy mask. We got the mask when we stained our dining room table and it really does block out any type of fume that you could possibly inhale. I highly recommend spending a little bit more on a good mask (rather than those cheap fabric ones).
• prime, prime & prime!
• the better you apply your primer, the easier your paint will go on. Sure you can take the easy way and buy primer + paint in one, but we like to do things the more old fashioned way. 
• you will rather have to do more coats of primer on your furniture, than more coats of paint. Especially if your piece of furniture is dark to begin with, you'll want at least 2-3 coats of primer to ensure you paint goes on smooth and even
•  look into Low VOC/No VOC paints
• with everyone going green and being more concerned about toxins and gases in the environment, you might want to consider low VOC/no VOC paint. VOC stands for volatile organic compounds. In a nutshell- paint that contains low VOC or no VOC are better to use in your home (especially in a nursery) because it doesn't release nearly as many gases as regular paint does. You can do your own research about it, but it's definitely recommended to consider the VOC level.
• stay hydrated!
• this isn't a painting tip, but it's definitely something to keep in mind when you're doing manual labor for long periods of time in the heat. Get a big glass of water and drink, drink, drink!
• give the furniture time to cure
• or as I like to say, curate. Let your furniture have plenty of time to dry completely and if the weather lets you, let it sit in direct sunlight to get as many gases and toxins from the paint out as possible. This ensures that before you bring it into your home, it's released as much as possible naturally.
  

Next up on the nursery to-do list is to hang some shelves and pictures and to begin the fabric search for the gilder & ottoman transformation.