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Get a Little Muddy

5 x 7 in

Dixie Belle has such an amazing line of products; it’s not just paint. Never was this more important than when I tackled this huge customer project. She wanted her worm wood, factory distressed bedroom suit completely revamped. This furniture is amazing quality, but the style was just not keeping with my customer’s style. When I evaluated the pieces, I realized that I was going to have to get a little muddy.

I used Dixie Belle Mud to fill in every gouge, hole, and dent. It was a nightmare.

Next step: primer

Dixie Belle Chalk Mineral Paint generally does not need a primer. But, Mud needs to have primer over it, otherwise the paint will absorb differently in the mudded areas and will take on a different texture. Dixie Belle BOSS is a great primer. Once the pieces were all coated with primer, the holes that I missed started showing.

I also discovered some areas where the drawer front met the trim. I couldn’t have that. Ok, more mud.

Let the mud dry then sand smooth. Add second coat of BOSS.

Paint

After all the prep work, it’s time to paint. My Homeright Super Max Sprayer helped me get a great finish. I added two ounces of water per eight ounces of paint so the paint would flow beautifully through the sprayer using the green tip.

 

I  painted with Dixie Belle French Linen. This is a gorgeous taupe-y gray color. The coverage was beautiful, of course. 

Lightly sand after the first coat with a high grit sandpaper. I mean lightly, like one pass. Then add second coat.

Next up: details

My customer wanted all of the detail work done in Moonshine Metallics Gold Digger. All of the detail work is done with a small artist’s brush.

I repeated these steps for the night stands as well.

I followed all of these steps for all of the pieces; dresser, two night stands, armoire, and king size bed.

Little extras

I added re*design rub on transfers on the drawer sides for those little extras that customers adore.

Working on projects like this, as a furniture artist, you have to remember that these are one off pieces. They will likely not turn out perfectly. This is not factory finished furniture. You’ll drive yourself crazy going for perfection. Always just ensure your quality is without question. If you have a discerning customer, she’ll appreciate the nuances that show that it is painstakingly clear a human took great care to make each piece unique.

My customer was amazing. Incredibly I did not take pics of all the pieces all finished. I hope these images convey how beautifully this set turned out. It was totally worth the fact that I had to get a little muddy to make it happen. 

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