Lisey's bed, repainted
I bought this bed off of craigslist years ago.
and I painted it white,
so Zoe could switch from her converted crib (poor kid was six at the time!) into a twin bed.
A year later, we moved Zoe in with Sonia and moved Lisey into this room.
Here are all the before and afters of Lisey's room project.
I painted the bed in 2012, and after this many years, the headboard paint was getting pretty worn. I think I maybe didn't do quite as good a job of sanding this part of the headboard as I should have. Who knows.
The side rail, which Lisey always props her feet up on, was wearing too.
So, I took the bed apart and put the offending side rail and headboard up on sawhorses.
I sanded them down with pretty fine grit sandpaper, using my orbital sander (love that thing! $59 and totally worth every penny).
I did not sand all the way down to bare wood on the whole thing...I just scuffed up the worn parts and went over the area where the worn parts met the intact paint as well.
Then I spray primed the whole sanded area using white primer.
And then I did multiple thin coats of my favorite furniture paint in semi-gloss white.
Happily, I had a partial can left on my shelf so I just thinned it with water and I was good to go!
(Here is, step by step, how I paint wooden furniture.)
Her headboard is all nice and fresh now. Yay!
And so is the side rail.
That's a lot better!
Oh, and I forgot to mention...I used this little caulk trick on a couple parts of the bed this time.
I hadn't learned about it when I painted the bed the first time, and it definitely made a difference in some of the gaps.
Super handy when you're painting furniture a light color!
So.
I showed you my soffit painting, today I showed you the bed, and I just took pictures of my bathroom painting project, so I'll share the before and afters of that with you soon.
P.S. Sonia knitted a large blueberry muffin this week.
I love that bed! It is so pretty! I did something similar with a buffet a couple years ago, but I never sealed it. So the kids have worn it out pretty well. All your painting projects are inspiring me to repaint my things! Do you always use spray paint primer? I haven't ever used the spray version and wondered if it is better than the paint on version.
In my experience, it's easier to get a super thin and even coat of primer when I use the spray variety. And if you want hints of the wood grain to show through, the spray primer definitely helps with that.
Both will definitely work, though. You just need to be careful to do thin coats if you brush on your primer (same with paint too, of course!)
I never use spray paint for the actual paint part of furniture, though. I've always had trouble getting an even sheen with anything but flat spray paint (and flat is totally not good for furniture).
Very nice. 🙂
Ohhh, it looks so good! And I didn't know Lisey was a fan of Totoro. 🙂
Your house looks so pretty! It feels so cozy and warm with the color tone, the tidiness, and the cute furniture! I can tell your house is very well taken care of by a great mother and wife! ^.^
You shame me with your industrious work. Looks fantastic.
I can't seem to have Sonia's site accept my comment--so I am posting it here instead. 🙂
Sonia, you rock. I hate knitting in the round with dpns--you did such a nice job--the stitch pattern on the cake part looks a little tricky to me. You and my daughter would probably get along well--she names all of her projects, too, although she is into sewing, not knitting. I would love to see more of your knitted projects. 🙂
As someone else who has a daughter with Totoro on her wall, that's a nice decal. 😉
I dealt with scratched and scuffed furniture my whole life so it's nice you were able to keep that piece in good shape. I'm sure once it's no longer needed it could even have a life elsewhere. It's so cool to keep stuff working and in service.
I also couldn't leave a comment ton Sonia's site but wanted to say - what a cute project you made Sonia! I've never knitted something all in the round - great job! Enjoy your craft, looking forward to your next project!!
I dislike painting - but love how the finished project looks - so I do it anyway!! The bed looks great! Another project off your list!
It looks great! I love the caulk trick!
That looks much better, I agree! I like the "shabby chic" look in very small doses, but for furniture, trim, doors, walls, etc., I prefer the paint to look nice. Not that it always does, of course, but I try to go back and cover nicks and scrapes from time to time.
First off, this is just a matter of personal preference.
It makes me want to cry every time I see you posting about painting wood. Wood when stained or treated in any way that shows the grain is so beautiful, and when it's painted, it might as well be plastic.
And when I see a bed like in the first photo in this post, my thought is, "Ooh! Think how pretty that would be in white!" Heh.
It's a good thing we all get to decorate our homes just the way we like...our own little haven of paint or stain. 🙂
I agree! And I am not a fan of the knotty pine for furniture, the white looks so much better.
I'm not a fan either. I mean, if it was antique mahogany or something, I wouldn't have painted it. But cheap knotty pine? No qualms. 😉
The bed looks great! I like white bedroom furniture...it looks so fresh and clean! I discovered this summer when we were re-doing our rental house for my parents, that yes indeed...caulk covers "a multitude of sins"!
Yes! It's one of the best things about painting vs. staining...you can caulk over all kinds of problem spots.
For some reason I am totally intimidated by caulk! I looked at the link but could use more guidance, like, how do you get it smooth and not big blobs? Do you use a gun or a tool of some type? I need to do it for furniture and also bathroom surfaces, and outside, too. Help!
Oh yes, I always use a caulk gun. I run a bead of caulk over the surface and then use a wet finger to smooth it out.
Here's a video that might be helpful to you: https://www.lowes.com/projects/paint-stain-and-wallpaper/how-to-caulk/project
Thanks!
This is a rather random question, but I'm curious. Do all your children have twin beds? The reason I ask is I was just wondering if most people keep their kids in twin beds or upgrade the size through the years.
Yep, all four of them are still in twin beds. Including Joshua, who is over 6 feet tall.
My sister and I slept in twin bed bunkbeds until we left home as well. So, I'm thinking you'll be fine with twins if that's the route you'd like to go.
A wonderful painting job! And I must remark on the quilt. Handmade? It is just lovely. I want to copy the design for a baby quilt. It looks so vintage and cozy.
Yes! A friend of mine made that for Lisey to thank her for helping out in the ministry she headed up at the time. Lisey was very touched.
The entire room looks beautiful. I currently have a twin bed for my great granddaughter who is only 17 months old but preparing for the day when she will be spending overnight time with me. I wish her bed had those drawers for storage under them as they look so neat. Instead, I will have to get a dust ruffle. Decorated her room in princess theme so hope she grows to like it later. I have the same exact quilt with the stars on it. I thought my grandmother had made it because I have other ones that she did make. Looks like I was wrong about that.
Kristen, your completed decluttering list is another great achievement! Well done! I am working on that one too, and have a garage sale planned.