Antiquing Kitchen Cabinetry in New York City and a Surprise

A short while ago I had to help a client in Manhattan who had had a flood in her kitchen - which marred the cabinetry that I had painted and antiqued nearly 6 years earlier. The only day I could go was when President Obama was in town. That meant I was going to experience some nerve wracking, heart attack inducing traffic as I live on the eastern end of Long Island and the drive to Manhattan can take over 2 or more hours. But the slow traffic allowed me to take some shots along Central Park West while I was waiting to move uptown.

Heading uptown:The large pic on the left is the famous Dakota building, where John Lennon lived

My client's small NYC kitchen had looked darker and smaller with mid toned maple cabinetry - which was in great shape but the somewhat dark tone of the cabinets didn't help the small space. I wish I had taken shots of "before" but who knew then I was going to have a blog!!

The finished cabinetry

The flood had damaged two major areas in the kitchen and all along the baseboard as well.  We first primed and repainted the areas with the same paint we had used - an off white.  After that was dry, I looked at my recipe that I had used for the antiquing and made up a sample glaze.  I used the exact same measurements of tints - some Van Dyke Brown and Raw Umber - but the glaze wasn't matching.  I guess it could have been that the cabinets aged somewhat in 6 years.  I had to add a touch of a warmer brown to match it exactly.

Before...and the application of the glaze with a chip brush

All the glaze is on...just needs to be manipulated and smoothed.  What's that on the right?

Moving and smoothing the glaze first with cheesecloth and then - a badger brush to smooth out

Pardon my fat, old unmanicured fingers - but I thought it would be helpful to new faux finishers/DIY homeowners to see how how I gently age a painted cabinet. The cheesecloth is great for moving the glaze around - you have more control of how much you want to remove.  The cheesecloth can also help you push some glaze into crevices etc to get the look of built up dirt and age. The badger brush - which should be in everyone's arsenal - softens and smooths out a glaze.  It helps to give the cabinet a more natural, softer look.

The right side panel now blends with the rest of the cabinetry

While I was antiquing the cabinetry 6 years ago, the powder room in the apartment was one of the tiniest I had ever seen.  I suggested to my client that while I was painting and antiquing the cabinetry, I could have one of my artists come in and paint a quick, impressionistic mural that would help make the room seem larger...more expansive and interesting.  She agreed - and so it began. Here are some images from the room.

See how tiny this powder room is? You really need something interesting in here - or else you'll get claustrophic being in this space!

So, after a day's work it was time to fight the traffic again and head back home.  It took nearly 3 hours to drive back but I felt great that the day went well and that my client was happy!  I took some parting shots while driving (bad girl), but I thought you might like to see them!

"Slow down, you move too fast!"  Going over the 59th Street Bridge!

Hope you enjoyed my day in New York City.  Let me know if you have any comments or questions - would love to answer them.

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You Should Never be Afraid to Try New Things

Nothing Ventured...Nothing Gained

I just wanted to write a quick post on why you should always stretch yourself...to try new things...to forge into unknown territories.  You never know what it will bring. It will increase your confidence and skill - and you may just get a few jobs you never would have gotten without stretching those unused muscles.

For over 20 years I was in the corporate world - you know...suit, sensible shoes and haircut and a briefcase filled with folders about news of fixed income investing, financial industry mergers and acquisitions...the Wall Street Journal and a fully booked daytimer.  I did very well financially - but spiritually I was bereft.  I knew that I needed a change but what was I going to do?  I knew that I needed money to pay the mortgage, bills etc.  Sometimes, change comes to you.  It's up to you to accept the change or defer and stay with the status quo.

After 20 years of creating executive conferences for the financial services industry (nearly 10 of those years as the head of my own company), I was experiencing extreme burnout.  With the burnout came a severe reduction of the number of attendees to my events.  It was partly my fault and partly the economy, but my little success machine of a company wasn't earning as much money as it had been.  So - after a few failed attempts to revive the company, I allowed my main investor in the company to start unwinding the organization.  He had been a great help to me in the beginning, but he started to be a thorn in my and the company's side over the years. 

I gave in and allowed my 20 plus years of this business to just evaporate and fade.  But, funny enough, it felt as if a huge ton of bricks was just lifted from my chest!  I found that I could consult to a few companies on a part time basis, while I searched around for a new challenge.

My first mural...really!

I had always loved the decorative arts world and so I searched around for some mentors who could teach me the ins and outs of decorative painting, murals, stencilling etc. After taking classes in designer faux finishing, furniture painting and several other classes, I started to do some projects in my home.  After I felt confident in what I was doing I did some paid projects in clients' homes.  I did my first mural class (above) and within a week of finishing the class I got a job doing an angel mural in an entryway for a wonderful client.  This was only my 5th or 6th real client.  I was a little unsure about my ability - but thankfully it turned out beautifully.  I was able to create the mural on canvas in my garage (turned studio now!) and the artwork was installed a month later in the client's home.

What I want to impart to all of you is that no matter where you are job-wise or life-wise, whatever skill level you have, there is always hope and a brighter side of life - if you choose to tackle it and not be hemmed in by fear.  I had never picked up a paintbrush in years - but I was shown by some incredible artists and mentors how to recreate a classical work of art without having to go to years of art school instruction.  Yes, I had some natural talent.  But, mostly, I was just a corporate drop out looking for a way to be free.

Note: The way I did this mural was 1) by priming and painting a canvas, then I skip troweled an off white smooth plaster over it - then another coat of off white paint 2) by using a projector (what a huge help!) to trace as much of the artwork as I could and 3) building up layers of washy paint getting darker and darker each time - I learned to "see shapes," especially where the shadows were, instead of trying to paint or draw the art. 4) I took a piece of sandpaper -sometimes medium...sometimes fine - and sanded here and there to give the artwork some age (this helped create crevices) 5) When done, I antiqued the entire piece.

Now all I have to do is figure out where I will place this in my home!

So don't give up.  Pick up a paint brush, buy some canvases, take some classes in your community or online.  You never know what will happen and what it will bring you.  I know for one thing - it will bring you happiness.

Happy creating! Just DO IT!!

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In the Pink!! My Love of the Color Pink for Rooms is Pretty Obvious

Maybe it's because I'm female...but I just love the color pink.  I love pink rooms, pink lemonade, pink shirts, pink dresses - cotton candy - just about anything pink. My living room walls and draperies are pink...my dining room walls and ceiling are pink!

The walls read pink - but my recipe was a peach base color, followed by a layer of pearl metallic paint - then glazed with cinnamon tones.

The Chinoiserie mural helps to break up the pink a bit

I chose to create a pink-like metallic tone because the room is fairly dark - not much natural light comes through at all. When the light hits the walls - there's a natural glow in these room that I absolutely love.  The great architect Renzo Mongiardino said that every room has its finest hour - but my rooms look great just about any time. 

In my kitchen, I had a custom demilune made for part of my island.  Of course - it had to be some version of pink.  But - I made it a coral-like glazed metallic (because I know that Richard probably would have put his foot down if it had been a full-out pink!).

I'm in good company though - lots of designers have had their way with pink.

Uber-Designer Carleton Varney and friends from Cote de Texas

How beautiful is this - from Nellavetrina

Pink & Black - a great combination.  From the blog, Ladies of Design

Magenta is pink too!  From designer, Jerry Jacobs

Closeup of the portmantiere, from Jerry Jacobs.  An elegant way to decorate a bar area.

A pink rug - by Madeline Weinrib

A coral and red bedroom by designer, Mary MacDonald, from Veranda Magazine

Or - maybe just a small accent of pink, like this chandelier from Currey & Company

Some advice for using pink: 

• If you love the color but are afraid of it being "too much" in a room, use it in small doses - an accent wall, some pink pillows or other accessories.
• Try a deeper shade or hue of pink, like coral, fuschia or magenta
• Experiment by painting some chairs or small side tables pink
• Use pink as a base color, then use brown or cinnamon toned glazes over it to lessen the pink.

So - think pink for at least one or two of your rooms.  They will stand out and make you happy every time you see them!