After the past two years, and taking a glance at the news this past week, I am having a little trouble not letting the world's troubles creep into this space.
I am going to try to come up with a podcast later this week to say some things about how we, you and I, can ponder our own lives and the course we should take, as things look ever less reliable out there in the world. All in keeping with the themes of what I have always said here…
If I manage it, I will put up a post here and on Happy Despite Them to give you a link. I have no idea if readers of this blog would be interested in a podcast, but what I have to say seems easier to say than to write.
Meanwhile, I have a little project to show you that I am pretty darn proud of in the Department of Checking Projects Off the List. Sadly, I don't have the greatest ability to take photos of this piece of furniture that I rescued, because the “after” is black!
I worked on it in the pantry so as to be a bit out of the way…
Here is an in process post from my IG story:
Below is the “before” — there is a handle that you will see further down, but there were no knobs. I saw it on the side of the road somewhere and it's getting to be years ago that this happened… of course my husband stopped for me, but he was a bit reluctant, supportive as he is, because truly, Dear Reader, our garage is sometimes… full of random stuff that I'm going to get to some day (and also featured things Habou, my mom, picked up, so you can feel his pain).
And truly, it did sit out there for quite a while. Like I said, years. It was handy, because you could pile things up on it…
I kept going back and forth about it because it is solid and even has dovetail joints in the drawer, but the finish is plasticky veneer. The top was bad with the veneer peeling off, and he did sand it down last year when I had a spurt of activity over it that came to nought, but it was still not in good shape.
I have been trying to be good about getting rid of the things that are not in my plans (and this happens to everyone, whether paying full price or thrifting or trash-picking — not everything you get is going to work, and sometimes things just appear in the garage, who knows how!). I'll tell you — list something on Facebook Marketplace and people will relieve you of whatever it is! The garage looks way better these days!
So I've been increasing my credibility with the Dubious One… I actually sold two IKEA nightstands that I didn't want anymore due to their not sparking joy — not as much as things I find by the side of the road!
So I did need a nightstand — I was anticipating a house full of people and needed to attend to the bedrooms. One day I just decided to make this happen. In part I was motivated by the can of black paint I had gotten from the clearance shelf at Lowes. For $9 I have a gallon of $53 furniture-and-cabinet black paint to upcycle things to my heart's content. (I've already painted a free bedstead and touched up my kitchen island!) My plan had been to spray paint, but with my find, I didn't have to wait for Spring! Always check the clearance rack! This is what I purchased — not an ad, just for your information!
So for sure, this bit of hardware is very nice indeed! I unscrewed it and got to work on the pieces.
I will say that the first bit I rubbed with Barkeeper's Friend was the one that cleaned up the best overall, but it all came out looking so bright and classy!
I had some glass knobs left over from the set I bought and used as finials for the curtain rods I conceptualized (read: my husband executed) in the kitchen, a while back. They are probably a smidge too big but I think they are pretty! I'm deep in Use What You Have territory here.
And look! There are little brass caps on the front feet of this piece too! Gave them a little rub and they look pretty schnazzy, I think!
The thing about this particular kind of paint is that it covers very well and as I suspected, the poor surface of the top is hardly noticeable once painted and things put on it. The truth is, I could have put a lot of energy into getting it closer to perfect, but it's not worth it to me for a piece of furniture that will a) be covered mostly and b) barely register on anyone's consciousness in a room they are likely to approach in near darkness anyway. Once it's in place, it just is. It's not a living-room piece and even if it were, it fits right in with my chippy existence!
By the way, I am not a fan of painting furniture, however minimally paid for, that has good wood. I don't agree with the “someone was going to throw it out so who cares” point of view — it depends on the piece! Some people do throw out things they should not, and beautiful wood is what it is!
And I really so far have not seen anything I've liked that has been stripped with Easy Off — the new trend with furniture flippers on social media. I think it looks terrible! It makes me want to cry! I've been doing furniture hacks a long time, and I have my own methods. But if we're talking about lame and/or peeling veneer on low-end items, or other fatal issues, paint it is.
Here I'm “styling” it a bit differently to give you ideas of how to overcome the imperfect top (if not the impossible photographical situation). The floor in here is dark green, by the way, and obviously could use a touch-up!
Despite the photography issues, not doing justice to the cuteness here, really, I hope that anyway, you do get the idea. Most of the furniture in my house is obtained this way, and maybe seeing the simplicity of the process might help you if you are unsure of how it's done. As Mr. O'Reilly says in Fawlty Towers, “Lick o' paint! Lick o' paint!”
bits & pieces
- This month's Benedictus has a reflection on Lenten foods and the significance of pretzels. Charming! I found it here at Catholic Culture.
- I'm a bit scandalized by people telling other people to throw food out just because it's past its sell-by date! Use your common sense, people. Canned and otherwise properly wrapped, stored, and cooked, food lasts a long time, generally speaking. Read up on it and also make your own observations.
- It's true: people used to whistle a lot, and really don't anymore! When I was young I could whistle a tune pretty well, but I never even came close to the skill of the loud warning or alerting whistle using two fingers or just your tongue. My stepmother, who was 4′ 11″ (in heels), could summon my father from his third-floor office at the university from the lawn below! My one regret is not being able to whistle really loudly!
from the archives
- It's hard sometimes to let the older children go and not give up on family life to a certain extent. Don't succumb! The younger children need the joy of family dinner too!
- Winter sowing — so frugal and satisfying! Have you tried it? I'll take pictures of what I have going on now out there…
liturgical living
- Tomorrow is the first Sunday of Lent, and a good time to laugh at ourselves for how difficult things have been so far! The hardest four days of the year, in my opinion! One gets so flabby, spiritually and in every other way! Despite all our best intentions, we have already to begin again! If you're patting yourself on the back, well, then your work is cut out for you in beginning again!
follow us everywhere!
My book, The Summa Domestica: Order and Wonder in Family Life is available now from Sophia Press! And it’s 30% off (along with everything on the site) until Feb. 9!) All the thoughts from this blog collected into three volumes, beautifully presented with illustrations from Deirdre, an index in each volume, and ribbons!
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Maureen says
I haven’t done any furniture refinishing/painting myself, though we do love us some good solid wood furniture from the side of the road or the thrift store. HOWEVER, I completely identified with “I’m deep in Use What You Have territory here.” That is where I always am, and it can be hard sometimes but I am inspired by your accomplishments here.
Sarah says
Dear Leila,
I am deep in the throes of baby nine and being mid 40s and tired. Furniture is something I look towards when I can sleep again! I am always inspired by your practical and pretty endeavors. I wanted to respond here that I would be interested in the podcast you mentioned. Feeling more than tossed upon the waves these days with the instability all around. It is interesting to have dialogue about it. Something many people don’t want to do.
Sarah
Jennifer says
I would LOVE a podcast 🙂
Rebecca says
Yes, but how do you know what is “good wood” versus not? I want to be discerning and have taste! But I think I lack the “furniture-on-the-side-of-the-road” experience to know what’s what, if that makes sense.
Leila says
You have to train your eye! And that’s part of what I’m trying to do here. Hopefully the plasticky veneer comes through… but also the dovetails. Open a drawer of a new piece of furniture from a big box store — I doubt you’ll see wood on all sides (including the back) and dovetails.
When you have the chance, really examine antique furniture and high-end new furniture. Train yourself to see the different finishes. It will stand you in good stead when you come across something that may just be dirty or in need of a small repair, and also give you a hint about whether to paint or not!
Mary C says
Leila, the nightstand is quite lovely. This post gives me good ideas about how to re-do some pieces. Thanks.
About your podcast, although I would listen to it, as I have found your insights and information most enlightening, I DO have a concern. I am up to my eyeballs in how to approach “the way we live now”, most of THAT information causing great agita in me, even the information from solid Catholic sources. I think most of us “here” are well aware that we are living in extraordinary times. (If I hear ONE MORE person say we are living in “interesting” times I think I’ll stamp my foot and scream!) I’d like to hear about how to approach living in such times so that I don’t get a headache or run to hide under the bed. Just my two cents. I KNOW I’ll listen! God bless, Leila. I do look forward to your posts! Pax.
Leila says
Thank you for your unconditional listening stance! I know what you mean for sure. I also don’t want a headache or a panic attack!
Judith says
I am excited at the prospect of a podcast! 🙂 I have always enjoyed listening to your interviews, and the weight of the last week, in particular, has been tremendous. I would love to hear your perspective.
Jo says
…and then she made a doily that fits perfectly on top of the lovely night stand.😉 I love it!
I also like the idea of your green painted floor. What made you decide to paint it? I’ve been struggling with my husband over this about our bedroom floor.
A podcast would be nice.
Jo
Leila says
You are so sweet! But I didn’t make that bit of lace, for sure!
The floors here are all painted — were like that when we got here. That’s normal for the age house we have here in New England. It had ugly carpet over it and just needed to be done.
I am not excited about the type of paint we used (I don’t think I have a note of it, though). If you do it, you need to get a really good floor paint and let it cure a good long time (according to directions).
I think this floor needs to be sanded, but I don’t think I can face it!
Rachel says
Yes! Please do a podcast! A good podcast (or audiobook) make things like dishes almost painless. My current favorite is Homemaker Chic. The topics are often very similar to your blog.
Mrs. Bee says
This is so great, so timely – I have been thinking about you and your “furniture hacks” lately, because our school books cabinet is staring at me in all its brown-ness, and I know I want to change it. I mean, I do not necessarily want a different cabinet, I like this one because, though Ikea, it’s (mostly!) solid pine, it’s sturdy (some Ikea things, even when made with real wood, can be quite flimsy) and it has doors. It belongs to the defunct Markor series and I bought it for a song on Craigslist ages ago. On the opposite wall I have two wonderful Liatorp cabinets, also a Craigslist find, and the contrast between their cream color and the brown bothers me – the Liatorp fit well in the room overall, and the Markor sticks out in a bad way. So I’ve been thinking that I need to gather up my courage and pick a summer day to sand it and paint it, in good Auntie Leila fashion! I have never done this, that’s why I need all my courage!
But as you say, the times grow darker by the day, and in my silly preoccupations I am reminded of that line in the movie The Untouchables, about the hunt for Al Capone, when Eliot Ness marvels that there are people thinking about the color to paint the kitchen…
I am not a podcast person, having no smartphone means I can’t listen while going about what I need to do – and even if I had one, the truth is that I cannot pay attention to a talk and do something else at the same time, even when I’m on the phone with someone. I have listened to TWO podcasts in my whole life, and I was sitting on my bed looking at the laptop and feeling a bit weird! I simply prefer reading. I do get what you’re saying, that sometimes it seems easier to say something than to write about it – but I am very different, in that I tend to write down beforehand anyway what I will want to say in a planned conversation with somebody. But I do get that others are made differently!
Now I have to go plan what treat to prepare for tomorrow with my expired-on-Wednesday buttermilk 😉 I get expiration dates, but one also has to keep in mind other things, like how long a package or a bottle have been opened. But here too we’re all different, my mother is like me, but my two sisters belong to the Best By Police!
Alicia says
Scones! Pancakes! Bread?? I’m in your camp because buttermilk even opened lasts.
Mrs. Bee says
I ended up making Leila’s Chocolate Cake (http://likemotherlikedaughter.org/2011/10/birthday-cake-for-all-occasions/) – I’ve made it so many times I could do it with my eyes shut! This time I added ground hazelnuts and pistachios to it.
MamaB says
I love what Auntie Leila has done here! But do be careful in painting bookshelves (not sure if this cabinet you’re referring to holds lots of books?). Painted bookshelves can get sticky & leave paint residue on books; I don’t know that I would ever attempt it, even with the best paint, though you could paint the rest of the cabinet perhaps? And if it contains other supplies & things, I think paint should be just fine; generally only inadvisable for things holding lots of books.
Mrs. Bee says
Yes, this cabinet is filled with just books, and you raise a good point, because this is a place where books are pulled out and put back in constantly throughout the day and every single day. But I thought I don’t need to paint the surface of each shelf holding the books, and I can hide their still being brown with a shelf liner.
Leila says
I would go for it. Bridget painted the Chief’s bookcases in his study (two walls’ worth!) and they are grand.
If the surface is glossy, you need to sand. If the interior is in good shape, leave it and just do the outsides.
You will be so happy you did!
Mrs. Bee says
Thank you for the encouragement, I need it! The finish is not glossy, it’s rather dull, it looks like a simple stain – this is a picture I found of the same cabinet: https://webimg.secondhandapp.com/w-i-mgl/5cafa9aedbe01833ae87ef1b. To make it happier I have taped a pretty white-and-aqua wrapping paper to cover the back panel inside, but there is still a lot of brown to be seen!
Leila says
If you do a quick search of “painted corner cabinet” you will find so much inspiration! It could be quite darling!
Mrs. Bee says
It’s not a corner cabinet, that *would* be cute, I love corner cabinets – they make me think of dining rooms in old houses, full of clever built-ins! Alas, our school room is not really a room, if by room we mean a space delimited by four walls… as it is, I lack corners to fit corner cabinets in them! And in the end my job is very simple, there are two dominant colors there, the creamy Liatorp bookshelves and the blue we used for the bits of wall that we do have, including the brick fireplace – a marvelous blue, Ben Moore’s Lake Placid but made with just 50% of the color mix (I highly recommend it for ceilings! It brings the sky inside.) There is a rug under the kids’ work table that is both ivory and light blue, so clearly this cabinet should be either a creamy white or a light blue – I think white, so all shelves look alike, while also matching the fireplace trim. So I feel like all the decisions are ready-made for me, I only need to commit to doing this once and for all! Thank you for letting me think out loud here 🙂
Kate says
I have a wolf whistle and it’s so handy, especially because we live on a boarding school campus. At supper time, I can just lean out the door and whistle and my children come hurtling from all over. It’s especially satisfying when other parents are trying to reach their children on their phone watches which have inevitably been left behind somewhere – and there I go, sleeves rolled up, apron on and whistle. But it’s also a little unladylike, so I stand next to my husband when I use it in public and look at him a bit astonished once I’ve whistled. Now I’ve done my boasting, I had better read the article!
Looking forward to your podcast!
Leila says
I’m totally so envious of you, sigh…
Blayne says
My husband taught himself to whistle loudly using his two fingers (via YouTube!). It took him several days; but wow are the neighbors impressed when he pokes his head out the front door—whistles—and children come running! So romantic, haha! I’m hoping to teach myself as well.
P.S. Yes to a podcast!!
Leila says
Maybe I need to watch that video!!
Alicia says
It came out so pretty! And the price cannot be beat! I have a big ugly kind of brown IKEA cabinet I’d love to put out by the side of the road, but maybe if it were black…w/better knobs? Thanks for the inspiration!
Leila says
Do it!
ladyjaye97 says
Hello Auntie Leila~ Thank you for the visuals and step-by-step process you follow for furniture finding and fixing! While I *love* the idea for the subject about which the podcast would be–could you please write it, instead? Because I have only a bit of quiet time in the morning to pray and gather my thoughts and read ideas, a podcast would be difficult to get to as I would miss something or have to skip it entirely as the speaker for the computer is out in the public areas–and too loud as it echoes up the stairwell. Whereas a written transcript gives me the chance to read your inspired ideas, and re-visit them in written form as often as needed! Just another request and idea~ Thank you in advance and May God bless you in all you do~
Lynn Osborne says
Leila, I would love to listen to your thoughts on a podcast. I came into the Church just a few years ago and your blog has greatly helped me form a Catholic worldview. Thank you also for the link about what not to do in Confession. I am still trying to learning how to catalog and summarize my sins for regular Confession. I am of an age that my opportunities for committing mortal sins are fewer but the opportunities for venial sins abound! If you ever come across a resource for tips for a good examination of conscience and how best to prepare, please share!
Leila says
I think that priest has other videos on the topic, as this one was #2 I believe. He seems solid. The most important thing is the daily spiritual examen. For Lent it’s good to choose one area to work on, one virtue to grow in, and every day in the evening to thank God for the chance to serve Him, look over how you did in the day, and ask for help for tomorrow, with light for ways to do better.
Soon you will see what will be good to bring up in Confession. You can say to the priest, “my particular examen is X, I am trying to grow in this virtue, here are the ways I have failed.”
Then sorrow for past sins, especially against these virtues (mention them) or of these sins (mention).
That’s a good Confession!
The book Pardon and Peace by C. P. Wilson is very helpful… it doesn’t seem to be in print, but you might find a copy second hand and it is available on Kindle for $2.
Mrs. Bee says
This is a resource I love, maybe it will be prove useful to you as well, though I think it can be overwhelming to those who suffer from scrupulosity: https://www.prayinglatin.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/Examination-of-Conscience-for-Adults.pdf
If you prefer, it is sold in book form even on Amazon, but being free from copyright it can be found online for free on many websites. For instance, in some versions the months of the years are omitted, so you can make your own choice (meaning, it may make sense to begin with Faith even if we’re in the month of March.)
lisainmaine says
Yes to the podcast. I need some encouragement. The images are just gut wrenching. And, if I hear the word “unprecedented” one more time, I may scream. That word has lost all meaning.
Hooray for the link on Sigred Undset. Wish I would have read her earlier in life but a treasure at any time.
Bonnie says
Leila, I would love it if you did a podcast. Very little of what I am hearing about current events comes from a catholic perspective. For me it would be helpful and welcomed!!
Rosemary says
Yes to a podcast! I listen via my old ipod occasionally while cleaning, walking, or driving.
I also can’t whistle. One faint memory of my maternal grandfather is of his lovely whistle. He died when i was 8 so I don’t have many memories of him.
I have a tall heavy bookcase but it is veneer over composite. My husband says it’s a waste to try to gently sand and paint. I think he is probably right and i just need to find something more to my liking! Though it does hold a lot of books and it was free ….
Leila says
Think about it while you look on FB marketplace. You might be surprised with good wooden bookcases that work better!
Rosemary says
You may not believe this, as I can hardly believe it myself, but after Mass we stopped by an estate sale. Everything was half off and I found a pair of wooden bookcases that fit our home well! The set was sold in 1970 (we found the receipt in a drawer) and our home is only a few years older. I offered lower than asking and was accepted. Very lovely with 5 shelves and arch and lattice trim detailing. My husband has been supportive with my iwn growing library project!
Leila says
AAAAhHHH!!
That’s the way!!
Ellen says
You can prime and paint even veneer. I’ve had good luck with oil paint of a high sheen. The right Primer makes alot of difference if the original surface is stained or otherwise suspect.
Sara-Louise says
I would love an Auntie Leila podcast!