Mid Century Modern Cedar Chest Makeover Using Paint Couture and a Paint Wash Technique
I’ve had this beautiful MCM blanket chest by Lane for weeks. I finally decided to move it closer to my work area so I could come up with a plan for it.
**There is a recall on the Locking mechanism of Lane cedar chests. See below for replacement info.
Very Cool! Right!?
*Our posts may contain affiliate links. If you make a purchase through one of those links, we will receive
a small commission which helps support our blog. Please know, we only share items we use and love! Thank you!
I was so excited when I found this piece! So many people ask how I come up with ideas for pieces and that’s just it…….sometimes I immediately have a vision and other times I have to stare at it for awhile and look for inspiration before it hits me and I know exactly what I want to do!
…..And then there are those occasional times when a good friend stops by to chat and totally messes with your process! She keeps saying she needs to stop going back to look at what shinny new things are available in our “treasure trove,” as she is running out of space in her home, lol.
I was excited someone else saw the beauty in this old worn chest! Together we came up with the perfect colors for a worn weathered look and some pretty “jewelry” for it, aka hardware!
I started by cleaning, removing hardware, filling holes, and sanding……ugh, prep work is seriously one of the worst parts of painting furniture, but also one of the most important steps!
I began with a base coat of Madagascar Mocha, a beautiful rich brown from Paint Couture. This paint is 100% acrylic, self leveling, and very durable. It is fantastic when used as a base coat for creating a multiple layered wash. When you sand each layer you don’t have to worry about sanding through to the original color – which in this case wasn’t pretty! If you prefer, you can also distress with a wet rag but be careful not to over wet the rag. You will end up with a muddy look instead of timeworn.
For my next two coats I created a wash by thinning my paint with water to a consistency of melted ice cream or milk. These coats will be thin and neither one will covered completely, that’s ok! This is how you achieve a look that mimics worn weathered layers of paint. For these coats I used a chalk/clay/mineral base paint which is fantastic for created blended finishes. My first layer was a creamy white and my next layer was a pretty grayish blue. Once dry, I lightly sanded back to create a smooth finish and allow more of the layers of color to show through. For the last coat I watered the blue down even more to achieve a consistency similar to skim milk. This coat is very thin and appears somewhat transparent when applied. I used this as a wash over the entire piece.
Once the piece was completely dry, I lightly sanded with a fine sandpaper again to create a smooth surface before applying my Bigtop from DIY Paint, aka liquid gold, for a beautiful matte finish!
I love the smell of cedar! It reminds me of the cedar chest my grandmother stores all of her handmade quilts in.
Now, there was one more ick-factor I needed to take care of. The green scratched flocking in the bottom drawer had to go! I cut a piece of paintable wallpaper to fit in the drawer and placed it right over the felt. I painted it blue and covered it with a couple layers of topcoat for protection. Piece of cake!
** RECALL INFORMATION: There have been many reports of children becoming trapped inside the cedar chests and suffocating to death. As a result, Lane has recalled the latch & lock on 12 million cedar chests manufactured between 1912 and 1987. If you have a cedar chest, please be sure to check if the lock has been replaced! If not, you can easily contact the company and they will send you a free replacement. They are not difficult to replace.
Home Furnishings | Workshops | Decorative Paints & Accessories | Custom Furniture Painting Services | Gifts | & More
Salvaged Decor
124 S. Main St. Suite D
Brooklyn, MI 49230
Hours: Wed-Sat 10-6pm | Sun 10-4pm
No Comments