So after purchasing my french provincial chest and nightstand, I NEW I wanted to do something with them as far as appearance goes... I just didn't know exactly what. They sat in my guest bedroom for quite some time. Then, me and husband found out we would be expecting another baby. (YIPPEEEE!) We decided that the guest bedroom will now be my 2 year old daughter's room and the new baby will get my daughter's old room that housed the baby bed etc. We purchased my 2 year old a twin bed and to save money I decided she would get the french provincial chest and nightstand I bought off of craigslist so long ago. This was my time to kick the idea process up a notch to bring an idea to fruition. So, I started searching the web and saw some fantastic ideas. Mostly ideas on different painting techniques to achieve different looks. Then I came across this beauty at
Little Green Notebook's blog...
At first I thought, silver leafing may be a little over my head so maybe I should go with painting both pieces. They can still be beautiful. In the back of my mind, I REALLY wanted this look and when I really want something it's hard for me to stray from that. Anything else would just leave me unsatisfied. What solidified my decision on metal leafing my furniture pieces happened when I saw this french provincial dresser at
My Champagne Taste's blog...
I finally got to see the outcome on a piece of furniture that looked like mine. My only problem was that at the time I made my decision, I was 5 months pregnant with a 2 year old and had little energy. So, I decided to get a couple of price quotes to see what people were charging to do this. You know what?... it's pretty darn expensive. The costs ranged from $750 - $1500. Soooo, I made up my mind to do it myself. Now, I'm 6 and a half months pregnant but motivated because you know what, I want what I want.
After short research I found that silver leaf could get pretty expensive and aluminum leaf is a great alternative to achieve the same look. I found lots of information at
Gilded Planet including
video on how to actually apply the leafing which was very helpful to actually see the texture. They sell lots of supplies there too but I decided to look on ebay (from the suggestions of other leafing bloggers) and found 500 sheets of aluminum leaf for $30. I also purchased the 3 hour sizing/adhesive (Rolco quick size, 8oz) from ebay as well. I spent some time trying to figure out which sizing to get because I didn't know which would be better for my project whether to use water vs oil based sizing. I went with oil based because I found out that oil based size dries hard and the water based...well...does not.
[Sidenote: Now, just so you know this can came with clips to keep the lid on (for shipping) that I had to use needle nose pliers to pry off... not fun. Also, it was pretty much impossible for me to get the lid back on so all of my unused sizing has been wasted. It's starting to look like caramelized pancake syrup. If I knew beforehand I would've been prepared for an alternate storing solution. Just FYI.]
The aluminum leaf I purchased came with tissue paper in between each leaf which made it a little difficult when picking up an individual leaf. I basically used the top tissue paper to lift the leaf like when you turn a page in a book, used my brush handle to lift it or just picked it up with my finger tips. I honestly couldn't believe how thin the box was. I was thinking to myself, did they only send me part of my order and forgot the rest of the leaf.
That's when I opened the box and read the sticker... Reality set in that this stuff is thinner than I imagined.
After getting my supplies I was ready to get started. Part of those supplies... primer. What to get? The blogging world suggested Zinsser and swore by its greatness to cover stained wood because I DID NOT want to sand either piece of furniture. I'd still be working on those things if I did. Although, I did sand down smalls portions of the chest because the shiny coating was laid on kinda thick in some places and you could see puddles and drips so I sanded those smooth. I went to Home Depot and the sales person suggested Glidden Gripper Primer. They told me it could stick to anything, had less of an odor that that of the Zinsser AND it was cheaper. When I saw that it came in grey, I was sold. So, I only bought 1 pint of it and was able to cover both pieces with it. I only used about half of it. I was amazed at how it stuck to the glossy surfaces of my chest and nightstand. FYI: I rolled this stuff on. Best route to go in my opinion because it gives your furniture a smooth appearance.
Since my primer was grey in color I decided not to paint it because I planned to paint it grey. There you have yet another skipped step in my process. I didn't have a problem with that. I also decided to spray paint (2 coats) the sides of my drawers (Krylon Ballet Slipper) pink just to add a little interest when the drawers are open.
I left my painted pieces for the day with my mind prepared to start leafing the very next day. The free time I used to do this project was a couple hours after work. So when I got home the next day, I decided to do a little test area on the top of my nightstand so that way I could see how long it would take for the sizing (adhesive) to get to the right tackiness and how long it would take for me to leaf a certain area... this WAS my first leafing project. I used the
cheapest brushes I could find at Home Depot to apply my sizing. I bought a few because I didn't want to clean them... The sizing dries in a short amount of time and makes them hard and unusable. The sizing does have a thin consistency when you put it on your brush but goes on a surface very sticky (like pancake syrup) so it will drip from your brush if your brush is full. I only used the foam brushes once or twice because they hold the sizing TOO well and caused puddles (and frustration) when applying the sizing. You don't want puddles because those areas will take longer to become the tackiness you need.
The day I did this, it was pretty hot out with almost no wind or humidity. It took about an hour for my sizing to be ready for me to leaf. Sorry guys if I don't use all of the gilding/leafing language. It just gets too confusing for me since I'm not a "professional" at this. Anyhow, as far as testing for tack... I basically felt it at the initial application and tested it at the minimal testing time (about an hour later since it was hot out) to see if I felt a difference. Once I did, I started applying the leaf. Now, this stuff is VERY FRAGILE. You will need to use the tissue paper or whatever separates each sheet to aid in holding it because it will split and break at the slightess movement or smallest air flow (even you breathing on it). It gets everywhere and is so light that when you try to sweep it up it will float into the air. In this picture below you can see where it stuck to my finger tips after picking up a leaf...
On the plus side of things, it washes off pretty easily. I saw some cotton gloves that I wish I'd gotten to help with this issue because the slightest bit of moisture on your fingertips will cause this. So, think about finding some cotton gilding gloves if you think you'll have an issue with this. It's nothing major but fingertip moisture will cause the leaf to stick to your fingers.
Once the leaf is placed it is very forgiving because it will mold to whatever it falls on (that has sizing on it). I literally used a dry blush brush that I never used to pat my leaf into place. I saw on someone else's blog that said they did the same thing. I thought, what a way to save more money. :)
I let the little area on my nightstand dry overnight, ready to start the next day. Since my test area took me literally 3-5 minutes to complete I decided to apply my sizing to a large area of my chest... the top, top half of one side and most of the front along with the face of the top drawer... because I wanted to work on it for around an hour or so. Here's the finished product of a short evening's work. The first photo is without the flash and the other is with flash so you can see how I laid the leaf. You can also see that I had yet to brush the extra leaf away in a lot of spots.
Here's the top of the chest after I applied the leaf and removed the excess with my blush brush.
Here's the drawer front. I was exstatic about the outcome because it was turning out so beautifully. :)
I worked a little bit each day, and hour here and there after work. By the end of the week I was done and ready to seal. I used a rub on glossy polyurethane which was very easy to apply. I just used an old t-shirt to apply it. Here are some photos I took when I applied polyurethane to the chest alone...
I hadn't applied the polyurethane to my drawers just yet.
You can see how cracks are created throughout the process which add to the character of your furniture piece which I just love. The grey underneath creates a subtleness about the cracks. Different colors could create the drama that suites your taste. I've seen brown used a lot.
Now, adding polyurethane to the drawers (very slightly) dulled the super shiny-ness of the aluminum leaf but it still shined.
Now, back in its' room... I absolutely LOVE the outcome!
The drawer pulls and mirror shown above the chest were spray painted to match. I actually applied some rub 'n buff to the pulls after seeing the photo below. I thought it would add that little bit of umph. I think I may do the same to the mirror. Oh and the mirror was a $20 craigslist find. :)
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| Note: Be sure to wear gloves when applying Rub 'n Buff because it gets under your nails and can be hard to wash off. |
So what do you guys think? My daughter's room is still in progress so I'll have to come back with an update once it's finished. Oh and I had to do some patching to my nightstand because I left my sizing to "tack" for a little too long and the leaf didn't stick in a lot of places. Thinking I could use Rub 'n Buff to fill these gaps I messed it up. The finish of the Rub 'n Buff is too matte in comparison to my shiny leaf and the difference was VERY noticable. It just looked a mess so I had to spend some time re-doing some of the leafing. I used the Rub 'n 'Buff to fill in the tiny details of both pieces where it was difficult to leaf. Below is a photo I took before removing the excess leaf off of the nightstand. My chest looked exactly the same way so don't be alarmed, it easily dusts off. Once flaked away, you'll only see what sticks to the nightstand. Oh and the rust color on the leaf is just a reflection.
Anyhow, I think the outcome is absolutely gorgeous. I actually lined a couple of drawers with paper using Mod Podge. This was my first time working with Mod Podge and I ended up having a few bubbles underneath my paper. Lesson learned. The photo shows the paper a little lighter than what it is in person. It's blue-green in color and complements the silver and pink quite well.
UPDATE: I finished the other drawers with vinyl. JoAnns had some on clearance so I snagged up a couple of rolls. It was easier to use since it already had a sticky back. I just cut to fit and layed them in the drawers. So much easier.
So what do you all think?! I LOVE IT!!!!!!!
Here's the nightstand...
Supplies Used (for both chest & nightstand):
About 250 aluminum leaf 5.5"x5.5" sheets
Rolco 8oz Quick Dry Sizing (I used about half)
1 pint Glidden Gripper Primer in Grey (I used about 1/2 pint total)
1 can Krylon Ballet Slipper spray paint (glossy)
Minwax Wipe On Polyurethane
Rub 'n Buff
Soft blush brush
* Windless area to work that can get messy *
