70s Mediterranean Dresser Makeover Using Mica Powders ~ The Beautiful Beast

Hi everyone, merry Christmas eve and happy holidays! I just wanted to quickly share one of my latest makeovers, it was a doozie!

Before-Seller's Pic, not mine!

This big guy is a throwback to the 70's and all of it's fabulousness...back then. Today the style is more than dated and just plain...HEAVY in every sense of the word! I found this on CL and negotiated for two days to pick it up! I had to let the lady know I couldn't make it the first day and desperately hoped it would still be available the following day. I ended up dragging one of my main moving guy helpers with me to pick it up and we had to get it out of a tiny attic with a weird miniature door...I certainly owe him a beer or two! At 6 feet long and weighing a TON it was definitely a challenge to maneuver! This pic is not the best, but it's the one the owner posted and OF COURSE I remembered to take a picture of it AFTER I started painting it!

Also kind of a before...you get the picture!

I used a mix of CeCe Caldwell's and Annie Sloan paints and did some color layering on the drawers only. This is pretty easy and straightforward to do. I wanted to create contrast in the details so when I went over the grey with the white I did so with a pretty sloppy hand and left a LOT of the grooves and details hardly touched. This just gave the details some depth that I really love. I initially thought about doing some drybrushing with the white, but that got quickly vetoed for a couple of reasons. 1-There were NINE drawers and it would have taken FORever. 2-I felt like it would have been too dark once all the drawers were done and put together. I am quite happy with the lighter effect for the drawers and so is my right wrist. :)

Base Grey Color

Side A is with the mainly white highlighting. Side B is some VERY light drybrushing.

Now to the cool part! I used my brand new American Paint Company mica powders and mixed them into some leftover clear wax. I used tiny bits of Silver, Pewter and Black mica powders and they gave the wax this AH-mazing look!

Don't you just LOVE it? If you want a really great tutorial, go here to APCs website. They have some pretty amazing tutorials.

So, because I used CeCe Caldwells paints that contain a mix of chalks, clay and minerals, the wax initially has a darkening effect. Don't let that freak you out too much, it will lighten as it dries. The mica/wax mix will give it more depth too, and in just the right light it has the loveliest sheen. It doesn't sparkle and glitter as you might think, I wasn't personally going for the bedazzled look...but that could really work for some pieces!

In this picture, you can see the effect of the mica/wax mix on the right and on the left is the white over grey paint alone. It added so much interest and character, don't you think?

I decided to leave the frame in grey and also use the mica/wax mix on it. It darkened it just enough.

The hardware was my next battle..er, challenge.

It was waaaay too brassy. What to do? Well, with some help from some fabulous fellow painters (specifically Patrick Meyer from ReLux Vintage, who is incredibly talented-check him out!) I decided to go for a reverse color mix from the drawers. This time the white was the base and the grey was the distressed topcoat. I also used the mica/wax mix on these and they turned out in an EPIC kind of way.

Now for the final reveal...trumpets please!

These next two were taken with the hub's early Christmas gift, his GoPro camera...he's a little obsessed right now! They were pretty cool, though, so they made the blog post cut.

Well, ladies and gents I hope you liked my latest project makeover! It sold within about 15 minutes of me posting it which is almost a record, beaten only by "Isabella".

I hope this holiday season is a wonderful one for you and yours and please, don't forget the troops who are deployed forward away from their families and homes this Christmas and especially those who have sacrificed everything. Love to all, Claudia.