Let me start by saying my friends Devon and Jay are two of my favorite people. They are adventurers at heart, that are always out and about trying new things and exploring. They both have a huge passion for all things old and interesting. I always find myself captivated by their stories and in awe of their giving nature. When I heard the story behind this particular piece I thought it was so magical (more to come on that later). Devon had a really cool vision for this piece that I could not refuse. If you read my blog you are well aware of my feelings on white paint, partically white chippy milk paint. It is the absoulute hardest for me. A week does not go by that I do not get an email from someone trying white milk paint and getting just as frustrated. It’s a delicate balance to get the paint to chip but still allow the white to get really white and yellowing and bleed through is always a risk. So… When Devon asked for white and chippy, I cringed a little. I mean wanted this piece perfect! But I was up for the challenge. The more you work with milk paint the more you figure out the tricks.
Because she wanted it very chippy, I chose no prep at all. Mixed Snow White milk paint by Old Fashioned Milk Paint Co. and went to town. I babyed her, taking my time with each coat. To avoid an uneven look with the chippy parts I avoided sanding between coats. Around the second coat the paint started to chip…I was so excited to see that it was going in a good direction. I had no bleed through or moments of panic, thank goodness! I carefully painted over the paint that was starting to lift, in my opinion I feel that this is best instead of sanding because you get a nice clean look in the end. After 4 coats, I sanded well with a 400 grit and sealed it with Miss Mustard Seeds wax. This wax is so soft and easy to work with. It doesn’t yellow and goes nicely over any color. I picked a really awesome Spoonflower paper in a yellow geometric print to line the drawers.
So I will pass it on to Devon now, I asked her to share this fun story of how this piece came to find them and all that happened next…. And here she is:
This is the story of a life changing buffet.
It all started one night in late August 2014. I was having trouble sleeping and was wide awake when I shouldn’t have been, killing time on my iphone app, Varage Sale until I fell asleep. I saw this buffet priced at $100 and in Maple Valley, Wa. where we had lived for the last 7 years. It had been posted for over 8 weeks and I was about 30 people deep that were interested. I sent a message to the seller asking if it was still available and scheduled a pick upfor the following day. Luckily my husband, Jay happened to have that Friday off, which is very rare for him. Off to work I went that morning and he went to pick up the buffet I planned on buying, painting then selling. When I arrived home that afternoon the buffet was in our garage and Jay was eager to get me to go back to meet “the nicest lady” and see her beautiful home and yard. We ended up talking for hours and in conversation she mentioned that they were thinking of selling in the near future. When we heard that we immediately looked at each other and our curiosity was piqued. She kindly gave us a tour of the home and large yard. We saw a beautiful green pasture, turquoise pool, barn, wood shed, garden and lovingly cared for home. My head started spinning. On our way home I was calling my mom and dad nonstop until they answered.
The next 2 weeks were a whirlwind. We brought my parents over to view the house and see if they loved it as much as we did. Our good friend Vicki a realtor met with us to give us the comps on our homes and talk to us about putting both our homes on the market. We presented an offer to the sellers of our “dream home” and eagerly anticipated their response. They agreed and a plan was put in action. Jay and I would sell our home, my mom and dad would also sell theirs and we would buy this property together. The plan was to renovate the daylight basement into their home and Jay and I would live upstairs.
The next 3 months were packed with showings, lots of packing and purging, loan documents and the excitement building until we could move into the new house. We could not have asked for a kinder more patient couple to be buying from. Both our homes sold in good time and we all moved in together.
I sometimes can’t believe how we got here. So many random things had to fall into place.
The house was not listed for sale.
The buffet on Varage Sale had been on there for weeks and it had a lot of interested people but Every. Single. One. Of. Them. Didn’t. Follow. Through.
Jay struck up a conversation that led us going back that same evening to look at more furniture and talk for hours.
My mom and dad also saw the potential in this property and jumped right in.
Words cannot express how peaceful it is out here in the country. We have two and a half acres, room for animals, room to paint and work on projects and to relax. Breathe. Unwind. You name it, my soul is content here.
So this is why the buffet needed to stay with us. My mom thought it would look nice in our entry. Jay and I moved it in and agreed it looked at home there. I sent a picture to my dear friend Amanda and asked if she would paint it for me. Luckily she agreed and I am so honored to have this chippy buffet in my forever home. She created it from the heart down to the smallest of details. The vintage glass knobs that she picked for it, the drawers were lined and she even noticed that one of the doors wasn’t closing properly so she and her darling husband fixed it. She created a piece that will be in my family for many years to come.
So that is the story of how this buffet changed our lives for the better and also became the most expensive piece of furniture we have ever purchased second hand.
XOXO
Devon
Thank you for taking the time to read about Devons lovely buffet, it was truly a pleasure to work on and I am beyond thrilled she asked me to be apart of their story. Check out Devon on Instagram @brideonabike and Facebook to follow along on her journey of awesomeness.
Xo
Amanda
I have a few really cute projects lined up and I am hoping to get one finished up this weekend. I got my Spoonflower order in today and like always I am beyond thrilled with the prints that I chose. Now I just want to paper every single piece I have.. paper and knobs inspire me most. They make me start to spin ideas in my head of what colors and textures I want to pull together and see highlighted. When it doubt I do an order… makes me feel good.
ferpie and fray 