During the recent miraculous spring warm-up here in the Twin Cities, my co-workers Sue and Cathy and I headed out to our first lunch time garage sale of the season. Woo hoo! Mid-March, and sales are already popping up. So exciting!
We didn’t find much, but I did come home with a Dixie blonde mid-century nightstand and a really fab old wire ‘in-box’ (which now lives in the Q Branch).
The nightstand was bargain priced, and I knew it would be the perfect candidate for another Fusion makeover. Why? Well, when I paint MCM pieces I always feel like they shouldn’t be distressed. Normally I am all about the distressing, but not with these pieces. Obviously, milk paint is out of the running when you don’t want to distress. True, you could add the bonding agent and get a non-distressed look, but seriously, why bother? That’s going to get expensive, and putzy, and unnecessary. In the past chalk paint was always my go-to for MCM pieces. And, don’t get me wrong, they did turn out lovely.
But now that I have tried Fusion, I am pretty sure it’s going to be my paint of choice for MCM pieces and I’m not just whistling dixie!
I painted the body of the nightstand in Fusion’s Champlain and the drawer in my new favorite color, Laurentien. The color reminds me of my favorite shade of McCoy pottery.
I let the paint dry overnight, and then I added some of my fav MCM vintage wallpaper to the inside of the cubby hole. As I was working with the wallpaper, it was nice to not have to worry that I was taking off any paint while wiping off excess paste.
The wallpaper has little touches of gold in it, so I decided to add some gold Rub ‘n Buff to the knobs to bring that out. When I purchased this piece, Cathy assumed I was going to replace those knobs. Nope. The knobs are perfect for this piece and are part of its personality. What do you think of them now Cathy?
I love how the gold works with the turquoise.
Since I felt like the little nightstand would be lonely in a photo shoot all by itself, I also decided to paint up a chair that was waiting for a makeover.
I used the same colors on the chair, and then added some vintage barkcloth to the seat. The aqua in the barkcloth was a perfect match for the Laurentien.
Didn’t it turn out sweet?
Almost makes me want to add a few mid-century pieces to my own home. How about you?
q is for quandie 
I am with you Linda! I save milk paint for those pieces that I want that great underneath wood to be exposed and the finish to chip. I’ve never purchased the bonding agent because it seems like a waste of milk paint’s chippy goodness. I’m also with you in that my go to non-chip paint used to be Chalk Paint, but now is Fusion! I’m so glad you are loving Fusion, thanks so much for all of the positive sharing about the product. And the nightstand looks lovely–the MCM paper in the cutout is a great touch.
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Love this! Of course, I love everything you post but you’ll think I’m turning into a stalker if I reply everyday! I am not normally a midcentury fan…I painted a piece similar to this in a vanilla. You’re right….no distressing. I saw a few great retro accessories in the Laurentien colour so think I’m going to have to go to Detoit today to buy them. Big Lots here I come!
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I love getting comments, so you just feel free to comment every day 😉
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Love the nightstand and the chair!! The wallpaper and the barkcloth are perfect for both pieces. This post inspired me and brightened up my Monday morning – Thanks for sharing your creativity.
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You’re welcome Rhonda! I’m glad I brightened up a Monday!
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Love this little nightstand!! I am currently looking forward to a new post from you every day!!! Huge fan – so glad I found you!!! 🙂
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Welcome Lori, I’m glad you found me too!
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I’m not a mid century modern person but I think you could convert me! It’s beautiful and I love that fabric choice on the chair. Perfect!
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Thanks Becky!
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I, too, love these. The parts that you chose to paint, upholster or wallpaper renews and updates them and using true vintage wallpaper, authentic color and vintage fabric brings the piece back to authentic. It is kind of a wild whirlwind, swirling away and then coming back, that couldn’t work better. These are just fabulous, Linda. Sounds like you love the Fusion paint. I looked at it about six months ago and I think it is perfect for me.
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I think you might really like the Fusion paint as well. It’s not going to give you the chippy, distressed look, but it is by far the easiest process.
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I love the nightstand. I am thinking we should redo mine just like that. I am going to need bright colors in my new room.,
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