caviar with a vodka chaser.

Published on by Quandie

Have you ever tried caviar?  I’ve tried it a couple of times.  The most memorable was when Mr. Q and I were in St. Petersburg, Russia where we we tried on fur hats, ate caviar and then washed it down with shots of vodka.

But even with the vodka chaser, this delicacy is pretty much lost on me.  Give me a bag of potato chips instead any day.

But there is one kind of Caviar that I just can’t get enough of …

Dixie Belle’s Caviar!

I’ve shared several pieces painted in this color over the past year starting with a pair of Windsor chairs that I painted back in February.

They were followed by a lovely vintage dresser.

Then in July I painted a gorgeous vintage bed in Caviar.

And more recently I painted the simply beautiful hutch in this color (although the inside is painted in Fusion’s Coal Black which is a pretty good match, just a little different sheen).

On Monday I shared the latest collaboration between me and my handyman Ken, the black bench.

And I still haven’t had enough Caviar!

In addition to the bench, I painted several more items in Caviar recently.  And I played around with some other ‘chasers’ including clear wax, black wax and black glaze.  I started with this vintage train case (do you call it train case?  or a vanity case?  or a makeup case?) …

  

I cleaned the case first with soap and water.  Then I painted it with two coats of Caviar and stenciled it with craft paint.

I finished it with Dixie Belle’s Best Dang Wax in Black.

I find it easier to apply an appropriately thin coat of wax using a brush rather than a rag.  Once applied, I go over the waxed surface with a clean cloth right away to remove any excess wax.  You can then wait 10 or 15 minutes and buff to a shine, but I’m not a super shine lover so I don’t do very much buffing.  The brush pictured is one that I reserve exclusively for use with dark wax.

Today’s q-tip:  usually I advise adding a coat of clear wax prior to adding dark wax, but with pieces painted in black that isn’t necessary.

Next I painted a library chair in Caviar, and then finished it with Dixie Belle’s Best Dang Wax in Clear.

I have to admit that I didn’t notice a whole lot of difference between using the clear wax versus the black wax over the Caviar.  Also, as an FYI, I used Dixie Belle Best Dang Wax in Brown on the vintage dresser above which worked beautifully as well.  So if you have a particular color of wax on hand already you could just use that over the Caviar, no need to buy a special wax.

Next I painted this rather heavy wooden tool box in Caviar, stenciled it and then tried something different for the topcoat.  I used the Dixie Belle Black Glaze.

I applied the glaze using a cheap foam brush.

It went on so easily and the glaze seems to add just a tad more sheen than the wax does.

I actually finished this toolbox before I finished the bench that I shared on Monday.  It was my guinea pig for the glaze.  It went on so easily and looked so good that I went ahead and used the black glaze on the bench too.

One thing to keep in mind is that some of the water based poly’s are not recommended for use over black because they can become streaky.  For that reason I tend to stick with wax, glaze or hemp oil when adding a top coat to black.

If you haven’t tried Dixie Belle’s Caviar, you absolutely should.  And although I wouldn’t recommend following it up with a vodka chaser, I do think clear wax, black wax or the black glaze are all great choices!

26 thoughts on “caviar with a vodka chaser.”

  2. Linda, thanks so much for your review of black paint and the sealers you used over them. Although it was too late for me, I had already achieved the ‘streaky’ finish on the dresser I had painted, it is good for future black painted pieces. I love the way black painted pieces look, they are so stately and seem to have a lot of calming energy. Yours are all amazing. And, BTW, after 3 coats of Fusion topcoat sealer, my dresser now has a much better look – not streaky that I can see, but since it has been rainy for the last 4 days, so it’s a little difficult to get a good read on that.

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    1. Here’s what the Fusion website says about their Tough Coat: “Do not use on medium to darker colours as it will show streaks, this is water vapour trapped within the tough coat and is visible on dark colours in particular.” I wonder if your rainy weather helped contribute to the streaking.

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  3. Great information. This answered many questions for me as to why I get streaks with black paint. i do love black pieces and have several in my home. I love all of the projects that you posted. You are so talented. 😊

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  4. Thank you! Getting ready to paint a bench black when it is a little warmer. I have never liked those Russian type hats, but your Mr.Q looks pretty darn cute in it! 😊 I’m sure you did too! 💂

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    1. LOL, yes, he did look pretty cute in that hat. And I actually purchased one for myself … and then wore it about twice. They are very, very warm! Almost too warm, even for Minnesota.

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  6. One of my favorites…love anything black for furniture. Still seeing if I can find room for that bench! I tried caviar on one of our cruises…liked it, but wouldn’t go out of my way to eat it again. Lol

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    1. To be honest, no. I’m don’t feel qualified to give any sort of expert opinion on that. I only just started using the glaze, so I don’t have any personal experience regarding its long term durability compared to wax. Dixie Belle’s paint is durable once cured without the need for a topcoat, so I’m mostly adding the glaze for aesthetic reasons (to add a little more sheen to the very flat look of the paint).

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  8. Dear Miss Quandie! You have such a wonderful eye for the details! Your pieces never have that Ellie May Clampett-home-made look, they are beautiful and sophisticated! And it’s so great that you have your whole set-up to sell them. It must be satisfying to make some money doing what you love and are so good at! Most of us only have just so much room for keeping all the things we love making…..I just love your whole system and what you do!

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    1. It is definitely darker and richer than the Typewriter. Keeping in mind that the Typewriter can look very different depending on the top coat. Typewriter with a fresh hemp oil finish would come closest to the Caviar, but if you have much experience with that you know that over time that deep hemp oil finish tends to lighten up (at which point you can always add more hemp oil to darken it up again). Miss Mustard Seed herself is working with Typewriter currently and she mentioned in her Instagram stories that she considers it a soft black.

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  11. I love each and every piece you have done in Caviar. There’s just something about black that gets to me and Caviar is the perfect black. Thank you for all the tips on topcoating that persnickety color. I do believe a shot of Vodka – before and after waxing – is a must! One to prepare you for doing it and one as a reward for getting the waxing done!
    BTW~ your boots in your previous post are magnificent! My sis-in-law is like you. She wears a size 11 and if she finds a pair of shoes that fit, she snatches them up and will decide later if they are perfect for her or not. She said just finding that size is hard enough and if you wait to decide they’ll be long gone.

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  12. Oh my gosh, I think that these are all so beautiful.love the colour,the object, just everything. I am sure Mom would too. Say hi to sis for me. Is it getting too cold for yard sailing?

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  13. Absolutely love the train case (that’s what we call them in the south) in Caviar. And the tool box is fabulous as well. Part of being able to do what you do is having a place to paint. And then there’s the fact that you certainly appear have your supplies organized. I am impressed on a weekly basis. Lastly I love everything painted black and adding
    stencils or transfers makes them perfect. I would love to have that tool box for my kitchen island.

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