Remember the buoys that I found while thrifting way back in March?

I have to admit, they look pretty good in that photo.  And they were pretty good.  Except that up close and personal they looked a little too fake to me.

I had tucked them aside for summer, and when the shop where I sell (Reclaiming Beautiful in Stillwater, MN) decided to have a Ralph Lauren-ish summer camp sort of theme in their window this weekend, I decided to give them a quick makeover.

When I hear Ralph Lauren, I automatically think red, white and blue.

I don’t know, is that just me?

Well, either way, that’s what I decided to go with on my buoys.

I painted one of them in Dixie Belle’s Honky Tonk Red

and the other in their Deep Sea.

After two coats of paint were dry, I sanded well to distress them.

Today’s q tip:  Always, always, always sand a dark color first before adding a white detail over it.  I’ve learned the hard way that if you sand a dark color (and especially red) and a white at the same time, you’ll end up smearing the dust from your color into the white.  And that never looks good.

So I sanded, wiped the dust away, and then used painters tape to add some stripes in Dixie Belle’s Endless Shore.  I then also stenciled some numbers onto the taller buoy with that same paint.

I have to admit, in hindsight I’m guessing that quite a few of you would have preferred I left them alone.  But they definitely have more of a hand-painted look now.

I’m also wondering if I got Ralph Lauren mixed up with an Americana sort of theme.

But then, Ralph Lauren and the American flag kind of go hand in hand.

And the shop certainly turned out fabulous …

There are my buoys, see them in about the middle of the frame?  I think they fit right in.

And here’s what’s in the window.

Lots of stuff that would be fabulous in your lake cabin, or on your three season porch.  Or maybe even just in your cabin themed guest room.

If any of you locals are looking for something fun to do this weekend, I recommend heading into Stillwater and checking out Reclaiming Beautiful (open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursday, Friday and Saturday, not open Sunday).

Thank you to Dixie Belle Paint Co for supplying the paint used for today’s project.