the botanist box.

Published on by Quandie

Today I’m bringing you another wooden box makeover.

Since there really isn’t any way to tell the scale in that photo, I’ll tell you that this is bigger than your average recipe box.  I suspect it was used by a business of some kind.

And that’s partially based on this stamp inside the lid calling it a ‘merchants box’, and partially based on the size.

I gave this box a quick scuff sanding, followed by wiping it down with a damp cloth.  Then I painted the outside in two coats of Dixie Belle’s Sawmill Gravy.

Then I pretty much lost my head.  That’s the best way to describe it.

I decided I really wanted to use just the wording from inside the circle of I.O.D.’s The Botanist transfer.  You may remember when I used this full transfer on a bed last summer.

I had ordered another one recently, and I just couldn’t resist using the typography portion on this box.

It was a perfect fit.

If I was keeping this box for myself I probably wouldn’t bat an eye over the $25 price tag for the transfer, but I’m planning to sell this box.  So I fully admit that it doesn’t make any kind of good business sense to spend this much on a transfer that I used on one measly box makeover.  I hesitated quite a bit before deciding I just had to do it.  I also think I’ve come up with a use for the rest of the transfer, those floral swags that surround the typography, but we’ll have to wait and see if that comes to fruition.

So will I get my money back out of this one?  Probably just barely.  I certainly won’t be making any kind of profit.  That’s OK with me, but I know many of you guys need to turn a profit, in which case this is not the way to do it.

By the way, yes, I did consider filling that big crack down the middle of the lid.

But I decided it added a little character and age to the box.  I’m OK with that.

You may have noticed that in addition to the typography, I also decorated this box with some florals from the I.O.D. Floral Anthology transfer.

I filled the front of the box …

and trailed over to both sides …

with various scraps of Floral Anthology.

I should also mention that prior to adding any of the transfers, I used the wet distress method on this box.  This method involves using a damp rag to rub paint away from edges where the box would have naturally been worn over time.  It can be a good alternative to distressing the edges with sandpaper, often looking more authentic.  This only works with a paint that is reactivated with water, so mainly chalk style paints.

I did add one little Tim Holtz number transfer to the front of the box as well.

I finished the box with some clear wax both inside and out.  I hadn’t painted the inside, but chose to leave it in the natural wood instead.  The wax freshened it up nicely.

I should also point out that this box must have had some sort of slider thingie inside originally that had since been removed, leaving a sort of empty track in the bottom of the box.

To cover that up I simply cut a thick piece of cardboard to fit the bottom of the box, and then covered that with some scrapbook paper.

It’s quite sturdy, but also quite removable.  So down the road if it gets all grungy from use, it can easily be pulled out and replaced with something fresh.

I took this one into the shop this week, so if any of you locals are interested in it you’ll need to pop into Reclaiming Beautiful in Stillwater.

As for the rest of you, what do you think of this box makeover?

26 thoughts on “the botanist box.”

      1. Beautiful…love the attention to detail! Good idea to use heavier cardboard over the uneven bottom. I love it that I usually recognize the scrapbooking paper too! 🏆

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  4. I loved the out come! I like that you left the crack. It gives it character. Another great rescue! I’m enjoying the small makeovers.
    Smiles, alice

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  5. Love it! Love the wording, the florals, the crack, and the authentic wood showing on the inside. and I am happy to know that there are others who sometimes create things that they know will not bring much profit but satisfy a creative urge. I really enjoy your small projects!

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  6. I love the way you stage your projects and photograph them. The box will have multiple uses and who can’t use another beautiful storage container. Can’t wait to see what you do with the pink swags.

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  8. Love this box. I wish I could find transfers with “wording”, particularly botanical themed. Seems like the ones I see in projects that I like are discontinued. Any advice?

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    1. I sure do wish I had some advice on that! You’ve hit the nail on the head as to why I made the choice to use just the typography of a much bigger transfer, because I can’t find much else like it to use. I can tell you that the I.O.D. Melange paint inlay has this same wording only much, much smaller (I used it on a box last month). Also the Classic Vintage Labels from re.design with prima include a couple of ‘seed’ themed bits, like the one I used on the lid of a box last year. But again, these are small. I also like the Flower Collector transfer from re.design with prima (see example of that here). It originally came in black or gold, there are lots of gold ones available but you may have to hunt for the black one (I couldn’t find one doing a very quick search). I sure do wish that someone would come out with some new botanical themed typography transfers!!

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  9. My grandparents had an office supply company and a memory of your pretty box is trying to surface (probably a lost cause).
    Larger index cards range in size 5 x 7″, 5 x 8″ and 6 x 9″ – is the box of a size to hold any of those? Some of the boxes had a slider thing inside to hold the cards in place if they didn’t fill the box.
    Sheila

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    1. Yes, this box is the right size for some larger index cards, and I’m fairly certain it did originally have the slider thingie. Am I the only one who thinks it would have been fun to play with office supplies as a kid? Oh, who am I kidding, I still like to play with office supplies 😉

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  11. i look forward to each and every post of yours. i googled I.O.D. Brocante and couldn’t find their website. i found plenty of listings on etsy that sell them but not the business site. do they have one?

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    1. I.O.D. has a website (here), but they only sell wholesale. So we mere mortals can’t order from them directly. There is a ‘where to buy’ link there though. There is a brick and mortar shop about 30 minutes away from me, and I’ve shopped there a handful of times. However, I usually just order online, and I’ve had very good results from The Painted Heirloom. My order usually arrives within 3 to 5 days.

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      1. thank you so much for your quick response to my question. i did as you suggested and there is one shop locally that carries the transfers and i’ll give them a try. deb

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