A while back one of my readers from Iowa reached out to offer me some items that she was discarding.  And even better, her son lives nearby and was willing to deliver them.  How generous!

One of the items she sent my way was a toolbox (thanks so much Vanessa).

I have to say, I don’t think I’ve ever worked on one this clean and new before.  Plus, Vanessa had already scuff sanded it a bit.  So aside from giving it a quick wash up, I was able to go straight to the Bonding Boss step.

In this case, I don’t need to block any rust or stains, but that surface was still a bit slick so the ‘bonding’ part of Bonding Boss will help my paint stick to the shiny metal.

I painted the inside of the toolbox in my new favorite custom green that I’m calling Garden Green.  It’s a mix of Dixie Belle’s Acadia and Everglades.

And, well, fair warning, I am really loving this color.  You’re going to see it a bunch more over the coming weeks so I hope you like it too.

As you can see, this toolbox came with a tray and I painted that up in the Garden Green too.

I then added a little French wording to the tray …

And actually, that scrap of typography was gifted to me by a reader as well.  When Monica was moving, she sent me a bunch of random bits of transfers and this bit worked out perfectly for the tray, so thanks again for that Monica!

As for the outside of the toolbox, I painted it in two coats of Dixie Belle’s Drop Cloth.

One thing that I think is worth noting is that not only does the Bonding Boss block stains and odors, and improve the adhesion of your paint, it also make it easier to cover a color such as the original bright red of this toolbox.  Even the clear version, which is what I typically use.  I only needed two coats of Drop Cloth to cover up that red.

Once the drop cloth was dry I added some of those gorgeous florals from the I.O.D. Saint Germain transfer.

I decided to keep the look a little asymmetrical with the addition of some wording from the long retired and now very difficult to find I.O.D. Label Ephemera transfer.

Once everything was in place, I finished off the toolbox with Dixie Belle’s clear wax.

What do you think?  Do you like the asymmetrical look, or do you prefer a more balanced look?

Leave a comment and let me know.

In the meantime, this toolbox is for sale.  Check out my ‘available for local sale‘ page for more details.