Category: toolboxes.

You may remember that I picked up a trio of metal boxes at an estate sale a couple of weeks back.

The smallest galvanized box on the left was rather unique.  It opens to the side.

I knew this one would make for a fun makeover project.

I started with my usual prep of washing with Dawn dish soap and hot water, followed by a coat of Dixie Belle’s Bonding Boss inside and out.

Next up I gave the inside a coat of Dixie Belle paint in Cottage Door.

More on that color choice in a minute.

Next I painted the exterior of the box in Dixie Belle’s Drop Cloth.  Then I pulled out I.O.D.’s By Any Other Name transfer and chose some roses that I thought would be perfect on this box.

I added roses to both of the long sides of the box, without really deciding which side I would consider to be the front.  I also chose roses that had a creamy pale tone to them.  It wasn’t until later that I realized that most of them read more pale yellow rather than cream now that they are in place.

Not that there’s anything wrong with that …

However, I now think I should have gone with a different color on the interior.  Unfortunately, I had already applied Dixie Belle’s clear wax over the Cottage Door.  So to repaint would be a process.  Sure, you can eventually paint over Dixie Belle’s clear wax because it is water based (this is not true of all waxes, FYI), but not until the wax is cured (7 to 10 days).  At that point you also need to clean the surface with their White Lightening cleaner (or a similar TSP based cleaner) and then scuff sand before painting.

So hopefully the Cottage Door isn’t as wrong as I think because I’m leaving it.

Plus, the lid on this box is likely to mainly remain closed.

I mean, I’d want to see the top of that box, wouldn’t you?

That transfer on the top is also from the I.O.D. By Any Other Name set.

I also added some bits to either end of the box.

The wording above is from the I.O.D. Saint Ouen transfer as is this transfer on the other end …

and the typography on the front of the box.

I also finished off the exterior of the box with a coat of Dixie Belle’s clear wax.

This one is headed into Reclaiming Beautiful in Stillwater today, so if any of you locals are interested be sure to head down there to check it out.

Also, be sure to leave a comment and let me know what you think of today’s ‘toolbox’!

Last week I showed you the vintage lunchbox that I picked up while out thrifting.

It definitely was not very exciting ‘as is’.  So I knew it would benefit from a paint job.

After my usual prep of cleaning, lightly sanding and adding a coat of Dixie Belle’s Bonding Boss to make sure my paint would adhere nicely, I painted the interior in Dixie Belle’s Secret Path and then sealed it with their flat clear coat.

As someone who once openly admitted that I don’t like purple, it’s funny how often I pull out this color.

In this case, I knew it would pair beautifully with the gorgeous florals from the new I.O.D. Madeleine transfer.

But before we get to that, I painted the exterior of the lunchbox in Dixie Belle’s Ecru.

After allowing that to dry and then distressing it with a light sanding, I started cutting up the Madeleine transfer and figuring out the placement on the lunchbox.

This transfer comes with several symmetrical elements.

But I didn’t want an entirely symmetrical look.  So I cut things up and moved them around to create the look I wanted.

I also wrapped a few of the florals around the sides, and added in some bees and butterflies here and there.

One comment that I have about the Madeleine transfer, and indeed all of the spring release florals from I.O.D., is that they are all somewhat small in scale.  That makes them great for working on smaller items like this lunchbox, but I think I’d struggle to use them on a large piece of furniture (or the ginormous toolbox that I found while thrifting a week or so ago).

Is it just me, or do you also see the trend moving away from transfers for use on furniture and focusing instead on smalls?  Leave a comment and let me know what you think about that.

Once all of the florals were in place, I chose a section of typography from the I.O.D. Saint Ouen transfer to add to the front of the lunchbox.

It was perfect for that space in the middle.

For one final touch, although my original plan was to leave the handle in its original chrome, I decided to paint it using Dixie Belle’s Cactus.

I then finished off the outside of the lunchbox using Dixie Belle’s clear wax.

Last week one of my readers, Sheri, suggested that my floral toolboxes would make awesome Easter baskets.  I thought that was a fantastic idea, and wouldn’t this lunchbox be perfect for that as well?

Who wouldn’t love to receive this filled with Easter goodies?

This lunchbox is available for sale locally, so be sure to check out the details here.

However, I should note that I am heading off to visit my mom later today and will be gone for a week so you may have to wait to pick it up.  The forecast for Henderson, Nevada (where my mom lives) this week calls for temps in the upper 70’s to low 80’s.  Yay!  Unlike my recent trip to Florida, I’ll truly be getting away from winter weather this time around.

Also, I’m leaving plenty of room in my suitcase just in case I find any goodies at the Goodwill that’s around the corner from my mom’s place.  Keep your fingers crossed for me!

I don’t know about you, but I am ready for some pretty spring florals.

Especially if they’re on a toolbox (I bet you don’t hear that said very often!).

This is another toolbox that I brought home from the Habitat for Humanity ReStore.

Full disclosure, I actually finished this project before I left for Florida but I didn’t have time to photograph it to share with you guys.

Suffice to say, I gave this my usual prep treatment; I scrubbed it with Dawn, gave it a light scuff sanding, and followed that up with a coat of Dixie Belle’s Bonding Boss.

Next up I painted the inside in Dixie Belle’s Apricot, followed by a coat of their flat clear coat.

I followed that up with two coats of Dixie Belle’s Caviar on the outside.

I then added some florals from the I.O.D. Saint Germain transfer and the gold typography from the Queen’s Glory transfer from re.design with prima.

Once the florals were in place, I added a coat of Dixie Belle’s clear wax to protect them.

Now, you might be feeling a bit of déjà vu right now.  That’s because this is almost exactly the same as another toolbox that I painted back in October.

Except that one had an interior painted in Dixie Belle’s Cottage Door, and I did flip the florals upside down too.  That first one ended up selling at my fall occasional sale, so I never brought it into the shop.

Since I had more of the same transfers that I used on that first one, I decided to go ahead and recreate the look once more.

This time it did make it into the shop, so if any of you locals are in need of a toolbox be sure to head into Reclaiming Beautiful in Stillwater this weekend (the shop is open Thursday – Saturday).

I also brought in Keith’s toolbox …

And this Botanist toolbox …

Plus a small tackle box that I never bothered to share here on the blog.

So there are plenty of pretty spring floral toolboxes to choose from!

Leave a comment and let me know which one is your favorite.

I thought I’d take a break from posting about the free-at-the-curb dollhouse today and share a toolbox that I worked on recently.

This toolbox came from my neighbor nnK’s brother Keith.  Apparently he purchased it because it was full of drill bits that he wanted, but he didn’t want the toolbox itself.

But he knew exactly who might like to have it … me!

I treated the toolbox to my usual prep; I scuff sanded it, then washed it with grease cutting dish soap and hot water.  Once dry, I gave it a coat of Dixie Belle’s Bonding Boss inside and out.

I painted the inside of the toolbox in Dixie Belle’s Cottage Door and then sealed it with their flat clear coat to give it extra durability.

Then I painted the outside of the toolbox in their Apricot.

After sanding to distress the edges and wiping away any dust, I pulled out the I.O.D. Rose Botanical transfer as well as a small section from their Clementine transfer.

I knew I wanted to add this bit of wording from the Clementine transfer somewhere on the toolbox.

So after playing around with it for a bit and deciding exactly where the wording would go, I first applied several roses from the Rose Botanical transfer.

My selection of roses from that transfer was pretty picked over since I’ve used it on several projects already, but I think I was able to come up with a pattern that works.

Once I had all of the roses in place, I added the wording.

I knew that some of it might overlap those roses, so that’s why I chose to apply them in this order.

I also added a small number transfer from Tim Holtz just above the latch.

Once all of the transfers were in place, I followed up with a topcoat of Dixie Belle’s clear wax.

Now that the toolbox is so pretty in pink do you think Keith would like to have it back?

Hmmmm.  I’m guessing not.

But maybe one of my other local readers would like to have it?  If so, be sure to check out my ‘available for local sale‘ page for more details!

You might get a bit of déjà vu with today’s post.

Sometimes I just like to go with what has worked for me in the past (OK, maybe a lot of the time), and such is the case with both of today’s toolboxes.

Well, technically this first one is a tackle box.

My friend Jackie gave me this one last summer, and I actually began work on it right away while the weather was still warm enough to clean it up with the garden hose, and also to spray paint.

After my usual prep of cleaning, scuff sanding and a coat of Dixie Belle’s Bonding Boss, I gave the inside a few coats of Rust-Oleum spray paint in Leafy Green.

Those tacklebox trays can be a bit putzy to paint with a brush, so I have two methods of dealing with them.  I either spray paint them while it’s warm enough to do that outside, or I have my neighbor/handyman Ken remove them entirely.  He does this by drilling out the rivets that hold them in place.

I think I sprayed this one back in August and it’s been waiting in the wings for the rest of its makeover.

I pulled it out a couple of weeks ago and gave the outside a couple of coats of Dixie Belle’s Chantilly, which is one of the new Silk colors.  It’s a bit brighter of a white than my usual Drop Cloth or Ecru, without being so bright that it stands out.  After the paint dried, I sanded to distress the details and then wiped away any dust.

Then I basically copied a look I’ve done twice before.

I used two Dixie Belle transfers.  All of the black typography is from their Vintage Post transfer, and the red and green florals are from their Evergreen and Holly transfer.  You won’t find either of these on their website because, sadly, I think they are both retired.  But you can still find them online, try Etsy or just simply google them.

I thought the address of ’41 Winter Street’ was a fun little detail for a Christmas tackle box that probably no one will notice except me.

As per usual, I finished off the tackle box with a coat of Dixie Belle’s clear wax.

My 2nd repeat for today is another red toolbox (why are so many of them red?).

This one goes way back to the windfall of toolboxes that I got from my friend Kathy back in 2024.  It had gotten tucked away upstairs in the carriage house and I forgot all about it until I was cleaning up for my recent sale.

After my usual cleaning, sanding and Bonding Boss, I gave this one a coat of Dixie Belle’s Barn Red on the inside.

I also added a bird transfer from the I.O.D. Winter Botanist set inside the cover.

I painted the outside in Dixie Belle’s Ecru, and then repeated a design I’ve used twice before.

The wording is from the I.O.D. Cosette transfer, and those florals are from the Dixie Belle Evergreen and Holly transfer.

As many of you already know, I like this design so much that I have one I’ve kept for myself.

I fill it with my non-collection (‘non’ because I’m in denial that I collect anything) of vintage glass tree toppers.

Both of these ‘repeats’ went in to Reclaiming Beautiful before I left for Florida.  When I get back this week, I’ll have to head in there to see whether or not they have sold.

A while back my friend opK found a toolbox for me at an estate sale.

Apparently it was ‘The Odds and Ends Toolbox’ for someone.

And to keep track of what was inside, that previous owner liked to add labels.

It had a little bit of rust, plenty of dirt, and A LOT of labels.  I started by using some Goof Off to remove the labels, and they actually came off quite easily.  Then I gave it a good scrub with dish soap.  After it dried, I sanded it to remove any flaking paint or rust and then gave it a coat of Dixie Belle’s Bonding Boss inside and out.

Next I painted the inside in Dixie Belle’s Highlands.

I followed that up with two coats of Dixie Belle’s Ecru on the outside.  Once dry, I scuff sanded to distress the edges and after wiping away any dust, I was ready to add some transfers.

For that I pulled out a retired I.O.D. transfer called The Botanist.

I used this transfer in its entirety back in 2023 on this headboard.

But I’d also used just the typography section from the middle on a box top back in January 2024.

FYI, the florals on that box are from a different I.O.D. transfer called Floral Anthology.

A while back I noticed that The Painted Heirloom has a sale price of only $22.05 on The Botanist, so I ordered another one.  For that price I felt like I could choose to just use the typography portion on a smaller item again rather than using the entire transfer.

But then I studied those swags of flowers and decided that maybe I could modify them to work on this toolbox.

Keep in mind, the full design comes on four 12″ x 16″ sheets.  So it’s quite a bit larger than my toolbox.  But after a lot of cutting, trimming and rearranging the swags, I came up with a pretty good layout.  I’m so glad I took the time to try this.

The florals are so pretty, so it was nice to find a way to use them other than on a full sized piece of furniture.

And of course the typography is a perfect fit for a toolbox.

I finished everything off with a coat of Dixie Belle’s clear wax.

Now, if you’re wondering what you would do with a toolbox like this, well … obviously … you would just keep your odds and ends in it.  Right?

This toolbox is for sale locally (check out my ‘available for local sale‘ page for more details).