Today I’m going to walk you through how to restore your old outdoor wood furniture and protect it from UV and moisture damage!

Below you can see a close-up of how the wood table looked before restoring it. The wood has weathered and grayed, and the finish has chipped away in some small areas. You may remember that when I stained my deck, I started by using a wood cleaner and brightener to prep the surface for stain, and I wish I would have used it on this table as well to help the grayed wood return back to its natural color. 

I ran out of the products I used on the deck, so I simply gave the table a good bath and scrub with the garden hose and waited for the wood was dry completely. 

HOW TO RESTORE AND PROTECT OUTDOOR WOOD FURNITURE

SUPPLIES:

plastic drop cloth or cardboard
wood cleaner/brightener – optional but recommended
garden hose
wood sealer – I used teak oil, which is able to be used on woods other than just teak
paint brush for oil-based products
handheld paint pail
clean rag
bucket with water 

STEP 1 – PREP 

You will first want to clean and prep the surface. If the wood is rough or an old finish remains, sand with 150-220 grit sandpaper until smooth and remove all dust with a vacuum or a cloth dampened with mineral spirits. Spray the wood with a garden hose, and use a wood cleaner/brightener to remove any gray oxidation on the wood and clean any dirt or foreign matter. Allow the wood to dry completely. Protect surrounding areas by laying a plastic drop cloth or cardboard underneath the piece of furniture to catch any drips. Make sure you are in a well ventilated area when the temperatures are between 55-90ºF. 

STEP 2 – APPLICATION

Thoroughly shake or stir the product before and during use. Pour the teak oil into your pail (you can get disposable liners to make clean-up super easy) and use a paint brush made for oil-based products to heavily apply the oil to the wood. Follow the directions on your particular product for application and re-coating instructions. I applied two coats about 30 minutes apart, wiping any excess oil that didn’t absorb into the wood with a clean rag afterwards. Allow the wood to dry 8-10 hours before light use. 

IMPORTANT NOTE: I carefully read the product label after seeing several reviews on Amazon, and I definitely recommend taking this precaution! As soon as you are finished wiping the excess oil with a clean rag, place the rag in a bucket of water. Do not just toss it on the ground, as some reviewers said that a buildup of fumes in their rag caused it to combust or become flammable, especially if it was wadded up in a ball so the fumes could not escape the cloth. Make sure it is thoroughly soaked with water, then lay it flat to dry before disposing. I didn’t have any issues using this product, but obviously always want to use and promote caution around potentially flammable products!

Here is a side-by-side look at the difference before and after applying teak oil. As I mentioned before, I do wish I had used a wood cleaner similar to the one I used on my deck to remove more of the gray spots, but the teak oil brought back so much warmth and color in the wood and really brought it back to life. The next time I apply teak oil (most likely next year), I will try a wood cleaner first to see how much that makes a difference as well.

I had a little bit of teak oil leftover so I applied it to two wood benches I have outdoors as well! It’s amazing the difference just a little bit of nourishing oil makes on furniture that sits out in the elements all year long.

We enjoy this outdoor living space more and more each year, and the boys couldn’t wait to have our first summer meal of the year out here. Our al fresco dining usually doesn’t involve fancy glasses, placemats, and cloth napkins, but I figured this would be a good opportunity to dress the table up a little to show how beautiful it looks now after some TLC.

I still pinch myself that this is the view I get to enjoy everyday. 

My peonies have been blooming in abundance lately, and I wish their season lasted just a little while longer. I snipped a handful of the last few flowers for a simple, casual centerpiece. 

Last year was when I gave that little barn in the background a makeover and added lights to the gazebo. Little details that add up to tons of charm in our backyard. 

Do you have an outdoor living space at your house? What is your favorite thing about it? I hope this post was helpful sharing small ways you can protect and maintain your wood furniture for years to come!

– SOURCES –

placemats | white plates
cloth napkins | white vase | glassware
outdoor dining table | dining chairs (sold out – similar options below)

– MORE OUTDOOR PROJECTS –

How to Stain a Deck
Barn Makeover Part 1
Barn Makeover Part 2
How to Clean Your Outdoor Cushions
Tall Outdoor Cedar Planter DIY
How to Build an Outdoor Console Table
Deck Addition

As always, I sincerely appreciate you shopping through the links I share, which allows me to make a small commission from your purchase while your purchase price stays the same. When you use my affiliate links, I’m better able to create content for this blog as well as support my family, and I thank you from the bottom of my heart for supporting what I do!

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The post How to Restore and Protect Outdoor Wood Furniture appeared first on Love Grows Wild.

But while I was preparing to launch my new business venture, I knew I needed to make some updates to my home office that would allow me to be more productive, organized, and inspired with all the additional hours I would soon be spending in here. If you follow me on Instagram (and if you don’t, I invite you to follow me here for more behind the scenes of Love Grows Wild!), you probably saw little previews of what I’ve been working on in the office, including a very bold makeover of a large piece of furniture, a new desk setup, and more. Let’s take a tour of my new home office!

One of the biggest changes in the room was getting rid of my old World Market desk and replacing it with this L-shaped wood desk and matching file cabinet. I absolutely loved the old desk and how beautiful it was, but I need a little more space and storage for my office to function the way I need it to. I was a little nervous adding such a large darker wood piece of furniture to the room (you know I’m a light and bright kind of gal), but it inspired a really pretty design contrast between dark and moody & my usual white and airy aesthetic. 

I’ve had the desk for several months now and am very pleased with the quality and design. I love that it has a matching file cabinet so I can keep any paperwork organized and close at hand without looking like the typical metal office eyesore.

I decided to position the desk against a wall where my computer, printer, and lamp cords could be hidden, but my desk chair is able to face both the window and the center of the room, which I find to be so helpful with work productivity. I would much rather have some kind of a view while sitting at my desk than be staring straight at a wall!

I installed two floating shelves on the wall above the filing cabinet to help visually fill the space and create a focal point when you walk into the room. I bought these inexpensive shelves in white (they come in several different lengths/colors), and they were very easy to install. 

On the other side of the window, I added a few pieces of art that I absolutely fell in love with. I’m a sucker for a pretty vintage landscape painting, and I surprised myself by choosing a portrait painting to pair with it.  I quickly realized how difficult it is to pick a human you don’t know to be prominently displayed in your home, but I was instantly drawn to this female portrait… having a male in the headquarters of my female-run business just didn’t seem right. I think she’s absolutely perfect, and I love this little corner of my workspace. 

And now for the boldest change in my office…

I painted my bright white antique cabinet a dark, moody, matte black, and I’m absolutely in love with the character it added to the entire room. 

I’ve slowly been embracing some colors and finishes outside of my usual comfort zone, and when I added my black front door to the house last year, I knew it wouldn’t be long before I updated something else with this darker, more grounded color. I used Fusion Mineral Paint in the color Coal Black, and I will say that out of all the chalk, milk, and other furniture paints I’ve used over the years, this is one of my very favorites. It had such good coverage even with the first coat, and the finish was so smooth. I highly recommend Fusion if you’re looking to update a piece of furniture in your home.

I left the original hardware on the top hutch, but the many of the hardware pieces on the bottom part of the cabinet were not in good shape. I matched the same antique brass finish and replaced several drawer pulls and knobs so I wouldn’t have to pry open the cabinet doors any longer. 

I have a whole blog post where I discussed how I use this cabinet, but this is where I store all my decor and accessories that I’m not currently using. If you want to see what this cabinet looked like before I painted it black, go check this out!

Since we only have one bathroom, I’ve had a little makeup vanity set up in my office for several years now, and it works perfectly. It’s just a little antique desk and my old desk chair with a small mirror and some decorative boxes to hold all my makeup. I always prefer to be as close to natural light as possible when doing my makeup, so sitting right next to this window is the perfect little spot. 

You may have noticed I also switched out the darker bamboo roman shades with these white balloon shades that I borrowed from another bedroom. The new desk made the bamboo shades feel too overpowering in the room, and this was the perfect easy swap.

When I design a space, I try to keep function as the top priority and the decorative aspects a close second. It’s not always easy to balance the two, especially because our home is the backdrop I use to create content for this blog, but my office is one room that function had to be the number one priority. I will admit when I’ve shown my office in the past, sometimes I’ve moved things around slightly to create that “magazine worthy” photo. But I never want anyone to leave here feeling like the ideas I share are unattainable in your own home, and this is truly how my office looks now… giant printer sitting on top of the desk, a calendar on the wall to keep me organized (although it is a very pretty calendar), and stacks of papers (just neatly organized in trays). 

I’ve added so many storage pieces in this room, many of them antiques, so that my office can be organized and tidy, which allows my brain to be able to focus and be creative so much better. In fact, I think this room has more antiques in it than any other room of the house. I suppose it’s a little collection of all my favorite pieces… the whitewashed armoire, the black cabinet, a tall chest that stores office supplies, and my old vanity table. 

Doesn’t this photo feel so pretty and dreamy with the sunlight coming in through the sheer curtains?

– SOURCES –

wall color: PPG in Gypsum
cabinet color: Fusion Mineral Paint in Coal Black

desk | file cabinet | chandelier
rug | desk chair | lamp | floating shelves
wall calendar | sheer curtains | balloon shades
jug vase | covered books | engraving art
vanity chair | landscape painting | woman’s portrait
throw blanket | armchair

– SHOP THE POST –

As always, I sincerely appreciate you shopping through the links I share, which allows me to make a small commission from your purchase while your purchase price stays the same. When you use my affiliate links, I’m better able to create content for this blog as well as support my family, and I thank you from the bottom of my heart for supporting what I do!

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The post Office Updates for my Interior Decorating Business appeared first on Love Grows Wild.

Painting wicker can be tricky with all the little nooks and crannies, so while I was working on this project I thought I would take some pictures so I could show you the best way to give it a nice, even finish without any mess!

BEFORE:

There are just a couple steps and tips I have for painting wicker quickly and easily… it really is a simple project to do!

1. Use spray paint instead of a paint brush – Spray paint makes it easier to get in all the crevices and won’t drip and glob like using a paint brush will.
2. Prep your work area before starting – I used a large plastic drop cloth on my garage floor to protect from any overspray and set the trunk up on blocks of scrap wood to make it easier to spray the bottom.
3. Spray in multiple directions – If you only spray directly above or straight on the wicker, you will miss a lot of areas that are hiding behind other pieces of wicker. For the best, most even results, lightly spray:
   • from left to right
   • from right to left
   • from top down
   • from bottom up (if possible)
   • and straight on
4. Spray multiple very light coats – Because you are spraying in so many different directions, if you apply the paint heavily each time, you will end up with drippy globs of paint. Spray a very light coat in each direction, then let the paint dry for about 5 minutes before starting the next coat. Also, make sure you are spraying about a foot away from the surface to avoid too much paint collecting too quickly. Of course, check the directions on your can of paint for product-specific instructions, but the one I used could be recoated a few minutes apart, dries to the touch in 20 minutes, and cures completely in 24 hours.
5. Finish with a protective clear coat – Apply a clear coat over the paint either within 30 minutes – 1 hour of applying the last coat of paint or after 48 hours. Use the same technique I described before, spraying in multiple directions with multiple very light coats.

On this trunk I used: Rust-Oleum Painter’s Touch 2x Ultra Cover in Smokey Beige Satin finish + Rust-Oleum Painter’s Touch 2x Ultra Cover in Satin Clear

I set two large metal bins I picked up from Walmart years ago inside the trunk to help keep our shoes a little more organized, but I love how simple this new setup is and how easy it is for the boys to keep their shoes cleaned up and tidy.

This these wicker painting tips would work well on any kind of wicker whether it is a chair, table, dresser, or some kind of smaller piece of decor. I hope this post was helpful if you come across some kind of wicker you’d like to give a little makeover!

I’ve almost always hand a bench sitting under these coat hooks in the entryway, but I am loving this trunk here now… what do you think? Leave me a comment and let me know! xoxo Liz

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This was one of those projects that literally just fell right into place. It was like all the stars aligned, and as I started working through the steps in my brain, I would find a solution with something I already had around the house.

First, I needed to remove one side of the crib. I wanted to be as delicate as possible with this antique, so instead of using power tools, I used a hand saw to cut where the drop side was attached.

I knew I needed to add some support for the seat, so I first braced the crib itself by adding 1x boards along the bottom of the crib, screwing the boards into the frame where a mattress would sit. Then I found leftover plywood from another project and used that as the base the cushion would sit on.

When it came time to make the cushion, I realized I had a twin foam mattress we’re no longer using and cut that down to size to fit the crib. I love the look of a nice thick cushion, but to buy materials at the store to make something this thick would be more than I wanted to spend. The quickest way to cut foam, especially something thick like this is with an electric serrated knife, but I just took my time with a large serrated bread knife I had.

Then I needed fabric to cover the cushion and wanted something that would keep with the antique feel of the crib. I happened to have a cream quilt from a daybed we’re no longer using and had just enough material to cover the thick sides of the cushion. I laid the quilt flat on the floor, put the cushion on top, and the plywood on top of that, pulling the quilt up over the cushion and stapling it securely into the plywood.

I absolutely love the way this piece came together and that I was able to do it 100% with materials I already had. I’m sure all of you DIY’ers out there completely understand having a healthy stash of materials available from past projects!

I’m calling this a bench, but because the cushion is so thick it could really be a darling daybed for a little girl’s room or just a pretty piece in a sunroom or an entryway. I don’t have room for this beauty in our little farmhouse, so I’ve taken it up to the shop to sell to someone who will hopefully have a good home for it!

It’s been awhile since I shared just a good, old furniture flip or re-purposed vintage piece, and I thought this would be a fun project to share with you while I’m gearing up for some exciting spring and summer posts that are coming up soon. I hope you’ve enjoyed seeing a little snippet of my creativity at work!

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The Backstory:

A big part of our recent entryway makeover was the addition of this beautiful armoire for storage, but it definitely didn’t come home looking like it does now. I spotted the armoire at the antique store where Love Grows Wild Market is located, and I instantly fell in love with all the decorative trim and details this piece had. I kept telling myself that if it was there the next time I came in, it was a sign and this beauty was meant to come home with me. Sure enough, the armoire was still there, and I got a great price on it. It is truly a struggle not to take home ALL the treasures I find at the antique store, but it’s fun to see the different pieces that come in and which ones sell quickly.

This armoire started with a beautiful basic wood tone, and for a few weeks after I brought it home, I tried to live with it as is. It was in perfect condition and really didn’t need any work done to it, but the massive size and darkness of the wood felt overpowering in our light, bright farmhouse. So I decided to paint it my signature white to blend in with the rest of the space. Now before you think that I painted over a priceless antique, don’t worry… this piece of furniture is NOT antique. The markings on the back said that it came from a big box store in the last 10 years or so, and the wood is the cheap stuff furniture is made from today. But the decorative details on the top and the unique hardware have so much character that makes it FEEL like an antique, so I felt like this would be the perfect project to paint to make it feel like ours.

Here is what the armoire looked like when it came home…

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First, I removed all the drawers, doors, and hardware to make everything easier and quicker to paint. I’ve tried all kinds of paints over the years, and each one of them is a little different in the consistency and coverage. But while I was at the hardware store getting lumber to build an entryway bench, I spotted a can of Rust-Oleum Chalked ultra matte paint in Linen White that was premixed and ready to go, so I grabbed it to try since I was in a time crunch. Here’s my little review of this paint, and how it worked for me:

Paint Review:

I painted two coats to get complete coverage over the dark wood, but even the first coat had excellent coverage. I’d say better coverage than most other paint brands I’ve used. If you’ve never painted a piece of furniture before, I will tell you that the first coat always looks pretty scary. It’s going to be streaky and spotty and look like you’ve ruined the piece, but it’s going to be okay… I promise! The following coat will cover and hide all that and give you a beautiful, solid finish.

This paint covered well, was smooth and easy to work with, and dried really quickly, which allowed me to go back and paint the next coat almost immediately after I got done with the first. I used a paint brush for the entire piece because I honestly was too lazy to get out a paint tray and roller and needed a brush to get into the groove details anyway. I didn’t have any brush marks at all once the piece was done, which I’ve noticed before with other paints I’ve tried. The paint finish once dry is super chalky, which is a good thing in my opinion and the point of using this kind of paint. It gives you a nice flat finish without any shine and is also really easy to distress and sand off areas of paint without having to put in a ton of elbow grease.

The only downfall was that I was looking for more of a soft, creamy white finish, and the first coat was extremely stark white. That’s my own fault though, and I should have looked for a different shade knowing what I had in mind. But just be aware that the Linen White color is very pure white. It’s hard to probably notice the difference in photos between the first and second coat, but I did end up mixing in a sample pot of Valspar Fresh Cotton, which is a really warm yellow-white, to soften the starkness of the original paint color.

Rust-Oleum does also make a Matte Clear Topcoat, but one of you sent me a message on Instagram that it can yellow when dry, which is a big no-no when you’re painting furniture white or any color really. Varathane’s matte touch clear polyurethane has been my go-to topcoat for years because it doesn’t yellow at all, but because I wanted to do some finishing touches with antiquing parts of the armoire, I decided to use this clear wax instead.

Once the whole piece was painted, I ran a sanding block along all the edges to distress them a bit, which helped redefine the beautiful details this armoire had. The white paint washed them out a bit, so the gentle distressing was a must on this armoire. After I distressed and then sealed the piece, I decided to further highlight the decorative detail along the top of the armoire by using an antiquing technique on it. This technique adds an older, more timeworn look, which I thought would be really pretty against the white paint. But the problem is that it’s really easy to overdo the antiquing and make the piece you’re painting look dirty, so I wanted to share my method with you guys for antiquing a piece of furniture or decor to make it look authentic and not overdone!

How to Antique Furniture

Supplies:

paint
clear wax
dark wax
several brushes
lint-free cloth

Instructions:

Step one: Start by painting the piece in your desired color and allow it to dry completely. Then if desired, add distressing by lightly sanding off some of the paint where it would naturally wear over time, along the edges and corners.

Step two: Apply a coat of clear wax over the area you’d like to antique to seal the original color of the paint. Rub the wax with a clean cloth to smooth and buff away any excess wax. This is an important step because if you apply dark wax directly onto paint, it will stain the paint completely. This protects the original color and allows you to build darker finishes on top of the paint.

Step three: Apply another coat of clear wax where the dark wax will be applied. Immediately while the clear wax is still workable, apply a small amount of the dark wax, working it into any grooves, crevices, and corners. A little bit of dark wax goes a long way!

Step four: Before the dark wax dries, use a clean rag to wipe the dark wax as much or as little as you like. I prefer to clean most of the area, leaving the wax mostly around the edges and in the crevices. If some of the dark spots won’t come off with the rag, don’t worry. You can correct that in the next step.

Step five: If the dark wax is too dark in areas or you want to clean up certain spots, go back in with a brush (not the one you used with the dark wax) and some of the clear wax. As long as the dark wax hasn’t already dried, the clear wax should just brush away the dark spots. I did this step around the outside of the decorative piece to blend the line between the pure white paint finish and the antiqued areas.

Note: They key is working with the wax while it’s still wet so that you’re able to fine tune the finish to your liking. If you’re doing this to an entire piece of furniture, I would recommend working in smaller sections so the dark wax doesn’t dry before you have a chance to play with it.

I love the way this armoire turned out and how the antiquing really made that top piece stand out. Our entryway finally feels complete! For now anyway… you know me better than that haha!

If you have any questions on the antique technique, just let me know! I hope you’ll try this on a project soon because it really does add such interesting character to newer pieces of furniture and decor. Thanks for visiting today, sweet friends!

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The post Armoire Makeover + How to Antique Furniture appeared first on Love Grows Wild.