Estuary Designs

Debut: China Cabinet Transformation

By Meagan Tucker on April 2, 2013 in Furniture Makeover

Lighter stain colors can date a piece of furniture… quickly. Don’t you think?

Beware! Full scale admission coming… My eyes used to just shoot past those pieces that had a lighter stain color. Can you believe that I wouldn’t even look twice at the bones or shape of a piece if it was the wrong color stain. Silly me! Thankfully, that was years ago. Whew! Glad I got that off my chest. Anyone else out there willing to admit they used to do that too?

This china cabinet was a victim of such snobbery. During a visit to a local consignment shop this piece caught my eye as soon as I walked in the door and I almost bought it. I didn’t because I couldn’t load or store it at the time. It was priced really well too. I literally had to drag myself out of the parking lot in order to leave it behind. Then a month or two later a client called me and told me she was looking for a sturdy storage and display piece for her salon. Immediately the china cabinet came to mind, but I was certain someone else scooped it up. So I didn’t mention it to her. A quick phone call later and and I discovered that it was still there. What!!!! Lucky us!

Here is a before picture, well, I had already taken the glass doors off and such…

The lines, shape and functionality of the piece are great. The only thing holding this baby back is the color. Would you have left this china cabinet behind because of it’s lighter stain? No worries, my client was looking for a piece with a darker stain too. So instead of painting this china cabinet…I stained it.

Now it’s a nice deep espresso color. Can you believe it’s the same china cabinet? I almost can’t believe it. It looks like a brand spanking new piece of furniture!

Here is a side by side photo comparison and a few detail pictures.

xoxo

Meg

Debut: A glossy black desk

By Meagan Tucker on March 28, 2013 in Furniture Makeover

The desk makeover you are about to see is a custom order. This furniture makeover hit’s the mark for the Hollywood Regency style.

Talking about design styles…Do you find yourself liking a million different styles? I do!!! I narrowed down my personal style with help from Fieldstone Hill’s blog series titled Overcome Decorating Paralysis and I will share my personal style in another post. I was confused, because I truly like and appreciate almost every decorating style. You should check out the series if Pinterest makes you feel like you have design ADD. Anyhow… back to the furniture makeover… here is the before picture of the Drexel desk.

The desk was on the shabby side. Not shabby chic. Just shabby. The back side had jagged buckled veneer that needed to be removed. It took some time, because I tried a couple different techniques. The most efficient veneer removing technique for this desk was the old standby of a chisel and hard work. Ok. Now. Think classic, luxurious, glamorous and glossy elements…. and you have Hollywood Regency style with a lovely touch of distressing.

Pretty gorgeous! Don’t ya think?

Glossy goodness!

Chippy goodness! You might not realize it but the finish is as smooth as butter! In my opinion the Hollywood Regency style includes the glam and the distressed. The chippiness adds character and reminds us that the desk has a history. I keep calling it a desk because that is how it will be used, but I believe it’s actually a dressing table. It’s a stunner, whichever role it plays from here on out. The second piece in this furniture makeover will be debuted next week… Stay tuned …

How you would use such a versatile piece in your home?

Linking up at Miss Mustard Seed’s Furniture Feature Friday and Liz Marie Blog

xoxo

Meg

Family trip to Elephant Rock

By Meagan Tucker on March 22, 2013 in Family

A couple weeks back my family woke up and got ready for church. It was a typical morning with the usual banter over who would get the first shower, locating specific shoes, who was going to let the dog out…etc.

As it came time to hop in the car, we noticed our son was hesitating. He seemed…out of sorts. So we asked him what was wrong. He turned to me and asked, “Mom, do we have to go to church today?” I said no, and then quietly asked, “How come?” He responded with, “I need a break.” My heart sank. I thought to myself, “Oh, my! What in the world is going on?!!!!” He explained and we decided a quick and easy family getaway was needed. So we headed to Elephant Rock for the day. You can read all about Elephant Rock from the link, but here are some pictures of our trip.

“E” taking off with his trusty staff.

Father and son.

Pretty Elephant Rock lichen.

These are the “I gave my mom a heart attack pictures and when I survived she made me do it again, so she could take some silly pictures!”

We tamed the wild beast.

We had a great time, talking, hiking, eating junk food in the car and just relaxing. It was good to get away. At the end of day we had talked through what was bothering him and he felt much better. What I learned that day- Even children need a break from helping out at church; an inexpensive getaway can soothe the soul and means the most to kids; and always carry a staff. Why? A couple hours drive north can mean snow and ice on the trail.

Meg