Sunday, February 5, 2012

Sticky, Icky, Ewww!

Have you ever worked on a project and in the midst declared to yourself "this is the first...and the last time I'll ever do this"? Well, my latest project has me declaring this ; and rather loudly I might say. After perusing blogs one morning I came across a dresser done by Kristy over at  4theloveofwood.blogspot.com/ that I fell in love with. It was turquoise and white, but what I liked about it most was the curvy detail she added to the front. No problem, I can do this...or so I thought.


Here is the little beauty  that I started with. She was in pretty rough shape. Although the CL seller didn't declare it, I am pretty sure she had taken a dive out of a moving vehicle at some time during her life. You may not be able to tell from my picture but she had some serious road rash on one side and was completely missing one of her corners which I had to re-invent with some JB Weld. None the less, she had good lines and for $20 I was going to make her work.
 


I decided that I would find a fabric pattern that I liked..ala Pinterest, copy it, enlarge it, transfer it to some clear contact paper, cut it out and oi la; my own custom stencil that I could stick to the drawers, paint over and remove. Piece of cake right? After all, I've done virtually the same thing with rub on decals and had great results. So, here's where my lesson in reality began.


I began by sanding and priming as I always do. I had chosen a color combo of aqua blue for the resist or pattern design and dove grey for the base and overcoat. I spent a good long time cutting my stencil out and applied it ever so carefully to my four dresser drawers peeling off the backing as I went and cutting between the drawers once I was sure the pattern lined up. I carefully burnished the edges so that none of the gray paint would bleed under the contact paper.


Now it was time to apply two coats of the gray top coat right over the top of my transfer paper. Sorry you can't see it too well, but you can get the general idea. Here is where I actually stood around and watched the paint dry with anticipation...I couldn't wait to peel off the contact paper to reveal my beautiful design. By all appearances it didn't let me down, nice crisp lines with only a few touch ups needed.


I grabbed my tiny artist brush and sat down on the kitchen floor ready to finish up the beautiful transformation. I was wearing a purple sweater and when I lifted my arm from the drawer to work on another area there was purple fuzz everywhere! I tried to brush it away but nope...it wasn't budging. Further investigation lead to the discovery that it was sticky everywhere the contact paper had been, my whole new beautiful aqua design. Now what? I broke out my "go to" product Goo Gone and started wiping with a kitchen towel...nope not coming off. Eventually with much determination, I discovered that a green kitchen scrubber pad used gently with the Goo Gone followed by a dry towel would do the trick.



So, the long and the short of it is this. I have now discovered the hard way that there must be a better way to do this. Contact paper has many great uses, but I'm not so sure this is one of them. I am proud however that I saw this tiny photo on Pinterest, and turned it into this. Let's just keep all that happened in between there a secret between you and me. Okay?






Linking up with these lovely ladies:

                                                                                                                                                                            
                                                                                     
                                                                   
vif187                                                                  
             
                                                

20 comments:

Debbiedoos said...

Well it did turn out beautiful when all was said and done. Thanks for sharing with the newbie party.

Holly @ Bella Nest said...

Wow! This is beautiful! Your hard work really paid off. =)

samaa said...

This is sooo gorgeous!!! I love the pattern you chose, it seriously looks amazing :) I've had my fair share of projects gone wrong (I've got one sitting on my coffee table at the moment that I'm avoiding :), but it just goes to show if you stick it out it can still turn out beautifully!

Linda Carole Bloom said...

OMG I have sure been through stuff like this when one thing leads to another and another. It turned out really well though, so pretty!
I wanted to let you know that I am having my first giveaway - a fancy apron - to celebrate my publication in apronology mag!
http://houseofbeautifuldogs.blogspot.com/2012/02/fancy-apron-giveaway.html
Have a great week, Linda

Kammy's Korner said...

well shoot, the contact paper was a great idea! Thanks for the warning though! But it sure turned out AWESOME!!!! I actually saw this the other day and thought oh pleeeease link this up on Tuesday, Carrie!!! :) So thanks so much. It's GORGEOUS (sorry you had to go through so much work to get it that way!!)

Ann said...

Oh, what a story! We've all had "sticky" projects in one way or another and, in the moment, it's hard to know whether to laugh, cry or scream. I usually scream. But, your dresser is absolutely gorgeous. I love the design you chose and I know you'll enjoy it for a long time to come.

Kim @ Savvy Southern Style said...

Well, it sure turned out well in the end. Thanks for sharing at Wow.

Patti @ Pandoras Box said...

Very cool pattern! Nice save on the bureau!

Full Circle Creations said...

I think it turned out gorgeous despite the sticky problem.

Bonnie ~ a wee Meenit said...

Carrie,
I am amazed it looks so good from your description! I love it, VERY creative!
Thanks for linking up to my Wait a wee Meenit party!

Gwen @ The Bold Abode said...

It's gorgeous, Carrie! I LOVE the stencil.

Anonymous said...

You did so good! This piece turned out so beautifully.
Be a sweetie,
Shelia ;)

6th Grade said...

hard lesson learned but thanks for sharing 'cuz i've been eyeing my contact paper roll and swirling some ideas in my head!

the piece looks beautiful....and i pinned it, too!

Sharon said...

Well...sounds like it was a big pain in the hiney...but kind of like child birth...just look at the end result! It's beautiful! I'm your newest follower. Stop by for a visit sometime! If you like what you see maybe you will follow along too!
Sharon

Unknown said...

Your dresser is special and has been featured here:
http://www.decoratinginsanity.com/2012/02/weekend-features-4.html
xo....mONICa

Meg said...

Your dresser turned out so great!! I love it! I would love if you would link up to mu little party: http://www.nutmegplace.com/2012/02/show-off-saturday-1.html

Hope to see you there!

Katie said...

I love this dresser! You chose the perfect colors and I love the stencil! I featured you today!

http://craptastickatie.blogspot.com/2012/02/five-feature-friday-25.html

Cassie Bustamante said...

that is gorgeous! love the design and the colors!

Debbi said...

another score Carrie!!

Bonnie ~ a wee Meenit said...

I featured this today Carrie!! Great job, come grab a button!