Hi my name is Denise Hardy and I love everything in connection with the home i.e. Interior Design, Hand Painting Furniture, Decorative Painting Techniques and Art.
I live in Alicante, Spain with my husband in a beautiful villa which we both love and work hard on making it our home. I have been established in creating beautiful homes since 1998 and never get tired of doing what I do.
I nearly forgot to take a photo of this piece of furniture, therefore you will see that I had already started to put its first coat of primer on! The finished piece is in my own French Antique Style - You will see the 'Recipe' below
Handpainted Furniture, Kitchens and Bedrooms to commission on customer's own furniture or I will try to source an item of furniture on your behalf
So...... whether you require your kitchen units or bedroom wardrobes updating or even small tables, dressers, chairs - anything at all - large or small - your furniture can be 'French Antiqued', 'Distressed', 'Faux Marbled', 'Ragged', 'Dragged' or whatever you desire. - I can meet your personal requirements. Also, if you just want your furniture plain in either white, cream or a colour of your choice - I can do that too.
I can breathe new life into your kitchen, bedroom or any furniure, transforming the look and feel for a fraction of the price of replacing them.
PLEASE NOTE: All Finishes are Handpainted NOT sprayed. I use high spec primers, basecoats and top quality paints in all my work, and can help you choose the best colours for your furniture, kitchen or bedroom. Please see some of my examples further down the page.
These Painting Techniques can not only be applied to furniture, kitchens and bedrooms, but also to walls throughout your home. Using my 15 years of experience I can advise you which styles and finishes will work best together, for truly amazing results.
I
lovingly restore each piece to it's original high standard of
design and architecture, so as to ensure that it will last for many
more years to come, and that all aspects of the piece of work
is exactly as the designer intended in the style that suits you and
your home decor.
I
will clean, prepare and prime the piece or pieces before having a
new finish applied.
Antique
and distressed effects or faux finishes i.e. marbling etc are then
carried out before finally being protected with varnish or
wax. Each piece will be highly individual and classic in
style.
The
French Antique Style furniture is painted to give a high quality
Antique Cream Finish and Waxed. The quality is outstanding and
prices are very competitive.
The
beauty of having your furniture, bedroom or kitchen painted
is that there are so many different finishes that can be applied to
achieve the exact style and finish that you want and allows you to
harmonise all the different aspects of a room, bringing all your
interior 'together ' by choosing the exact colour/s
required.
Contact
me today for a FREE CONSULTATION & FREE
ESTIMATE. With no hidden charges and I would be delighted
to put life
back into the furniture you love.
If you would like details of having something especially commissioned, then please contact me at:
denise@decorativeideas.co.uk to discuss your requirements.
EXAMPLES OF FURNITURE WHICH HAVE HAD DIFFERENT 'FINISHES' APPLIED
The Dresser above started off in Pine. I transformed it in a 'Recipe' which I call my own French Antique Style.
My Recipe:- two to 3 coats of Primer - I use Zinsser 123 BIN or Zinsser Stain Block. I then apply Dulux Eggshell in Magnolia and then a coat of Dark Wax applied with a soft cloth and then rub most of it off - you are basically rubbing it into the paint and then taking it off and then you buff it up into a nice soft sheen.
This French Style Table above started off in Mahogony and you can see what mess it was before I started work on it. I gave this table a 'Faux Marble' effect. First starting off with my Primer, and my Eggshell in Magnolia. I then mix approximately 3 different coloured glazes and using a sponge and feathers and my finger tips to achieve the faux marble look.
The mahogany nest of tables above were finished in French Antique Style, but with the added effect of 2 different stencils. They all had the bow on the top and the smallest one also had a small flower added to the front. I also added glass to the top of them for added protection. Have you got an old nest of tables like these and would like to give them a 'spice of life?' Then, please feel free to contact me.
The Hall Table above was originally in Pine and the customer wanted it in this yellow with a Faux Marble effect. Then, about a couple of years later, the customer moved to a different house and asked if I could re-paint it, still in my Faux Marble effect but a different colour to co-ordinate with her new interior. I also took a 'close-up' photo of this so you can see more clearly the faux marble effect.
I must apologise for not actually taking the before on this table above, but sometimes you get that excited that you forget to take 'before' shots. I didn't realise until I was putting the primer on - hence it already has 2 coats of primer. The next coat of paint was Dulux Eggshell in White. Then I applied my Faux Marble effect by mixing 4 glazes in different colours and applied it using a sponge and my fingers and a piece of rag. Please note that if you ever try to do a Faux Marble effect the best sponges to use are 'Sea' sponges.
As you can see this Antique washstand started off in Mahogany and the customer wanted a cleaner, lighter and more modern finish. She chose my French Antique Style.
This Welsh Dresser was painted at a time that I forgot to do the 'Before' shot, but it started it's journey in Pine. First of all I primed this using two coats of Zinsser Stain Block and then used one coat of Dulux Eggshell in Pale Lemon. The customer wanted a Country Look and asked me if I could place some stencils on it for the finished look. I think it looks quite cute with the cockerells placed on the doors.
The
Chest of Drawers was also at a time that I forgot to do the
'Before' shot. I used two coats of Zinsser Stain Block and
then one coat of Dulux Eggshell in white and then put a pretty
floral Stencil on it. You will perhaps note that I used two
stencils on it, a large and a small
one.
The above French Antique Style Bedroom Set was painted in French Antique Style - you can see above how I creat my own French Antique Style
These nest of tables were painted in my Faux Marble effect. I start off with two coats of Zinsser primer in white. The next coat of paint was Dulux Eggshell in White. Then I applied my Faux Marble effect by mixing 4 glazes in different colours and applied it using a sponge and my fingers and a piece of rag and the end of a small artists brush. Please note that if you ever try to do a Faux Marble effect the best sponges to use are 'Sea' sponges.
This wardrobe was originally in Pine - although apologies for not taking the 'Before' shot, but sometimes all you want to do is to get started painting and tend to forget to take the 'Befores'. Although, the picture on the left hand side has already had two coats of primer. And finished with my own French Antique Style - you will find details above on some of the other furniture I have re-vamped.
I painted these units for my Daughter as her kitchen in her apartment was too small to enable her to put them all into a cupboard. I first painted two coats of primer in pale pink and two coats of Dulux Eggshell in Red Gloss. Then I purchased four glass knobs to replace the wooden ones. I think you might agree what a huge difference this makes to the kitchen. It is a very bold colour to use, but I love it - hope you agree?
The Hall Table above was painted by me a few years ago. The owner moved house and asked me if I could give it another 're-vamp' to the colour below. The first time the table had 2 coats of Zinsser primer and one coat of Dulux Eggshell and then I stencilled a small flower on the two drawers and on the top.
The second time - after giving it a good sanding, I gave it two coats of Zinsser Primer again to make sure I could cover the stencils up and then I used Annie Sloans Aubusson Blue. I used gold paint just for the edging of the drawers and then placed a few small flower stencils.
This was the first time I had ever used Annie Sloan's Chalk paint. I have used it a lot more lately, but still need to post them on my website. If you read my 'Home' page before seeing these pictures, I have commented that I am in the middle of 're-vamping' my site. So... keep coming back to see lots of other 're-vamping'.
These next few pictures are of an attic and I was asked by my Client to give it a 'Face Lift'. I decided to use my French Antique Style to make the space look larger and brighter. Therefore all the shelving and dressing table areas were given the Paint Effect and the rest of the wood was given a fresh coat of wax. I am sure you will agree it looks a lot brighter now than before.
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