antiques Archives - Pretty Handy Girl

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The Best DIY Aging and Antiquing Techniques

Aging and Antiquing Finishes Roundup Social Media Image

Aging and Antiquing Technique Tutorials:

Do you love the idyllic vintage or rustic look? If your answer is yes, then this round up is for you! I’ve curated some awesome projects with full details for aging and antiquing techniques that every DIYer should know. Check them out!

This Rustic Wine Crate with Rope Handles looks great after a little staining and distressing.

Consider Painting a Brick Fireplace to Beautiful Brownstone rather than tearing out the brick you hate.

Learn many of the best techniques for Antiquing and Aging Furniture here.

Check out how you can update your home just by Repainting Dated Decor.

Learn my go to products and tips for achieving the Perfect Rustic Paint Technique.

Learn how to antique beautiful furniture using Asphaltum Glaze.

Check out this White-washed Window Box and see how to get this finish on your next project.

Refinish your furniture in no time using the help of a spray gun used here for Painting an Antique Washstand.

Find out how to get creative and make An Aged Painted Pail using something you can find in the school classroom.

This Shabby Chic Dresser is gorgeous, check out how Holly (a professional refinisher) achieves this finish.

Learn how to make new wood look old, weathered and rustic.

Learning how to Faux Zinc will open so many doors for you! Be creative!

Learn how to get a distressed finish with this Distressed Picket Fence Planter Basket tutorial.

This Chalk Painted, Stenciled and Distressed Dumpster Table gives you all the details on how to make an amazing table like this one!

This Rustic Red Pie Safe painted with Miss Mustard Seed Milk Paint is a great way to learn about using milk paint.

Don’t buy new, learn how she refinished old hardware to get these Rubbed Bronzing Cabinet Knobs.

A slightly different finish can make any item a statement piece, like this White-Washed Patriotic Flag Sign.

The gorgeous technique on this Painted Distressed Wood Panel could be used for a huge variety of projects.

See how they got this Rustic Wood King Headboard finish. Hint: it involves chains!

Change up your metal bins with some paint, like this Galvanized Tub Storage.

These Vintage Painted Oars have an amazingly realistic finish and look so great! You’ll never guess what they used to be!

Learn how to Create Faux Finished Weathered Wood Grain. Yup, that’s not real wood grain and it looks amazing!

Learn how to Age Galvanized Metal Quickly, sometimes aging just gives extra charm.

Check out how to accomplish this Unique Wine Rack Paint Finish, you’ll be glad you did.

With a little chalk paint and sand paper, you can make a gorgeous old sign from a footboard.

Find out how to Build Giant Vintage Chalkboard and finish it off tonight.

This Faux Copper and Patina finish is stunning, learn how to make it happen on any surface!

Get the Gray Restoration Hardware Stain Recipe. It’s so easy to get the same finish as that coveted store.

Learn how to Paint a Giant Mandala Deck Tattoo and turn something ordinary into something elegant.

Here are some tips and tricks (you don’t want to miss) for Aging and Antiquing Furniture Legs.

This Faux Aged Metal Pulley is just awesome. Find out how it was done.

Learn the technique for this Chalk Painted Wooden Stool, it will be handy for sure!

Make something amazing with this technique, like a Vintage Rustic Sleigh Ride Sign.

Thanks for stopping by. Do you have any techniques we didn’t cover here? Feel free to share your tips for aging and antiquing in the comments! Don’t forget to pin this image so you can find it again!

Like the vintage look? You’ll love this Vintage Map Lampshade project:

October 9, 2017/3 Comments/by Brittany Bailey

Rustic Metal Magnetic Window Frame | Pretty Handy Girl

I was really inspired by Laura Putnam’s new book: DIY Rustic Modern Metal Crafts. I love the look of aged galvanized metal and knew that our home needed more of it. Today I’ll share with you a tutorial to create your own Rustic Metal Magnetic Window Frame, inspired by Laura’s Vintage Window Memo Board. But, you’ll definitely want to get a copy of Laura’s book to learn how to make 34 more storage and decor items using galvanized metal!

Materials:
(contains affiliate links)

Old window
Galvanized Metal
Pencil
Ruler or Carpenter square
Tin snips
Flat head screwdriver
Staple gun with staples (1/2″ or longer)
Gloves
Safety glasses

Optional: Silicone Caulk (for more secure metal)

Instructions:

Ready to make your own Rustic Metal Magnetic Window Frame? If you have newer galvanized metal, you can easily add an aged patina to metal following this tutorial. Prepare ahead of time, because it might take up to 8 hours to get the look you want. The sheet you see below was left overnight in the solution to get a nice white patina.

Remove the glass panes from your old window.

Measure the size of each pane.

Transfer your measurements onto the galvanized metal sheet. Read more

December 7, 2015/8 Comments/by Brittany Bailey

accessories, Aged, antiques, autumn fall decor, Books as decor, decor, Decorating, Fall Leaves, Holiday decorating, Home Decor, Home Tour, mantles, tablescape, thrifting, vignettes

Fall Home Tour 2015

When I got back from my extended stay in Houston (after my sinus surgery), I was so anxious to decorate for fall. All those magazines I’d been perusing and all the beautiful Instagram photos had me craving some beautiful autumn decor. It took me a few days to get my energy back after I got home. In fact, I was still feeling a little worn out when I spotted this post on Facebook about a local multi-family yard sale that ran Monday – Saturday.

I thought it was a joke or a dream. But, something told me (more like fifty of my fans on Facebook) that I should get off the couch and high tail it to this sale. My sweet friend Candace from Rusted Roots Blog was easily persuaded to meet me there, so I wouldn’t be the only fool who fell for a yard sale mid-week.

We both filled our cars with some great finds! I got home and quickly put together a little pumpkin and rustic relics display by our side door.

Aging and Antiquing Furniture Legs

Aging and Antiquing Furniture | Pretty Handy Girl

Aging and antiquing furniture legs is an easy task if you want to fake age on a table or chairs. With some stain, paint and glaze you can fool most people into believing that your new furniture is an antique.

There are many ways to age and antique furniture. This tutorial will show you my favorite technique for table and chair legs.

If you’re just stumbling upon this post, I shared the tutorial for building a table last week. The table legs I used are the rope twist legs from Osborne Wood Products. I worked with Osborne Wood Products and custom designed the legs, so you won’t find them anywhere else. I do think they should have named them the “Brittany” legs or “Pretty Handy Legs.” LOL. I’m just excited that they provided me with a set for my table at no charge. 😉

This tutorial works best with unfinished wood, but you can skip the staining step if you have pre-finished furniture.

Materials:

(I’ve included affiliate links for your convenience. I earn a small percentage from a purchase using these links. There is no additional cost to you. You can read more about affiliate links here.)

Furniture
Minwax Early American Wood Stain
White Chalky Paint (I used Farmhouse Paint)
Miss Mustard Seed Milk Paint (Linen)
Modern Masters Tintable Glaze
Modern Masters Van Dyke Brown
Modern Masters Coffee Bean
Rag
Paintbrush
Sander
Sanding discs
Miss Mustard Seed’s Furniture Wax

Instructions:

Stain your furniture leg with the dark stain. Follow up with a second coat if you desire. Allow the stain to dry.

Paint the legs with white chalky paint. Add a second coat if you need more coverage.

Mix up the Miss Mustard Seed Milk Linen colored paint and brush on a layer of milk paint on top of the white paint. (For more variety, you could use a contrasting color instead of linen.) Read more

April 29, 2015/7 Comments/by Brittany Bailey

Build Your Own Giant Chalkboard | Pretty Handy Girl

Have you scoured antique stores or Craig’s List looking for a big giant vintage chalkboard? Those vintage school green chalkboards are highly sought after. But, hard to find. I have good news for you! You can build a Giant Chalkboard any size you want! (Although, typically you’ll be restricted to 4′ x 8′ if you want to use a sheet of masonite.) And you can mix your own chalkboard paint in any color.

Take out your notebooks, your pencils, and get ready to take notes.

Materials:

Masonite sheet cut to desired size (mine is 22″ x 48″)
1×4″ pine boards for frame
1 cup flat latex paint in color you desire
2 tbsp. of unsanded grout
Pencil
Stain
White paint
Paint brush
Sanding block
Container to mix paint in
Kreg Jig
Drill
1 1/4 inch pocket screws
Staplegun
1/2″ staples

Instructions:

Pour 2 tbsp. of unsanded grout into your empty container. Add 1 cup of flat latex paint and stir well. (Yes, I used satin and it still worked.)

Paint the masonite with the chalkboard paint. Pull your brush in one direction. Then smooth out the paint by dragging the brush in a perpendicular direction.

Let the paint dry. Lightly sand and add a second coat of chalkboard paint.

Let that coat dry and sand smooth.

Assembling the chalkboard frame: Read more

November 24, 2014/21 Comments/by Brittany Bailey