Painting French Provincial Furniture

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French Provincial Painted Furniture- Thistle by Design Facebook

Not surprisingly to its fans, the French provincial-style furniture has become very popular of late, possibly as a reaction to the aggressively modern style that has dominated previously. Interior designer Bernadette Ferrari says she believes it will continue to be a popular trend as it combines elegance with functionality, according to FerrariInteriors.com.au.

This style of furniture is beautiful to look at without having to change anything at all, but it can become dingy over time, due to its inherent natural appearance. The French are well-known for their proclivity to paint furniture. Most often, this style uses white paint, which provides a fresh new look for outdated furniture, although other colors can be used. Painting is a great way to transform a piece of old furniture into something new with minimal expense.

You can add even more interest to almost any piece by using mouldings, painting details in another color, or adding gilt on the trims, as LilyFieldLife.com suggests.

While you could pay someone to paint your furniture for you, it’s a lot more fun to do it yourself. Save your money, and find a contractor to help in other aspects of a total room or home interior makeover.

Enjoy the opportunity to get creative by following these steps (with help from LilyFieldLife.com) toward painting your own French provincial-style furniture.

Cleaning

Before you begin, cover your work area with old white sheets or newspapers. Even the most meticulous painters make mistakes now and again. Next, clean the item you want to paint by wiping it down with a dusting brush or a moist cloth. Remove all of the dust, as painting over dust doesn’t mend well. As most French provincial style furniture is made of wood, you shouldn’t get it too wet, as this will cause the fibers of the wood to swell.

Unless you want to paint the hardware, removing it will make painting easier.

Sanding

If you find any cracks or holes in the piece while cleaning, use wood filler to fill them, and then sand to a smooth surface. Next, you should sand the piece all over very lightly. Be gentle, and remember– this type of furniture can be quite delicate. If it’s in generally good condition, you don’t need to completely remove the old finish. Rough it up just slightly to give the paint something to adhere to, and sand in the direction of the wood grain in order to avoid any noticeable swirl marks.

As many pieces of French provincial furniture have melamine tops, you can also sand this with a relatively fine sander, and apply a coat of flat white oil paint. As it is quite durable and has a flat sheen, this acts as a primer, according to Natty By Design.

Priming

You’ll need to prime the entire piece. This is especially important with old wooden furniture, as it can bleed through the paint. If this occurs, use two coats of primer and that will usually correct the issue. If you decide to go with a darker color, use a tinted primer.

Painting

Painting the piece can be accomplished using a spray, brush or a roller. A good quality paint brush generally creates the best look. Turn the item upside down, and paint hard-to-reach areas first, keeping an eye out for any drips or runs. These can be corrected by feathering your paint brush across them before they dry. They can be avoided by not putting too much paint on your brush.

You’ll need at least two coats of paint. Wait at least one day in-between them, or longer if possible. It needs to dry completely before painting the next coat. If you live in a humid location, it may take longer to dry.

Protection

A top coat should also be applied, especially if you’ve used acrylic paint. Polyurethane, sealers or furniture wax will work, although oil-based poly or sealer should not be used over white paint, as it will cause it to well.

Finally, you’ll need to wait at least three days, and preferably five, before placing any objects on your beautiful and newly painted piece of furniture in order to avoid scuffing.

Guest Post By George Iverson- George manages his own interior design company and website about home building and decorating.

 

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Linen- Decorating Ideas For Your French Provincial Home

Suzanne Kasler Southern Accents Magazine

Suzanne Kasler -Photo Credit Trouvais

Linen is still the most desired fabric for decorators and interior designers alike. Linen is elegant, durable, and simply luxurious. Linen is the strongest of the vegetable fibers and has 2 to 3 times the strength of cotton.

Linen is from raw flax, a bast fiber taken from the stalk of the plant. Linen is one of the oldest textile fibers known to man.

Over 4000 years ago, it was woven in Egypt and used to wrap royal mummies.Not only is the linen fiber strong, it is smooth, making the finished fabric lint free. It also does wrinkle easily but also presses easily.

Linen, like cotton, can also be boiled without damaging the fiber. From creamy white to light tan, linen can be easily dyed and the color does not fade when washed.

Linen also happens to be highly absorbent and a good conductor of heat, but also has the qualities of keeping cool making it an ideal fabric for summer garments.

-Linen is also prone to mildew in extreme conditions. Don’t make the same mistake that I did and hang drapes in a solarium’s that collects water on the windows, because overtime your drapes will collect mold. Linen on the other hand does well in light conditions compared to all other fabrics due to its inherent resistance to UV damage. – Linen easily creases and wrinkles, and tends to hold the wrinkles, so if you don’t mind that, it could be lovely for slipcovers. Linen has very little stretch, so be prepared to make your slipcovers a little extra large, as linen will shrink a little. Never put linen in a hot dryer. High heat causes the linen fibers to shrink and break. Consider letting your linen slipcovers dry on a table or on Air dry or tumble.

-Linen should be ironed with a good quality steam iron while it is damp, if you choose to iron at all. The more often linen is worn and washed, the softer it will become. However, if you are looking for a crisp appearance, ironing is a must. Use a steam iron and sprinkle on additional water if necessary to get a smooth finish. Press linen on the wrong side to prevent shiny spots. Use spray-on starch to get a crisp appearance. -Of all the areas where you could use linen, the fabric looks best with drapery, because it doesn’t need to be washed as often, which also limits the lengthy pressing sessions.

Consider linen for your drapes. The material looks elegant, rich, yet very natural in appearance, making it a must have for Provence interiors.

 

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