How to Paint Furniture to look Bleached out and House Update

Happy Friday!!  I have a tutorial and a house update for you today!  First, there’s been a lot of progress on the house we are building but not the fun kind of progress.

The past few weeks have been filled with electric wiring and plumbing which is very important but not very exciting.  The most fun progress we’ve seen in the past few weeks is the addition of Hardie plank on the home’s exterior.

It will be painted white and I’m hoping when it’s all done the home (and porch) will look similar to this inspiration picture.

Source: Unknown (please let me know if you know)

I’ve been busy researching and deciding on some of the home’s finishes.  One thing I’m currently debating (and need to decide by the end of next week) is whether to do hardwood flooring that is finished onsite or whether to have pre-finished hardwood installed.

To me the benefits of doing onsite are that it feels more custom and part of the home.   The cons is that they would be installing 2 1/4″ wide wood pieces which is more narrow than I would like.  Also I worry about the consistency in color throughout the whole house with the onsite staining.

via Southern Hospitality

The pros to the pre-finished are that they are supposedly more durable since the stain and finish is done in a factory.  Also I would be able to get a 5″ or so width and I feel like the color is more predictable and consistent.

via J B Murray Architect

Do you have any other thoughts on onsite hardwood versus pre-finished?

I am wanting to do a runner on our stairs and have thought about doing one of these neutral plaids.

We will have a bonus room upstairs and I’m thinking about doing one of these blue or gray herringbone patterns as wall to wall carpet in that room.

These are some of the new home decisions that have been on my mind.  Today they started insulation and after that comes drywall!  Seeing the home with walls will be a big step!!

A few posts ago I mentioned that World Market had their outdoor furniture on clearance for 75%-80% off.  I happened to snag this outdoor loveseat during the clearance.

I also purchased these two outdoor lounge chairs which were such a good deal (don’t worry I didn’t buy any of the mix matched cushions on top of them).

Did the fact that one of the lounge chairs was gray and one was wood tone dissuade me?  Maybe for second, but then I devised a plan to paint them!

I decided to try and paint them to match the bleached out wood look of the outdoor love seat I  bought.

I’m happy to report that it worked!:-)

Using Behr’s waterproof solid stain in the color Sandal I painted both lounge chairs.

Once that was dry I mixed just a little bit of white paint I had on hand with about a cup of water (about 1 part paint to 5 parts water).

I then brushed on the watered down paint mixture and then wiped it away.  I made this video so you can see how it’s done in action!

Now to find matching cushions!:-)

I hope you have great Labor Day weekend!!:-)

Til next time ?,

p.s.  For my local readers don’t forget the Parade of Homes starts tomorrow and runs through the 16th!  I have notified this year’s free ticket winners.  Thanks to all who entered!!