Wednesday, September 16, 2009

Back to Toile!




I know everyone thinks that they have the best readers, but I know that I really have the very nicest ones. Thank you to everyone who stopped by Rhoda's blog for my guest post yesterday! I thought you would all be surprised by my family room! I'm a cottage girl at heart and I love my toile. So back to the toile for today.


I wanted to share a little makeover that I did on my chair that I moved from the living room into the Blue Toile Room/my office. If you want to enlarge the pictures, just click on them.



This chair was a thriftstore find from a few years ago that I painted and recovered. It was in my living room and I LOVED it there. But I found some $7 Frenchy looking chairs last year at Goodwill and I moved this chair into my office to use at my desk.



I don't want every piece of furniture white in that room. I still have a bookcase and my desk to paint. I thought a soft gray might be nice. So I tried these two colors - Reflecting Pool & Light French Gray.





Did you know Home Depot now has sample pots? You don't have to buy the quarts anymore - yippee! My garage was looking like a paint store with all the quarts I've used to test colors in the past few years. The only drawback is that right now they are only offering them in flat. They're under $3!!! (BTW those are all the pumpkins I've harvested so far - they haven't done well...too much rain I think)





I decided on Reflecting Pool. It's a very subtle color change. The French Gray would have been much grayer. Since I had painted this chair in a flat white paint I used the sample pot to repaint it. Usually I use satin not flat or gloss to paint furniture. It took two coats and I still have paint left over! I also changed out the material on the seat. I had a bit of this toile left over from my bulletin board I made.



As you can see I just covered the old seat without taking off the other cover. You've gotta get yourself an electric staple gun if you don't have one! It makes jobs like this soooooo much easier!



You're probably saying "But Manuela it still looks white!" It really does look different than the white furniture in that room even though the difference is subtle. I like to use different shades of white to keep my rooms looking too matchy and sterile. Heirloom White is a lovely color but there are so many other colors out there!




I think the bookcase I have to paint in that room would look good in the Light French Gray!



Thanks so much for dropping by!



41 comments:

Rhonda said...

Hi Manuela
I was very surprised with yesterday's room - it's very nice but not was I was expecting.

Your homegrown pumpkins are so cute!

and I decorated our mantel for fall today and used one of your ideas - I painted a frame green for the the center and love it. I'll blog about it later. Thanks for the great idea.

Kim @ Starshine Chic said...

I love the chair makeover. Looks fabulous for not much money. I love the toile.

Stacey said...

I was surprised by yesterdays room but proud of you! We need to make spaces that everyone in the family loves. My husband has said before that there is very little evidence that he lives here. Hmmm...sorry I just can't do deer heads.

Your chair is beautiful with that new toile. That's a gorgeous fabric. Love the little sheep.

Cindy (Applestone Cottage) said...

I'm a big toile lover and this is fabulous! What a great job you did and such an inspiration too! Cindy

Sandra said...

Hi Manuela. I love your chair! You have given me an idea on what to do with an antique chair I have in my bedroom. :) Where did you find such a pretty fabric?
Blessings,
Sandra

Kathy @ Creative Home Expressions said...

I went back and read about your Romantic Blue Toile Guest Bedroom. Lovely! I have a blue and yellow one; I made lined drapes out of a blue and yellow Country Life toile. I just ordered lighting for that room today and I can't wait for it to come so I can share the pictures of that room.

Love the toile you put on that chair. While I like the toiles we are all used to seeing, sometimes I come across the patterns that have more color in them and they are just beautiful.

GlorV1 said...

Manuela, be careful with that staple gun. I almost did my finger in once and another time I held it up and accidentally almost hit my husband. Ayeeeeee. Take care.

Debbie J said...

Toile has really grown on me! I love the chair.

Did you see my Toile Christmas Stocking? Its on my blog's sidebar. Never thought I'd make a toile Christmas stocking.

Darlene said...

Your chair looks beautiful. I LOVE that toile pattern...it is gorgeous!! Your little pumpkins are so cute....too bad you haven't gotten very many.

If they were growing here I think they might have drowned by now....lol. Since last Friday we have only had 1 day with no rain or at least just a small amount of rain. Today it has rained ALL DAY long!

Terri Steffes said...

I love your toile. Sigh. I wish I had more. I am going to have to do something like that in my guest room. Right now I have a twin bed in it but I think I will get a double and see what happens.

I was pleasantly surprised with your room you featured at Rhoda's. I think you do modern as well as you do romantic. My husband is like yours... he likes a cleaner look but unfortunately, he's married to ME and not YOU so he gets what I like!

Have a good day!

Unknown said...

Very beautiful fabric for the chair makeover. I love it.
Hugs
Charo

Melissa Miller said...

Very pretty toile chair! Love the paint colors too. It looks similiar to our "Misty" grey master bedroom paint by MStewart.

Thank you very much for inspiring me just now! I have been so scared and now I feel such hope. I'm so grateful to you and all of my blog friends for being so supportive.
I was so embarrassed to post it.

Have a great evening. ~Melissa :)

PS Your family room is my favorite colors. RED and Yellow. LOVED it!
Even if you paint it soon... :)

Glenda/MidSouth said...

Love the chair redo - but then it was pretty before also. Thanks for the heads-up on the smaller cans of paint at HD.

Deanna Rabe - Creekside Cottage Blog said...

The family room was great - and you are such a wise woman to give your husband something for him!

The chair makeover is great too! Just looking at the photo I can't tell the color difference but I am sure in person and seeing it compared with the other whites in the room, I would be able to tell. I have a hard time find toile. I especially love your red!

Andrea @ Big Creek Cottage said...

Manuela....ahhhhhhh....toile...
makes me smile! I am thinking of cutting out the "inside" of a couple of my kitchen cabinet doors and stapling toile....what do you think? PS..the pumpkins are perfect!

Little Penpen said...

The chair is beautiful... I'm heading over to read your guest post now!

matty said...

Manuela,

You clever lady! Who would have thought SAMPLE pots! I suddenly see a whole lot of painting at my house! I always learn something from you! Thanks!

Kathleen Grace said...

I really love that toile pattern, it is not the usual that I see everywhere. Have you thought of buying a can of spray, satin poly to give the paint job the cleanable sheen you can't get with flat paint?

Ally's Corner said...

Oh so pretty!!!.

Ally

Rhondi said...

That chair is the exact same one that my parents had when I was very young. I think they bought it as newlyweds in 1945. It originally had a mahogany stain.
I like the color you chose.

Anonymous said...

I really love Toile...and the chair is really pretty! I like that you have an unexpected looking room to spice things up a bit in your home :-)

southerninspiration said...

That is bound to be the prettiest toile I've ever seen...I LOVE it!
The chair looks fabulous!

Suzanne

Tanya said...

The colors in that toile are just perfect. I've been getting into some gray lately too. It's such a pretty neutral if you get the right one. My DIL and son just painted most of their walls gray and it looks great. Love your pumpkins. I didn't even get any planted this year!

Barb said...

Manuela, love the toile and the pumpkins....oh how cute they are. Your decorating is great!

Barb :-)

Angie said...

Beautiful! Love that fabric!

Tracy Watier said...

Very pretty! I took a longer look around your blog tonite and I really love your colorful, cozy style. Thanks for visiting me too! I'll be back!

Unknown said...

great job but it dies still look white. lol.

Anonymous said...

That's one of the prettiest toiles that I've ever seen. I could see framing it in a little gilt frame.

Jane

santamaker said...

Love the chair! That toile is so beautiful...gorgeous results.

Sharon said...

Good Morning Manuela!

I love the Toile fabric you chose and the paint color is perfect!

Your pumpkins are adorable! Sorry to hear that yur harvest wasn't too good. My Cinderella Pumpkins (which flourished last year) are only about the size of a soft ball. This year has been quite strange.

Thanks for the tip on the paint samples. That is great to know. Have a blessed day Manuela!

Love,
Sharon

Rechelle ~Walnuthaven Cottage~ said...

Very nice!
I liked your family room too. Very different then what I've come to expect from you, but fab just the same :0). I have to keep hubbs away or else he may get some ideas that "he" needs a room, lol!

Julie said...

It looks like a different chair! I love the fabric, very pretty.

What cute little pumpkins! Don't you just love Fall?

Richella Parham said...

This looks beautiful, Manuela--but that's what we expect from you!

I loved the sneak peek of your "different" room. Can't wait to see more.

I posted today about a project that was inspired by you!

Take care,
Richella

Anonymous said...

Another beautiful creation! Please tell me you are a interior designer by profession...awesome!

paintergal said...

Mmm, I love the color of that toile on the chair. It's very vintagey.

Linda's Blue Gate said...

I loved yesterday's room..... classy Manuela.... all the way.
But I ADORE that toile....... it is fun to use different shades. I made I Yard Conservatory the is yellow and black trim. I had the Spode dish that was the inspiration.
LOve how the chair turned out.
HUgs
Linda

Lady Katherine said...

Love your pumpkins! Hubby only growing large ones! I got to go buy some and save the seeds. lol
I love the chair, it is beautiful! Great job yesterday! I know you love to make your family happy!

Suzanne said...

Beautiful! I love that fabric.
I peeked at your post over at Rhoda's. Wow!, I love the room makeover...and yes, it wasn't what I was expecting to see! :)

Melanie@TheOldWhiteCottage said...

I love it when people use colors that are *almost* white. I absolutely love that toile!

Kether said...

I saw your beautiful guest post yesterday and really enjoyed the pictures of your house, but didn't click over to see your blog from my bloglines.
However, today I thought it was kind of funny that I googled chalkboard markers and found your blog! I'll be adding you to bloglines! your home is fantastic!

Cindy said...

That fabric is to-die-for!!! It's perfect for that chair!!!