Friday 21 September 2012

Transformation: Lazy Susan or Très Jolie Susan!!!

A few weeks ago I had bought a Lazy Susan. It was brown and boring. Today I thought of giving it a small makeover. I alternated black and grey typography to create a pattern.

Here it is ....from just Lazy Suzie to Très Jolie Susan....!




It was long and painstaking to hand paint 'Provincial' so many times. But totally worth it!




 The blackish bit in the centre, is a decoupage of a harp that I white washed and distressed. In real life it's much clearer.


 The Before

And the After!

Hope you like the transformation!

Thanks so much for stopping by!
xox
Rani

Wednesday 19 September 2012

French Placemats & A Tutorial On Creating A Rusty Patina On Wood!

I have lost my voice!!!! We are re-landscaping our backyard, working on it every weekend. I have so much to do....and so many people to call and coordinate stones and delivery etc and now I have lost my voice!!! It's quite frustrating!

Well on a happy note....all the projects that I have been working on are almost finished!

Here are new French inspired 'Provincial' placemats, set of 8. These sold already...and now I have to start making a new set of aged sheet music ones. 







And now onto an almost completed project...an outdoor clock. I wanted a rusted patina wooden clock for my backyard. I had a few pallets left over from a previous project. Well to cut a long story short, my lovely husband put the pallets together, I sanded them and then used this amazing product to give the wooden pallets a vintage rusty patina. Huh...what?...I hear you say, well here is the story in pictures which also kind of serves as a short tutorial. 

The clock isn't finished yet, but the ground work's been done!

 This is the space (backyard) where the outdoor clock will be hanging, right above the Cafe Jolie sign.

Close-up of the space.

Putting the pallets together. 

 It's super heavy!

 Sanding the 'clock'.

Okay...see the light colour of the wood......now the magic begins!!!

 This is the magic potion!!!! Available at any hardware shop. But it's expensive!!!


Part 1: Paint the pallets with the rust paint, it does on quite dark. (Remember to wear gloves when you paint; paint in an airy space, preferably outdoors and wear a mask if you have allergies like me!) 

Let it dry for at least 2 hours. That is the most difficult part for an impatient person like me.

 Okay, after 1-2 hours, this is what the dried up version looks like.

To give you guys a better look, here is a close-up.


Now to the fun part, Part 2: paint on the rust solution and let it dry....overnight!!!! Hah! I know right, I couldn't wait 1 hour....overnight! But trust me, you need to let it cure overnight for the magic to happen. When I woke up the next morning, I ran to the garage to see my creation and here it is!!!


How beautiful is that?
 It's more than what I imagined it would be.... I love the teal of the oxidised corrugated vintage iron look. Who would have thought that it's made out of wooden pallets!!! 

Overnight from wood...to vintage rust! Looks like its 100 years old!!!



Ohhhh! the patina is swoon-worthy!!!!

 The Before

The After

Well there you have it. I'm on the lookout for some antique clock hands and the mechanism. But even without turning it into a clock, I love the way it looks and the longer I leave it,  the more rusty patina it develops! I wonder how it'd look hanging in my living room?

Thanks so much for stopping by! If you have questions about the rust paint and solution, leave me a comment and I'll answer them.

xox
Rani


Monday 17 September 2012

La Maison Jolie- Shipping worldwide now!!!

Just popping in quickly to let you all know that La Maison Jolie products are now shipping worldwide. Order via Ebay store: Good Deal Marketplace.

Rustic Photoframes- small (4x6) and large (5x7)

Vintage White

Copper Luxe and Shabby Chic Black

French Country Pink & Blue

Coasters- sets of 4, 6, 8

Aged sheet music coasters

Placemats- sets of 4, 6 and 8

Vintage Black 'Le Plat Du Jour' distressed placemats

 'Provincial' Farmhouse White crackle glazed placemats

 Shabby Chic Black 'Provincial' Distressed Placemats

 Chalkboards and wooden signs




Order via: Good Deal Marketplace
So head on over to the store now by clicking on the above link!!!!

Lots of other products will be added to the store soon, so watch this space!
Thanks so much for stopping by!!!

xox
Rani





Sunday 9 September 2012

Message from Grace

I received a text message from my friend Grace yesterday and was thrilled to see that the painting that I had made for her was up in her living room. 

Sharing the photo that she sent me along with her text. (Excuse the blurry photo, I downloaded it from the text message)

It's a colourful acrylic painting of vietnamese village women carrying their wares back home at night.

"Hi Rani, Your painting looks amazing on our lounge room wall and will greet everyone who comes through our front door! Love Grace"

Her text message made my day!!! :)

Thanks so much for stopping by!

xox
Rani

Thursday 6 September 2012

Lilly... My garden fairy!

Last week we were in Perth, WA for our niece's first birthday! It was amazing.....Perth is beautiful! And while we were there, I took the opportunity to visit the famous Fremantle market, E-shed market and many more quaint marketplaces. I saw this store at the E-shed market called the The Iron Fairies (and being a believer of fairies), we entered the store to look around. 

There were the most beautiful fairies made of iron ore and with the most magical stories. Maps, scrolls, fairy dust, fairy cups and fairies! I just had to buy one for my garden....so Lilly the garden floor fairy came home with us! She is just beautiful!!!

I had the opportunity to speak to the store owner, Joan Sutton, a gorgeous lady. She also makes hand stitched teddy bears that were just adorable!

Well here are some pictures of Lilly in my garden!

Meet Lilly, my garden floor fairy



 That's fairy dust on her....




I planted a small pot full of succulents and sat her on a rock...

Lilly sits in my garden looking up at the sun! If you'd like a look at more fairies, visit The Iron Fairies on www.theironfairies.com.

Will be back next week with a few new projects to show you all!
Take care and thanks so much for stopping by!

xox
Rani

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