My Table Got Plastered...then Clocked!

Since I never tire of talking about Plaster Paint (or using it), I thought I'd share about my first experience with it!  I turned a boring 36" octagonal dining table into something so much more fun. More interesting. More beautiful. A little unexpected. A lot unique!  

I chose Sweet Cream as the color and got to work painting the table and the base with NO sanding, NO stripping and NO priming...my favorite kind of project!  See how shiny and glossy the surface was and yet no prep work was needed...nada!

This is the base of the table as I started painting and the second picture is the base with one full coat painted on.

That's some pretty awesome coverage using an almost white paint on a glossy dark wood surface!

I painted two coats of Sweet Cream directly on the table top, after which I hand-painted the Roman numerals to make the table into a clock design!

I did some distressing and voila! She was complete!

This project has me completely HOOKED on Plaster Paint!

The Clock Table is now available for purchase at Cherry Tree Cottage Antiques in Beaumont, California!  Head on over and see all the goodies!

Thanks for reading!  I'd love to hear from you! 

Get Plastered with Sweet Peas Charm!

That's right, ladies and gents...Sweet Peas Charm is getting plastered...and we would love for you to join us!

Now, now, now, get your minds out of the wine bottle...we're talking about paint!  We're talking specifically about a line of specialty paint called "Plaster Paint" from The Plaster Paint Company!

Extra, extra, read all about it...Sweet Peas Charm is the very FIRST exclusive retailer of Plaster Paint in the state of California and we couldn't be more thrilled!!

Most of you, I'm sure, are scratching your head and asking yourself..."Plaster Paint? What is this Plaster Paint she's talking about?"  Well, let me just tell those of you who are already DIYers who love to paint, you are going to be soooooooo glad you read this blog!  And those of you who don't love to paint, I can nearly guarantee this paint will change your mind!

I love to paint...that is no secret whatsoever.  But, PAINTING is what I love...not the prep work! I do NOT love sanding a project before painting, I do NOT love stripping an old finish off a project before painting and I don't even like putting primer on a project before painting.  Gimme the paint brush and just let me paint already!  Raise your paint brush if you feel the same way!

Who is with me?

Welllllll, what if I told you that you could eliminate all of that icky, boring prep work and just start painting?  Believe me, I did not inhale too many paint fumes prior to typing that last sentence!  It is TRUE!  Plaster Paint contains an additive that allows the paint to adhere and bond to nearly any surface, including wood, metal, plastic, laminate, varnish, resin...even fabric...and the list continues. With the exception of wiping your project clean before starting, the need for prep work is eliminated!

Did I mention that it's also a non-toxic water based paint that isn't harmful?

Did I mention it's also made in the good old United States of America??!!

Those of you who are painters may be saying to yourselves, "Well, gee, chalk paint does the same thing!"  You know what?  You are absolutely correct that it does!  BUT, here's the kicker...  Chalk Paint costs you approximately $38.00 per quart...Plaster Paint only costs you $24.00 per quart!  That's right at a savings of 33%!  Shoot and score, Baby!  Those of you who paint AND sell your projects can quickly do the math and see that your profit margin will go up just like that!  And those of you ladies who paint to decorate your own home will make your hubby very happy when you're spending less!  We all want to keep those hubbies happy!

Are you wondering how far "only" one quart of paint will get you?  With one quart I have painted a large display cabinet (this was a china cabinet), a very large, hefty shelf, a 36" octagonal dining table, two large picture frames, three crosses, one heart, a foot stool, a brass candlestick (yes, brass...no prepping!) and, believe it or not, I still have a little paint left in the can!  A quart goes a lonnnnnng way, folks!

Did I mention that Plaster Paint dries in approximately 25 minutes?  Hmm...no prep work...a quick drying time...and projects can be completed with only one or two coats of paint depending on the finished look you're after...?  Admit it...you are SO glad you are reading this blog...aren't you?

Oh and of course, we insist that you be 100% satisfied!  If you are not, you may return the unused portion of your paint and your money will be happily refunded!

When I used it for the first time, I fell head over heels in love with Plaster Paint!  I am completely hooked and see no reason to use any other type of paint.  Use it once and I am completely confident you will feel the same way and we'll have yet another Plaster Paint addict among us!

I'm sure I've said enough to convince you that you will LOVE this paint, but in case I haven't, check out this video of Fox News interviewing Annette Wicker of The Plaster Paint Company:

Fox News Interview of The Plaster Paint Company

So again, here are several reasons you will love Plaster Paint:

The cost is 1/3 less than other specialty paints

No prep work on your project

Quick drying time

Often only 1 coat of paint is needed

A quart of paint goes a very long way

More than 30 beautiful colors are available

Plaster Paint is made in the USA

Have you found a downside to trying this paint yet?  Yeah...neither have I! 

Sweet Peas Charm offers 4 ways for you to purchase Plaster Paint:

Locally in our lovely boutique at Cherry Tree Cottage Antiques

On our Sweet Peas Charm website

In our Etsy boutique

In our Facebook store 

So contact me today through any of those sites, or email me at lynn@sweetpeascharm.com to chat about Plaster Paint, learn about Plaster Paint and to purchase Plaster Paint!  You'll be so glad you did!

As the Plaster Paint Company says, "Pop the top to a refreshing can of Plaster Paint and get plastered!!"

Sooner Than Expected!!

A couple of weeks ago I blogged about how Sweet Peas Charm is expanding by moving into Cherry Tree Cottage Antiques on March 1st.  Well....guess what?  We're moving in early!  Our official move in date is this Sunday, February 16th...and we couldn't be more excited!!

As I mentioned in my last blog, Cherry Tree Cottage Antiques is located at 196 East Sixth St. in Beaumont, California, and it is by far the most charming, quaint and wonderful antique store in Beaumont's Antique Row!

The Cottage has everything you can imagine inside for sale, as well as a spacious patio area featuring beautiful outdoor furniture and garden decor..and now, they'll also be carrying the furniture and home decor refinished, re-purposed and reinvented by Sweet Peas Charm!  Whether you're looking for something for yourself or a gift for someone special, if you need it..want it...this is the place to find it!

Cherry Tree Cottage is open 7 days each week from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

We'll be moving in on Sunday, and although it'll be organized chaos as we do so, we would love for you stop in and say hello!  We may even put you to work! :-)

For more information, please visit our website or our Facebook, or email Lynn at lynn@sweetpeascharm.com. 

We hope to see you soon! 

From Glum to Glam: The Dresser

I just completed a really fun project! Our client, Melissa, hired me to refinish her plain dresser into something with a little more excitement.  This is what we started with:

I had already started begun disassembling the mirror and the original legs when the above photo was taken...and as you may notice it's actually sitting upside down!  :-)  

After everything was disassembled and the hardware was removed, I sprayed the dresser, the drawers and the awesome new feet with white primer.

They were all then sprayed with the color of Melissa's choice...turquoise! Man, was I excited when she chose such a beautiful color!

Next...what to do with the drawers?  I wanted to do something fun and a bit more unique than just leaving them plain or painting them a complimentary color, so I went with a lace treatment that came out really pretty!

I found some beautiful drawer pulls to replace the old ones so I gave them a paint treatment to match, as well.

Once all of those steps were completed, I distressed and stained everything, and finished the project by putting on a few coats of Min Wax Wipe-On Polyurethane.

And this...is the final result!

 Thanks for stopping by!  Feel free to post a comment...I'd love to

hear from you!

Sweet Peas Charm is Expanding!

It's official...Sweet Peas Charm is expanding!  In addition to selling online through our website, Sweet Peas Charm will soon be a vendor at Cherry Tree Cottage Antiques! Located at 196 East Sixth St. in Beaumont, California, Cherry Tree Cottage is by far the most charming, quaint and wonderful antique store in Beaumont's Antique Row!

Seriously....could this place be any more adorable? (Wave hello to Rebekah!)

The Cottage has everything you can imagine inside for sale, as well as a spacious patio area featuring beautiful outdoor furniture and garden decor.  Whether you're looking for something for yourself or a gift for someone special, if you need it...want it...this is the place to find it!  

Cherry Tree Cottage is open 7 days each week from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Rebekah, Pollyanna and I will be spending the month of February painting new pieces of furniture and other home decor so our boutique will be full and absolutely gorgeous in time for our move-in date...March 1, 2014!  

We ladies are thrilled about our newest adventure and we would love to share our excitement with you!  Please mark your calendar...Saturday, March 1...stop by, say hello, and do a little shopping! Bring your families...your friends...make a day of it!

For more information, please visit our website or our Facebook page, or email Lynn at lynn@sweetpeascharm.com. 

We hope to see you the first weekend in March!

The Official Launch of our Website and Shopping Through Facebook!!

Sweet Peas Charm is Here! Just in Time for Black Friday!

We are pleased to announce the official launch of the website for our new business, Sweet Peas Charm! We have worked really hard on the website and we are very excited to share it with you! 

You can find us here: www.sweetpeascharm.com!

You can read this information on our website, but I’d like to tell you a little bit about us! Sweet Peas Charm is comprised of three ladies, Lynn Bennett, Pollyanna Rondeau and Rebekah Tong and we all have a passion for bringing beauty back to furniture and home décor that has been neglected and abused. All of our boutique items have been created by hand with love and care to bring you only the finest furnishings for you to love now and for many years to come. Our prices are very reasonable and you will never find better customer service than you will at Sweet Peas Charm...we guarantee it!

Did we mention you can find us here: www.sweetpeascharm.com?

On our site the Home Page includes a slideshow of some of the items we have for sale.  We have an extensive Boutique page that showcases everything that is currently available for sale.  We also have pages separate from the Boutique with our inventory separated into categories, such as “Candlesticks and Candle Holders”, “Décor”, “Linens”, “Tables”, etc.  We felt that by separating our inventory this way, it would make for quicker shopping if you are looking for something specific. 

In case we forgot to mention it, you can find us here: www.sweetpeascharm.com!

In addition to the Boutique, we have a page for Blogs where we write about some of the processes we undertake in (re)creating particular items.  We eventually hope to blog a few times each week to keep our clientele updated with the latest information at Sweet Peas Charm.  There is a field on our Blog page where you can enter your email address to subscribe to our updates.  When (and only when) there is a blog posted, you will receive an email with a link to the blog.  You will not get spammy messages by subscribing to our blog…just blogs! So please…..subscribe!

Is it redundant for us to mention that you can find us here: www.sweetpeascharm.com?

Next to “Blogs” we have a “Guest Book.”  We would be so pleased to know you visited our site and we would love to read any comments and/or suggestions you may have.  Please sign our Guest Book as often as you would like!

We also have a “Galleries” page which contains “Before and After” photos of some our inventory, as well as photos of some of the items we have sold, and a “Get to Know Us” page, which contains a quick synopsis of who each of us ladies are.  We want you to get to know us, just as we want to get to know you! And finally, there is a “Contact Us” page, which will allow you to easily contact us.  We guarantee a response to your inquiry very quickly, but in no longer than 24 hours.

We are so excited to share all of the beautiful items we have for sale with you!  Nearly every item listed can also be custom-made, so please be sure to ask about your options. Your happiness, satisfaction and repeat business are our goals!  Our inventory is constantly changing and being added to, so if you see something you love, grab it before it’s gone, and if you don’t, please check back often! And, please be sure to share our site with your friends!

One last thing I’d like to mention is that we now have our boutique linked to our Facebook page! By going to https://www.facebook.com/pages/Sweet-Peas-Charm/149139088591001 you can keep up to date with all of the happenings.  AND, if you “Like” our page, you will receive a code that will provide you with a 10% discount on your first purchase!  Everyone loves a discount, so be sure to share our page with your family and friends!

Welcome to Sweet Peas Charm!  Please visit us at www.sweetpeascharm.com!

Lynn Bennett

lynn@sweetpeascharm.com

Pollyanna Rondeau

pollyanna@sweetpeascharm.com

Rebekah Tong

rebekah@sweetpeascharm.com

French Graphics and Burlap!

Everywhere I look I see beautiful artwork printed on burlap and I'm so in love with it!  I've been wanting to try printing on burlap myself for quite awhile now, and I finally gave it a shot a few days ago.  I believe I nailed it, if I do say so myself...and I do!  *wink*

One of the best websites I've ever found (and I'm pretty much done looking now because, as I said, it's the "best") is The Graphics Fairy.  Karen aka The Graphics Fairy has a wonderful website with DIY tutorials, craft projects, etc., but my favorite part of her site is that she has thousands (literally thousands!) of graphics that can be downloaded..  Not only are the graphics gorgeous....but they're free, too!  If you haven't visited Karen before, it's really a must-do!

Back to my project...  I used 3 different graphics to create French artwork for the kitchen and/or dining room, and I framed them in rustic vintage-y frames that coordinate perfectly with the burlap.  Check this one out:

And this one:

And this one:

I am head over heels in love with each of these.  However, my favorite look is the 3 of them together (I know I have this photo at the beginning of my blog, but I feel it's worth a second look *grin*):

All three are available for purchase in the Decor section of the Sweet Peas Charm Boutique!

Live your life smiling with the joy you bring others and may you be blessed always!