Looking back at all my work in 2015, I realized that almost half of the pieces I refinished were French Provincial. I have no idea why. No, I don’t specialize in shabby chic, or French Provincial style. I just like to transform any furniture from dull and old to beautiful and fresh, no matter what style, or whether it is a solid wood antique buffet or a beat-up IKEA table. However, French Provincial pieces keep finding me, and the more I do them, the more customers bring them to me.
This desk was my latest FP project. It matches this beautiful dresser I painted last fall. Exact same color and finish: Benjamin Moore Steel Wool, with black glaze and silver pulls.
As much as I love to paint these babies, I’ve never owned a French Provincial piece. I had never heard of them before I started painting furniture about three years ago. Now they are one of my favorite things to paint. Please dear customers, keep them coming!
Love,
Patricia.
I love the color and how it turned out. I think that we’re a magnet for certain things and they find US! I’ve come across a few of the French Provincial pieces lately too….just finished up a smaller dresser. I like these because they look good in so many variations. Happy Weekend!
Thanks Kris!
I wish I could find more pieces like this. This turned out beautifully. I really like the contrast of the pulls against the dark finish.
Thanks Debra! These pieces are not so hard to find, unless you are searching for one, in which case they all disappear 🙂
Patricia! I am in love with your desk! It looks so crisp and fresh! Well done! I will be featuring it this week at Making Broken Beautiful! I hope you will share with us again soon!
Have a great day!
Smiles!
Terry
Thanks Terry! That is wonderful news. Such an honor!
This is beautiful, love it so much!
Thanks Shayla!
Hi
I love the color and how it turned out! Beautiful!
You said it’s Benjamin Moore “steel wool”, is it a flat, eggshell finish?
Lisa
Thanks Lisa!
I usually buy paint on a satin finish, but for this dresser I made chalk paint so the finish was similar to flat/egg shell.
It’s very pretty. I like the softness of the matte finish. I’m not into French Provincial either, but I’d adopt this desk! 🙂
Thanks! I love the term adopt. Yes, I might adopt one too some day.
Amazing redo!! Love that color so much!! Thanks for linking to Friday’s Furniture Fix. Susie
Thanks Susie! And thanks for hosting!
hi! did you poly before glazing?
Hi Michelle, I sealed after glazing.
I’ve been asked to do a dresser like this for my nephew’s wedding. What type of prep did you do to the furniture before painting? He wants a stained top. Any suggestions?
Hi Bobbi,
I have a step by step tutorial on how I achieved this exact finish. Check out this other post. https://thewoodspa.com/2015/11/27/a-french-provincial-beauty/
You can stain the top of any piece it is real wood. On this desk, staining was not an option because the top was laminate.
For staining, you need to sand down the top completely then apply stain. On this video you can see how I stained a table top. https://youtu.be/dhThB_EnM3E
Good luck!
What colors did you use to mix for the chalk paint color. I didn’t see that in the list. Thanks!
It’s steel wool, by Benjamin Moore. Good luck with your project!