Pure White and French Linen Painted Buffet
We’re sharing our first project from Loblolly today, a Pure White and French Linen Painted Buffet!
If you’re new here my parents have been restoring my childhood home for the past several years. Everything has been done in phases because they’ve had a ton of stops and starts.
I have to give them credit though, they’ve stuck with it. And as time has allowed they’ve been working diligently to get it all finished.
The goal right now is to have everything completed by late summer.
Searching for the perfect buffet…
During the initial planning phases, we realized we needed furniture in almost all the rooms.
So, my Mom and I set out searching a 5-county area to find budget-friendly pieces and finally found a buffet that would work in the entry.
The entry is such a tricky space because we actually need two buffets in order to round everything out.
While I personally love a matchy-matchy moment, my Mom loves variety, and finding two buffets that complimented each other was a lot tougher than we expected.
We were just about to give up when one of my favorite vendor contacts sold us this buffet for $40.
The buffet definitely needed a good scrubbing.
But I knew it could be easily remedied with the help of a shop vac, a magic eraser, warm soapy water, and a bit of elbow grease.
It also needed a fresh coat of paint.
Painting the Buffet in Pure White and French Linen…
We’ve kept a pretty consistent color palette of Annie Sloan Chalk Paint in French Linen and Pure White for almost all of the painted projects we’ve completed at Loblolly.
My Mom loves all things French Country and wants the house to feel “light, bright, and airy.”
So, I painted two coats of French Linen on the top of the buffet and two coats of Pure White on the bottom of the buffet to keep with her vision.
Then I lightly sanded the top and the edges with 220-grit sandpaper.
Next, I sealed the entire painted buffet with clear furniture paste wax and buffed it with a lint-free cloth.
An Easy Hardware Update…
Finally, we spray-painted the hardware with a few coats of Rust-Oleum in Flat Black.
It created a fabulous farmhouse feel but felt a bit too stark against the walls at Loblolly which are painted in Benjamin Moore’s Chantilly Lace.
So, we went back to the drawing board and sprayed the hardware again.
This time, we used Rust-Oleum Metallic in Champagne Bronze.
It’s a warm European Gold color.
We loved it so much that we used Champagne Bronze on several other pieces too!
Styling the Pure White and French Linen Painted Buffet…
When it came time to style the painted buffet, we knew we needed to keep it simple.
So, my Mom found her favorite lemonade which already has a French feel. Then we added a thrifted topiary to a rustic tray, layered in some old artwork from IKEA, and called it good to go.
Truthfully, the changes at Loblolly have all been relatively subtle, but I’m excited to finally see how everything is taking shape. It’s been way too long.
Let us know what you’re painting this season!
Many blessings,
CoCo
I’m chuckling at your dad’s comment about “painting good wood.” My husband feels the same way; if I ever want to paint any previously-unpainted wood furniture, I know I’m up for a fight. But this buffet/dresser really turned out perfectly. I especially love that hardware, and it stands out against the white that you used.
Oh Jamie! I can’t even tell you how it grieves my dad that I paint furniture 🙂 I tell him all of the time we take pieces that are already battered and bruised and give them a new life but he just can’t understand it. We’re all secretly itching to paint the cabinets in this house. Keep your fingers crossed for us. Have an awesome day, CoCo
OH my goodness, that bed is gorgeous! AND the buffet, the French Linen is perfect. AND the floors. Can’t wait to see more!!
You’re sweet Kimm thank you! That bed has survived so many things. It’s a family heirloom and my aunt was kind enough to let us use it at the house. She and her twin brother were born in that bed so it’s definitely a special piece to us. Hope your day totally rocks, Coco
CoCo – you made the absolute correct call by painting the buffet top! It looks fantastic and no longer competes with the beautiful floors. We can’t wait to see the rest of the room – the bed is so pretty!
Thanks so much ladies! That bed is a family heirloom given my mom’s older brother and sister were born in that bed. We love it too and as you can tell the Queen Mum loves a layered look 🙂 Hugs to you two, CoCo
The grey looks great on top! The whole piece is beautiful. Do your parents realize how many people are anxiously awaiting the final reveal of Loblolly?! Thanks for sharing her process with us! Hugs!
ha ha oh my gosh Angie, is this project not taking FOREVER! I swear you’d think this house is 10, 000 sq feet when in actuality it’s more like a tiny cottage. We’ll get there girl, keep us in your prayers 🙂
CoCo, I’m so glad you’re mom and dad saw your vision, it looks amazing and took it right to 2015. It looks amazing and I love the bedding in the new room. have a great Thursday xo Lisa
Thank you, Lisa! It’s hard to get the parental units on board sometimes but when I do it’s usually magic 🙂 My mom loves layered bedding. I told her yesterday she needs to do a post about it. She just giggled. Hugs sweet friend, Coco
Good your getting things finished, the floor and the table with cupboards are looking good… so you painted wood with grey, but its nice going with the white cupboard body… good luck with the rest of the restoration of your charming childhood home.
Such sweet things to say, Maria, thank you so much! It feels like the process has taken forever but we are getting closer to being finished each week. Hope your day is awesome, Coco
That is an amazing transformation!
This is soooo gorgeous! I love it! Thank you, CoCo, for adding beauty to my morning. I always look forward to seeing your projects.
Gorgeous! Thrifting and refinishing is my favorite style. Hugs to you, my friend.
CoCo this is beautiful:) I have an armoire to redo in kind of a dark area of our house. I’m loving this light, fresh vibe!
French Linenis a favorite color of mine from Annie. Yes, we moved to first name basis now, lol
Love the color combination. Off to read the next project.
Pinned!
Gosh the color of that piece is just stunning!! You did such an amazing job of re-finishing it, CoCo!!! Thanks so much for sharing at Home Imagined this week!
CoCo! This turned out SO AMAZING! It’s always impressive what a little elbow grease, cleaning products and a bit of paint can do. The price of the buffet was also fabulous. Yes, I agree the champagne colored hardware looks perfect and compliments your Mom’s taste in French decor. Thank you for contributing to the Home Imagined Link party.
p.s. Do you think your parents have any idea how many people in blog-land are eagerly awaiting the “reveal” of this cottage makeover???
CoCo,
What a stunning piece. It’s amazing how you can transform a piece with paint.
Most of the furniture I have painted in my house has either Pure White or French linen paint on it! So of course, I love the colors you used! I can’t get over how different the hardware looks in black and gold! I agree, the gold color looks softer! Can’t wait to see what else you do at Loblolly!