Best Try at Repurposing

Over the past year I have been more and more interested in bringing the shop to craft markets or local fairs.  Each festival gives a new opportunity to play with fabric display, so I have been experimenting with cake stands, cupcake stands, colanders and suitcases. It has been great fun!  While at a flower show in June, I found these artificially distressed boxes that would be great for the shop.  They just needed a face lift.

I sanded.  And sanded.  And sanded to get as much of the (cheap) paint off of the sides as I could.  The manufacturer could not be bothered to paint the inside or bottom, thank goodness.  (PS I don't really have man-hands.  I don't know why its so huge here!)

I then had the (not so) brilliant idea of priming the boxes using spray paint.  Spray paint!  Who does that in Ireland?  It is so breezy at my house that I had more on my clothes, drive way and in my hair than I did on the wood.  It didn't matter where I stood!  Anyway, the priming layer is quite sparse and thin... which made me think spray paint was not my best choice moving forward.

So I pulled out the old fashioned paint that you apply with a brush.  Oh, the clean up!  Anyway, yellow was my first go-to choice as it is so bright and cheery and just makes the whole shop sing.  I also have a new infatuation with poppy red, so that was a must for painting the larger block.

Three coats later I have boxes that I would be happy to put in the shop!  I do not see a future for myself in furniture restoration. In fact, if I never do this again that would be 100% fine by me.  They are not perfect with bubbles and drips everywhere, but they reflect me and my love of bright colors.  Won't they look so fantastic filled to the brim with pre-cuts?  Yum!

While I am thinking about bringing the shop to fairs, Fluffy Sheep Quilting will be at the Clarinbridge Market Day on 7 Sept.  Come over and say hello!