Pine Wall Shelves Upcycled with AS Chalk Paint

I purchased 2 simple unfinished pine shelves from the thrift shop for $5 each.  I painted each one with AS Chalk Paint in Aubusson Blue.  Afterwards I applied a dry brush of Paris Grey to tone down the blue and finished them off with a coat of clear wax.  When the wax was dry I buffed it to a nice sheen with a cloth.

The back is unfinished in this photo to show the "before" appearance.

After

The shelves each had 2 2-1/2"  wood screws through the front to attach to the wall.  Once hung, I covered the screw heads with ephemera I had in my craft room to make them more attractive.

Very easy project for very little money and they look great hanging on my den wall displaying my photography.

Painted Pumpkins Using Annie Sloan Chalk Paint

I purchased a small decorated pumpkin last year, and when I was putting up my Fall decorations I came a cross it.  I loved the look of it; the colors were great and I found myself admiring it and wishing I had bought more.  Lucky for me I'm a crafter, and what I can't buy I make!  I had one white vinyl pumpkin already waiting for something wonderful in my craft studio.  I also purchased 3 small sugar pumpkins from the local produce stand.

I decided to rely on my Annie Sloan Chalk Paint yet again and painted one Paris Grey, another Paris Grey with a dab of Aubusson Blue, another with Paris Grey and a dab of Duck Egg Blue and the last just Duck Egg Blue.  I shaded areas with mixtures of these colors; added some highlights and stippled darker variations here and there.  Then I began stippling on some acrylic colors such as gold, green, burgundy and even a little lavender!  

I then loosened up some Burnt Sienna with a little water.  With a toothbrush between my thumb and forefinger I speckled the pumpkins in different areas. I also loosened the gold paint and rather than add speckles I tapped the toothbrush over the pumpkins for larger splatters.  

After arranging them on a display stand, I added some glittered leaves to bring it all together.  Love!!

The display stand shown here is featured in a previous post.

The painter of pumpkins (and other things),