One of my early blogs was about a three tiered cake server that I had decided to use as a bedside unit, I had painted it to tie in with my curtains and was pretty happy with it.
That is until I really started to use it and that’s when I realised that it was a pretty rubbish idea, no room to store stuff, the lamp took up the whole of the top shelf and it was a bit wobbly.

So, I decided to do something else and started looking on online sites to see if I could find something cheap to upcycle, then I had a flash of inspiration…I visited a Red Cross shop near my work place and there were loads of bedside units!
I got this one for £10. It seemed a long way back to work carrying it and then home on the bus but never mind all that, a weekend home alone gave me the time to make it mine.

First things first, sanding away all the old stain and varnish and dirt and scratches…my least favourite job but worth doing thoroughly.
I kept going until nothing was left just a plain pine cupboard.

Then I gave it a coat of white emulsion to seal it. Then another coat of the same emulsion but this time with a squirt of gold acrylic to make it a nice warm colour.

Then, using just the gold paint, I ‘sponged‘ gold over the whole thing. I ‘sponged’ more densely at the edges. (This technique works best with a natural sponge, I just decided on the spur of the moment to do it, so made do with a washing up sponge which I cut into with scissors)

At that moment I decided to leave the top alone. I had planned to paint it but once the light, alarm clock, book etc were on there I would never see the design anyway.

The drawer and the door had the flower painted on, I took inspiration for the flower (copied) from my curtains.

I then decorated the inside. I lined the drawer with a kind of oil cloth and the sides and inside of the cupboard in a patchwork of coloured papers. I used PVA glue to stick on and to paint over to seal the papers.

Back soon
Love Rosie

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