2017DesignChallenge

This project is a combination of a tile top table and a portable coaster.  The tile was custom made at a local pottery shop.  The table was inspired by the splay-legged table by Garrett Hack.  The top and aprons are natural cherry. The legs are stained cherry.  General Finishes products were used to complete the project.  The wood conditioner and stain were straightforward and easy to use.  For the topcoat I found applying the finish with a foam brush and wiping the excess off with a cloth...

General Finishes Design Challenge Winner

Stop what you're doing.

THIS. IS. IT.

The Boho chic chest everyone has been going crazy over. 

When I painted this, I had NO idea the amount of attention this piece would get! Being shared by multiple famous designers, getting thousands of likes, comments...

We have been trying to create this color since we started painting 2 years ago and after many failed attempts we finally feel like we have "The Perfect Turquoise."

This color is made up of 4 parts Snow White milk paint, 1/2 part Patina Green milk paint, and 1/4 part sunglow milk...

This aged oak bar was refinished in loads of layers. Sanded and cleaned, then primed and base coated, the piece was then glazed, top coated, and waxed with three shades of wax. 

Found an inexpensive grandfather style clock on craigslist. I figured gray would be an excellent color for this piece. It wasn't until later I thought that this otomi paper from Spoonflower would be a great fit. What do you know they had gray!  I used Queenstown gray and seagull gray milk paint for this...

General Finishes Design Challenge Winner

Painted using antique white, lamp black, and a custom mix of the two colours (as well as some Fusion Mineral Paint in gold). The arrows were painted using 3M Blue edgelocking tape. The wood accents were covered with General Finishes Gel Stain in Candlelite. The whole project has 3 top coats of...

This GORGEOUS credenza features our newest finish called the "Abstract Gold Leaf". Showcasing AUTHENTIC 24 KARAT GOLD LEAF, this exquisitely unique design is inspired by the beautiful gold leaf paintings normally seen on canvas today.

Since I absolutely love creating designs that intergrate a...

This finish was inspired and created in anticipation of the Solar Eclipse of 2017.  Like the upcoming celestrial event,  warmth and light shimmer through darkess at varying degrees across the surface.  The circular design on the doors of this 1920's Art Deco Buffet mimic the sun and moon making it...

GF Design Challenge Winner

This beauty was painted with General Finishes Patina green, lightly distressed, Dark waxed and Glazed with General Finishes Tawny Pearl effects. 

Idea of Angel Wings on the Headboard of bed was with me for a long time...I just needed Bedframe demeged enough to experiment on it. 

I used soft masa clay and molded sculptured and carved each feather by hand and create wings.

Stencil with Quote was custom designed and made for me by Agnieszka HagArt. 

I used Miss Lillian's Texture Magic to...

Peony hand drawn stain art chest of drawers 

This beautiful vanity was lightly sanded with 180 then 220 grit sandpaper. The beautiful burl wood top was then stained with GF dye stain in Amber.

I needed to add some extra oomph to the front of the drawer and mirror so using Artisan Enhancements VP Antico I did a raised stenciling effect. After it was completely dry I lightly sanded the stencil to knock down any rough edges. 

I used Wise Owl paints in Weathervane, Bowie, Smokey Quartz and Begonia  I sanded the paint doing...

This Basset Credenza was given new life with Snow White & Java Gel Stain, sealed with High Performance Satin. 

2nd Place Winner - MCM Makeover - 2017 GF Design Challenge

http://contest.generalfinishes.com/entries/mcm-0

I spruced up this gorgeous mid century modern console with GF Coastal Blue Milk Paint on the body, followed by GFHP Flat Top Coat. I stripped and sanded the drawers and cabinet faces and legs and used The Real Milk Paint Co. Hemp Oil on the beautiful wood. I painted the interior cabinets with GF Seagull Gray Milk Paint.

3rd Place Winner - MCM Makeover - 2017 GF Design Challenge

After months of searching for the perfect book cabinet and not finding anything I loved, I finally decided to order a custom unfinished piece. Fenton MacLaren's in Berkeley, CA made this alder bookcase for me and I was beyond excited to finish it! I used a combination of Seagull Gray and Persian Blue to create a beautiful color to match my living room. I then used Champagne Pearl mixed with Clear Base Glaze Effects to add a bit of shimmer. The whole piece was topped with High Performance Top...

This Amish made pine cabinet is painted with General Finishes Klein Blue & Snow White Milk Paint transforming it into an out of this world re-creation of the TARIS. Topped off with a custom made General Finishes Lamp Black & Snow White Painted "Police Public Call Box" wood sign to give it the perfect finishing touch!

I have wanted to create a kitchen island from a desk for quite some time... I just needed the right client to believe in my vision!

Enter my repeat client Carla, a vintage desk and 8 ft of an old weathered table top... and the fun began!

This project didn't come with "plans", I had to make them up as I went along. It was challenging and exciting all at the same time.

 Construction was a huge part of this transformation but choosing the right color, finish and hardware...

This 26 1/2 foot long project was installed in the breakroom of a global spirits manufacturer.  75 year old retired barrels were broken down and the pieces were pressure washed to prepare them for finishing.  Two coats of GF Clear Poly in Satin covered the backs of the barrel staves and three coats on the front brought 75 years’ worth of life and history back out of the tired old pieces.  The full pieces were basket weaved and the small segments of staves were cobblestone pieced like a...

This retro funky little unit has had new legs added by the previous owner and has been refinished in seagull grey on the doors and antique white on the frame. 

It's a versatile piece and can be used in a bathroom, bedroom or living room! I think the legs make this piece really stand out and I have loved doing something different with the triangle at the top! 

3rd Place Winnter -Smashing Shades of Gray - 2017 GF Design Challenge

A classic piece of updated furniture. 

The drawers were decoupaged with antique sheet music, and vintage Bakelite and brass pulls complete the look. 

The dark frame was selectively distressed, with bold stripes on the sides, done with a blend of General Finishes Antique White, with a wash of GF Empire Grey. 

The top was finished with 2 coats of GF high-performance satin top coat for extra durability. 

My absolute favourite piece!

2nd Place...

This absolutely stunning Vintage Secretary Desk has been handpainted with my custom made chalk paint recipe using Sherwin Williams Arrid Sands. I then meticulously glazed this beauty using Black Antiquing Glaze. All exposed wood has been stained using General Finishes Java Gel Stain. 18k Gold Leaf has been applied to all hardware. This desk has been sealed in General Finishes High Performance Top Coat to ensure many years of lasting durability!

3rd Place Winnter - Black and...

A local Sawyer saved this sequoia tree from being disposed of in a chipper. I bought a set of book matched slabs and made a big dining table or conference table out of them. I stored the slabs for a while until they were dry enough to work with.

Using a circular saw, I made sure the joint in the middle was straight and met up nicely. I used a Festool Domino to align the two halves and glued them together. There was quite a bit of work to do with a router flattening jig on both...

My journey for my inspiration began with a newspaper article I read about Louis XVI King of France, but more interestingly his wife Marie Antionette the Queen of exquisite taste.  She amassed artworks of extraordinary opulence and beauty.  Particularly her furniture collection, the extravagant life of Queen Marie is surrounded by elegant French furniture and fabrics, very beautiful designs that are still prevalent today. 

So I dedicate my entry piece to one of the most trend setting...

This Ginkgo Biloba inspired bureau was build around contrasts: matt & shine, dark & bright, classic & modern. 

I've chosen black and dark shades of greys as a canvas for sparkling copper accents. I used copper leafs and some metallic paint to achieve the look. 

I love leaving the best parts of the original woodwork so i left old intarsia around the edges and i refreshed the top of the piece by applying general finishes maple woodstain.

Ginkgo biloba leafs...

For this lovely Oak writing bureau I decided to use Coastal Blue over the whole piece and seal with High Performance Top Coat to give it an overall deep blue sheen. The interior was restained with a light oak stain to contrast with the exteriors deep blue. This piece was heavily carved on the exterior so it would have been easy to get carried away with the gilding, but I decided to focus only on the central carving running across the centre, and also gild the edging of the pull down. 

This old bookshelf got a modern farmhouse face lift! I painted the outside and the shelves with 2 coats of General Finishes Driftwood, took of the backside of the original shelf and replaced with old reclaimed wood siding. The wood siding was dry brushed with General Finishes Snow White and the grey area of the bookshelf was sealed with 2 coats of General Finishes High Performance Top Coat in Flat. 

Staging Winner of 2017 GF Design Challenge

I really wanted this china cabinet to have a wow factor, and to make it more modern.  The coastal blue milk paint is one of my favorite colors, and paired with the paper backing, it really upped it's game!

Staging Winner of 2017 GF Design Challenge

Old chair was sanded and stained with GF Candlelight oil based wood stain and painted gold.Finished w/ GF satin top coat.

Winner - Runner Up in Dye Stain Category of 2017 GF Design Challenge

Alaska is home of the midnight sky, and when the moon sits against the beautiful colors, it creates the most beautiful sky in the world. General finishes dye stains allows us to mimic the skies of the great Alaskan North in an amazing way. Each handcut peice is stained in general finishes custom dye stains. The sky is a mix of blue, ebony, and amber dyestain, all blended to an ombre effect. The moon is done with winter white glaze effects. The mountains are a mix of medium brown, dark brown...

Body of desk was painted in a Peppery Gray and pewter metallic paint added to carved accents. Desk top and drawer fronts were stripped down to the bare wood and 2 coats of the GF Light Brown water based DYE Stain applied. A gold metallic stencil was added to top before sealing. Origianl knobs were cleaned and painted in a gold metallic to match the stencil on desk top.

This was a piece I'd previously painted but it just wasn't selling and I'm a firm believer that if at first you don't succeed, try again!  Pieces can be reinvented time and time again, no finish is forever.

I started with a base of GF Coastal Blue. Then used my custom mix(Patina Green, Coastal Blue, Antique White and Halcyon Blue) together with Seagull Grey to create a faux finish.  I'd already added the mouldings for the previous finish so just had to put some gold leaf on...

This Modern Majestic Masterpiece was found at a garage sale where the owner practically wanted to pay me to take it. I wasn't about to leave this beauty behind, so I loaded her up and brought her home. The wood was dull and dry, and it had a wonderful musty smell as if it had been sitting in someone's basement for many years. She was screaming to bring her beauty back in high Mid Century Modern style and that's just what she got! 

I cleaned and aired it out good, sanded, and primed...

I thought the drawers for this dresser were a perfect candidate for something bold, like a colorblock. Unfortunately the dresser needed a lot of work before I could carry on with my vision. I rebuilt the top and sealed the body with General Finishes Stainblocker before painting it with Antique White Milk Paint. I used Lamp Black Milk Paint on the bottom drawers and refinished he rest of the drawers with Antique Walnut Gel Stain. I loved how it turned out and I can't wait to recreate this...

This was a super fun piece because I know the young lady in the photo transfer. Her father wanted me to create something special for her to remember her years of competeing in rodeo. The two photos are of her winning runs. The actual piece of furniture was painted with a custom mix of GF Chocolate Brown, and Antique White. Dry brushed with custom blend of AS Greek Blue then glazed with Van Dyke Brown. Doors were adorned with photos transferred with Miss Lilian transfer medium, and distressed...

Alice in Wonderland desk featuring the White Rabbit: this is one of my favorite classics.

The desk is finished all the way around so that it can sit out in the center of the room. The shape of the desk was the perfect shape for this whimsical piece and it was fun to do!

Clean, sand, and seal. This desk had a laminate top so I sanded it with course sandpaper to assure a good adhesion of the paint. Painted with Miss Lillian's paint. Used Miss Lillian's transfer medium...

I use decoupage to get a master image onto my furniture piece, then I paint out from the image, using a mix of my own line and paint style, striving to meld intomthe master artist's work for a seamless furniture piece. I love the challenge of matching color and style, while at the same time making the piece my own by changing the dges of the masterwork and pulling it out to fit my furniture piece. 

These cabinets original finish was a pickled whitewash. We completely changed the look of the entire kitchen by applying 3 coats of java gel stain and three coats of General finishes satin polyurethane . This kitchen went from dated to modern and gorgeous !! These products never let me down.

Winner- Runner Up in Cabinetry(Paint or Stain) Category of 2017 GF Design Challenge

General Finishes Snow White and Custom mix island used in the General Finishes milk paint made for the perfect update to this sparkling, new kitchen look. 

Winner- Runner Up in Cabinetry (Paint or Stain) 0f 2017 GF Design Challenge

This once oak dining set got a major makeover and was transformed into a chic and modern focal piece of the kitchen. Table base and chairs where done in General Finishes Antique White and the table top was refinished in several layers of metallic silver paints and pitch black glaze. All pieces where completed with multiple layers of High performance top coat.

This Classic Chic kitchen is one of our favorite makeovers to date.  Out with the dated honey color and in with the white and Pitch Black Glaze detail. The glaze sets the cabinets and island off and brings the transformation to a whole new level. Sealed for durability with flat out flat topcoat to help give the more modern finish. 

This ole gal was so sad and missing a mirror. With lots of luck one was found and now "Isn't  she Lovely"❤The entire thing was cleaned and old finish sanded off the top. Vanity and mirror painted in General Finishes Driftwood then white washed in in pure white and wiped off but left in crevices. Then the bling begins!!! Foil adhesive applied randomly on edges, legs and designs so that the silver leaf looks like it is peeling off. Amazing!!!!

Drawers lined in gray velvet  , a surprise...

This gorgeous Eastlake style dresser quickly became one of my all-time favorite projects with a custom blend of General Finishes Milk and Chalk Style Paints with 2 parts Queenstown Gray Milk Paint, 4 parts Seagull Gray Milk Paint, and 3 parts Charleton Blue Chalk Style Paint. The resulting paint was smooth, creamy, and effortlessly beautiful! My favorite part of custom blends is that they tend to be chameleons - they can appear to take on different hues based on their lighting and other...

This coffee table is made of Modesto Ash, that was destined to become firewood. I grew up with this Ash tree, it watched me and my brothers grow up. Unfortunately the tree was diseased and had to be taken down. I talked to the arborist and made a deal with them to leave me the trunk as a whole piece. They dropped it, my dad and I spent the next few days clearing up all of the brush and cut the limbs into manageable pieces of firewood. The next day I spent a few hours using an alaskan...

This boring sofa table was transformed into a stunning piece of art!  Using GF Seagul Gray on the entire base, followed with the product SALTWASH for texture.  I then added a custom Turquoise mix on the drawer fronts, followed with GF Coastal Blue.  To pull it all together I created drips with metallic silver, Turquoise and GF Coastal Blue.  Truly an amazing piece of functional art for the home.  One can't help but to dream of the ocean when looking at this piece.

Winner-...

I knew that this piece was going to "get it" because the flat surfaces would allow me to really add so many extras I hadn't tried yet! I had just got a new color in, Abyss, by Wise Owl. I also ordered textured rollers from Artistic Painting Studio, along with some chrome foil and adhesive.  I started by stripping the top and sanding it down so I can apply General Finishes Java Gel stain.  The bottom of the piece got two coats of abyss chalk paint.  I then tried using the texture roller to...

This chest has been in my family for three generations and was built to stand the test of time.  I refinished the exterior in lamp black milk paint and a deep blue with a black glaze that has brought new life and a refreshed style.  I have left some of the decorative molded pieces in natural wood, adding a nice contrast to the black paint. The cedar interior remains unfinished and has that unmistakable fresh cedar fragrance.

Winner- Runner Up in Creative Category of GF 2017...

"I so badly wanted to keep this gorgeous, shabby sofa table, but sadly I had to let it go. Refinished in antique white milk paint with a custom glazed top using seagull gray milk paint and antique walnut stain as a glaze. "

Beautiful Empire dresser with delicate veneer, so a careful refresh was in order.  A light sanding and some Antique Walnut gel stain along with Arm R Seal to protect and its true beauty was brought back to the surface.  

Exterior of the dresser was painted in Milk Paint Antique White. The drawers were painted with a custom blend of Persimmon, Coral Crush and Antique white to create a peachy-pink colour for a little baby girl's nursery.

"I recently finished this gorgeous Indonesian Buffet. I painted this one Black and stained the top, with Java Gel by General Finishes. I had to sand this one down to the bare wood and remove the pink paint the original owner had applied that was pealing off. "