Have you ever had an idea for a project, but you weren’t sure about it? Well that’s been me. I wanted to paint there candlesticks for a long, long time. These are antique and brass.
They are very pretty, but I felt the fireplace needed a bit of a new look. I used the Cote d’Azure Toscana paint from Amy Howard, available HERE. I added water to the powder to make the paint. You add the water sparingly until the paint is like a pancake batter.
You can see how dark it is when it goes on, but it lightens up a lot.
It’s a softer look. I decided I didn’t even need candles. I did not use a wax finish. But it is highly recommended that you do to protect your finish. I was going to do more to the finish, but really like it as is. I did not worry about getting the paint in every little crack and crevice.
And here is the fireplace mantle after I went with soft colors.
I am really loving the new look. I’m not saying it will look this way forever, but I’m really enjoying the change.
Here’s a fun before and after. It shows the before and after on the candlesticks and the redo of the cabinets.
For the post on the cabinet redo CLICK HERE.
You can find this paint in my online store, HERE.
The paint was provided by Amy Howard at Home.
For my full disclosure policy, CLICK HERE.
This is part of my DIY TIPS AND TRICKS monthly event.
To see what my incredibly talented and awesome friends are up to, see below!
Posts are fun and informative, but OH, the ads are so distracting! Hard to follow along with the content when getting bombarded as you are reading. I subscribe to your blog and other blogs because I appreciate and am interested in what you present. Would it not be possible to cut down on the advertising so that reading blogs would be completely enjoyable?! Frustrating!
Logan, I am sorry you don’t like the ads. Please keep in mind that the ads help pay my expenses for running this blog that I provide to my readers for free. I pour my heart and soul into it, and work nonstop on it from morning until night. If I removed the ads, I would have to either start charging you or stop doing the blog altogether. We bloggers provide free content many days a week. The blog is very expensive to run. I have hosting expenses, I pay an assistant to help with odds and ends, I have to buy products to showcase on the blog, I pay a LOT of money to the company that I use to send out emails. There are a lot of online services I use for my blog that cost me quite a bit each month. We basically produce a full magazine every month by ourselves with no help. Think of a magazine staff – writers, photographers, editors, stylists and we do it all. Then they have the people who handle the marketing, and subscriptions and the ads. They also have ads and you pay for the magazine. Please keep in mind that we bloggers do this all for free. Without ads, the free blog content will go away. I also have an online store and when the store makes enough money to cover my blog expenses I could possibly stop the ads. So if you want the ads to go away please support the blog by buying from my shop.
Logan when the adds pop up and seam bothersome to you, you can simply ex-(X) them out and carry on with beautiful inspiration…don’t let the adds distract you form hard work in what a designer goes through to create beauty Rustic and charming that may inspire something from you.
Enjoy all Anita, inspires here.
Xx
Fondly,
Doré
French q
Artist/désigner
I have a friend with a blog and she has to pay to have it…I never realised this…so I am more tolerant of ads now and x them out if I am not interested…
It is a small thing when we get so much enjoyment and knowledge from all you lovely ladies!
Keep up the great work…youoften make my day?
Thanks Kaye. Yes my monthly expenses would probably shock most readers.
Your post has inspired me to paint my brass lamps. Love the results! I keep looking at them and know they can be so much prettier and style current. Thanks!
Sandra
http://www.lowcountryfelicitylife.com
Love the change Anita,
The washed grey feels so rural and rustic, truly like a French chateau.
I have this same wash of grey feel to some of my pieces, where ever I am in the day in my home I can dream of France and living life in the country side.
See you and your creative beauty soon.
Xx
Dore
Really enjoyed this post! I had no idea that could be done and really like the overall finished look.
Thanks!
I recently painted a brass lamp that had been hanging out in the garage forever. Love how it turned out.
That’s fabulous Debbie.
I painted some brass candle sticks a few years ago – I LOVE THEM!
Love your blog – wondering if you ever share other blogger posts or would be interested in working together on some posts?
Jodi, I have a few groups I work with, but I’m not the organizer of the groups. Thanks for asking!!!
Oh my!
I can’t begin to tell you how much I enjoy receiving your newsletter….and these repainted candlesticks are to die for!
I had not thought of painting the brass candlesticks. I find them in thrift stores thinking now if they weren’t so brassy there might be some personality.
Thank you or this idea.
What other blogs do you have. This one is great and would love to read whatever else you have.
Thank you.
Love the look of the painted candlesticks–especially the grey. I had found a candlestick lamp base in a thrift shop that needed lots of reworking to be a lamp, but it works great as a hatstand. Think I’ll try some paint as well.
Anita, love the idea of painting the brass candlesticks. Again you inspired me.
Deb.
Anita, would you tell your editor that mantel is spelled with an -el, just as in the word shelf. A mantle is something totally different.
Once when you were in Round Top I missed getting to see you. I would have liked that.
Hi Anita,
I love these candlesticks, which are truly beautiful, painted or not.
Do you recall which color paint you used? Was it the Marche Gray or the Pompeii Gray or even Strasbourg White?
I wonder if this paint would help revive an 80s brass chandelier in my dining room.
Thanks for the inspiration and happy holidays!
I don’t remember the exact color. It was a blue milk paint I think. I suspect you could use it on your brass chandelier.
Am I the only one who would NEVER paint my pretty brass candlesticks? Wood, yes. If you had a “change of heart” you can easily remove the paint. Is “paint” a phase?… Painting is easier and faster than refinishing and restoring the beautiful wood grain. So much faster and easier. Paint can transform “ugly” furniture, I realize. I cringe when gorgeous wood grain is covered with paint as I see on many of the blogs I subscribe to. Will we look upon the “all white” and gray’s and neutral’s in 4-5 years and ask, “What was I thinking?” Just saying….
Sherry, I also don’t like the idea of painting everything. The candlesticks are painted with milk paint. I think it would come off with a good washing. I didn’t use any sealer on it. I don’t think it would take more than a soft brush and water to remove the paint. I like a mix of painted and stained wood. I agree that white and gray is trendy now, and won’t always be. I will probably stick with neutral furniture though even when it’s not popular. I haven’t painted very many pieces of furniture, so I’m not worried about regrets there. I think I only have a handful of things I’ve painted. But I agree if people paint a lot of their furniture, they may be sad later. We just did a podcast on trends and it was all about investing in what you love, because things that are trendy now, won’t be in 5 years.
I have a pair of antique brass candlesticks that I would never think of painting. But I also have a couple of candlesticks that I wouldn’t mind trying to paint. Some things are classics and will always come back in style. The same goes for furniture. I have my mother’s mahogany cedar chest that I’m going to try painting white after the holidays. I normally wouldn’t paint a beautiful wood surface but the finish on this piece has had it so it makes perfect sense to give it a try. The beauty of the current trend is to see how you can merge the old and new together rather than having all matching pieces, i.e. all paint or all finished wood.