French Twist | Gold Leaf Drippy Design
, by Gene Howard, 3 min reading time
Amy Howard At Home Contributor, Tamara Hudson, is here to show us how she created the piece she calls "French Twist".....
I call this "French Twist" It's a classic vintage French Provincial chest of drawers with a modern Twist!
Products (click below to shop):
Clean Slate
One Step in Black
Gilding Size
Gold Leaf
Mind Your Own Beeswax
Step One:
I found this 3 drawer chest at Goodwill for $14.99 and I knew it would make the PERFECT bedside table for AND provide extra storage. I snatched that tag before anyone else could, bought her and took her home. The first thing I did was clean her up with Clean Slate.
Step Two:
I applied 2 even coats of Black One Step paint to the entire piece.
Step Three:
I started applying Gilding Size with a china chip bristle brush in sections across the top of the chest. I only put enough size down to cover an entire row. I let it set a few minutes to let the size get tacky before applying the Gold Leaf.
Step Four:
I applied full sheets of gold leaf. I worked from left to right in a row. I lined them up side by side. I had measured before I started and the top of my piece would perfectly hold 6 sheets across. I repeated this process until the entire top was covered. Then I did one full row on each side and across the front too.
Step Five:
I used an artist brush to lay down more size on the sides and front to make it look like the gold leaf would be dripping down. I cut the gold leaf booklet into smaller rows to make it easier to work with. I also finished off the edges and any little spots that I may have missed along the way. I just kept adding Gilding Size anywhere I thought I needed more Gold Leaf. I fussed with this a bit until I was happy with the coverage. It's so easy - just remember that you don't have to get it PERFECT the first time. You can always add more size and more gold leaf it blends nicely.
Step Six:
I applied Mind Your Own Beeswax everywhere there was Black One Step Paint. I chose to keep the rest of the chest solid black, even the handles to give it a more sleek modern look. Remember to always off load wax from your brush before applying to your piece of furniture.
Step Seven:
While I waited for the wax to come to tack I added the 2 new gold and acrylic pulls for the top drawer. It only took about 20 minutes then I used a white lint-free rag and I buffed the wax. I always say this is when the magic happens! Buffing the wax does 2 things, it hardens the wax for protection and it gives your piece a beautiful soft sheen. It really is magical.
Step Eight:
I immediately asked Josh(my husband) to help me move it into the bedroom so I could set it up by the bed. I wanted to stay up all night staring at it and ENJOYING THE BRAGGING RIGHTS!
