Distressed

Bonjour from Campagne Maison

Many hours of "behind the scene" work took place before we finally got moved into Campagne Maison. Two of my sisters, their husbands, and my niece pulled a YEAR of weekends, vacation days, and after-work hours to help prepare the "bones" of the house for our arrival. In between the time of us getting our home in Arkansas ready for sale and tying up loose ends, spending as much time as possible with our two sons and grandchildren, we came as often as possible to help.

One of my sisters sat at a burn pit so much that we officially named her The Fire Starter. Her husband installed all the central heating, air-conditioning, and plumbing as well as miscellaneous carpenter work. My other brother-in-law pulled out all the old electric wiring and re-wired the entire house and the outside buildings and istalled all new lighting. The other sister fit in where needed, cleaning, running errands, and making sure that everyone got fed. We called her CWIC...chief woman in charge. My family, all of them, are just that way. When the ox is in the ditch, we get it out! We all work together and if we ever disagree, it is soon worked out and forgotten, and we get back to the task at hand. I guess that is just part of being raised in a family of nine children. You just bond.

My niece, who has been blessed with so many talents that it is unreal, is my partner in design. I call her the Design Diva. She can do ANYTHING! She wears many hats–several of them at the same time. As a surprise for me, she used my 3 R rules and "re-purposed, re-finished, and re-cycled" the farmhouse kitchen cabinets. Knowing that I am a huge fan of the Shabby Chic style, after cleaning and prepping all the cabinets, she painted them Butter Cream, strategically distressed them, applied an Asian Spice glaze, and finished them off with several coats of sealer. She cleaned all the hardware and spray painted it with a nickel finish. I absolutely love them!

For more information about Shabby Chic and designer Rachel Ashwell, go to http://www.shabbychic.com/our_heritage.html

While this is not a style that everyone likes, it is exactly the look I wanted for MY kitchen AND the total cost of the project came in around $ 50.00. Wait ‘til you see the tiled backsplash....

Please leave a comment so that I’ll know you visited with me today.

Au revoir,