It's a BABY

Introducing...

Stiltskin Studios

 Baby & Child

Our new collection of nursery and children's furnishings, decor, 

bedding and a few other surprises!

In addition to already-finished pieces,

we are also custom painting cribs, changing tables, 

and toddler beds to coordinate

Not sure what you want?

Nursery and children's custom room design also available

Available exclusively through 

607 Vintage Marketplace

607 Clearwater Largo Road

Largo, FL

Whitewashed Grey Dresser

I was down with Strep Throat for almost TWO WEEKS...

I'm not sure what was worse...the Strep or not painting!

(OK, Strep was the hands down worst of the two...)

I was incredibly eager to get back to work

This dresser had been awaiting paint for several weeks

and I'm quite pleased with the outcome

The wood was pretty enough, but sort of orange and quite dated

I debated on going very fancy with colored panels and gold leaf details

but I've been craving softness and gentle distressing lately

For this soft, romantic finish I mixed 

AHaH's Luxe Grey One Step Paint (OSP)

 with Black OSP

(3/1 ratio)

Then I glazed the paint using White Glaze from General Finishes

The white slightly lightened the grey, 

settling into the recesses and brush strokes

You could use a glaze, like I did, or a white wax,
 or even a watered down white wash
all would give you a similar look
I like to use what I have on hand, and I had glaze

I lightly distressed the edges while the glaze was still a bit damp

then sealed the entire piece with clear wax once dry

The hardware was painted Ballet White OSP

then waxed and finished with Dust of Ages for a lovely patina

Wouldn't this piece make a wonderful bathroom vanity?  

Available at 607 Vintage MarketPlace

Thanks for stopping by!

Michele

Sometimes, Less is More

So...this bed

So many options!

I struggled for weeks over what color/finish it "needed"

I finally settled on Luxe Grey from Amy Howard at Home

highlighted with white and some gold leaf

In theory, it worked

In reality, it was a lot of "look"

 if you know what I mean

The bed just didn't need it!

I switched gears, keeping the Luxe Grey

but highlighting with only Dust of Ages

So. Many. Details.

This bed took me WEEKS

(primarily because I could NOT work on it continuously...had to break it up!)

In retrospect, it's totally worth it

(well, it WILL be worth it when it sells!)

I had BIG plans to stage this bed...

a queen sized air mattress, pretty ruffled bedding, lots of pillows

HOWEVER,

I had a BIT of trouble setting it up alone!

So for now, it's staged just like you see it in the above photo...propped against the wall!

This gorgeous tallboy seemed like an ideal companion for the bed

It's just a "little" fancy...so it doesn't compete 

with the Baroque fabulousness of the bed

I wanted the hardware to look like antique, tarnished silver...

I'm really quite pleased with how it all came together...

proof that sometimes, 

less really is more 

Thanks for stopping by!

Michele

Overcast

It's raining buckets today in "sunny" Florida

The skies are grey and cloudy

The perfect day to introduce you to our newest Real Milk Paint color

OVERCAST

This little wash-stand has the sweetest details...

Doesn't the detail at the top remind you of waves?

We opted for a slightly cottage/beachy vibe

(watching the clouds roll in at the beach in the summer is always AMAZING...

and those memories inspired this piece)

OVERCAST is the perfect grey, in my opinion...

mid-range, not too cool, not too warm

not too dark, not too light

as Goldilocks would say, "it's just right"!

We dry-brushed a bit of watered down white milk paint to provide a beachy feel

and add some contrast

As always, milk paint distresses naturally and beautifully

The outside might look old and distressed

but inside, the drawers are minty fresh and clean!

If you haven't checkout out the new colors from Real Milk Paint Company,

we encourage you to do so...and thanks for stopping by!

Toscana Powder Paint

It's no secret that we LOVE to get our hands dirty

with new products...

particularly when the products AMAZE US

We've been consistently thrilled and impressed by 

Amy Howard Home's product lines

(and the bar was set PRETTY high...we don't impress easily!)

One Step wowed us

then, the Lacquer Sprays...

so of course, we could NOT wait

to get our hands on Amy's Casein (milk) Paint...Toscana!

Amy's artisans create INCREDIBLE finishes using this paint, along with some ancillary products

(photo courtesy of Amy Howard Home)

We figured we'd break you in gently...

and show you a project using JUST the Toscana paint

(we'll be offering classes on how to use all the Toscana products in March!)

Toscana is quite simple to use...if you've used any milk paint before, this is much the same

you mix with water 

(we LOVE that the container has enough room to add water, seal, and shake to mix!)

We prefer our paint a bit on the thick side, so we start with a 3/1 ration of paint to water

adjusting as needed

The piece we selected was solid wood, and we did NOTHING to the existing finish

(old stain and some sort of clear lacquer)

The biggest obstacle to success with milk paint is in selecting the proper piece...

this is NOT the paint we'd select for shiny finishes, laminate, etc

So anyway, we mixed it up, and applied in a very haphazard, sloppy manner

sort of squishing it in here and there instead of brushing it smooth

The finish you see took three coats

We love the variations of texture and color!

For even more patina, we used Amy's Antique Glaze

which is very thin and light

(translation: EASY and FORGIVING)

It really brought so much depth to the finish 

without dramatically altering the lovely, soft shade

Once dry, we sealed with our favorite Carnauba wax

Toscana is available in a lovely selection of colors and retails for $20/8oz

We are SO terribly excited to be travelling to Memphis, TN in a few weeks

to meet Amy Howard and the rest of her team

A bit about Amy Howard, in case you didn't already know!

Her company, Amy Howard Home, has been around for almost a quarter of a century

(they are most definitely NOT new to this!)

The paints we retail, and the finishes you can achieve with them,

are the very same that have been used on Amy's gorgeous reproduction pieces

For some inspiration, visit 

Amy Howard Home 

and of course Amy Howard at Home

Thanks for stopping by, and happy painting! 

Kenny and Michele

Grey Linen Cottage Dresser

I was minding my own business yesterday,

headed back to the store with my lunch

(on foot)

when I wandered into an antique shop along the way

Tarpon Ave is LOADED with antique shops

and this one in particular has been having a

GOING OUT OF BUSINESS

sale for about a year 

There, amid all the glassware and smalls,

sat this cutie

Since it was only a few blocks from shop to shop 

(theirs to ours)

I grabbed our dolly and hoped for the best!

Happily, the dresser and I both made it back to our store in one piece!

(the old brick roads and narrow sidewalks are not dresser friendly!)

I hoped to preserve the wood top, but there was veneer damage and some deep stains

so I accepted the fact that it needed paint and got busy,

saving the top for last

(hoping for some sort of inspiration!)

The body is painted in Amy Howard Home's One Step Paint

in Luxe Grey (LOVE) and the details, as well as the two large drawers

are painted in Bauhaus Buff (also AHH)

There seems to be a misconception that One Step paint can't be distressed,

which clearly is NOT the case, as this piece has moderate distressing along the edges

One Step Paint doesn't unintentionally distress

(you know, like when you're buffing and the paint comes off the raised areas 

even though you didn't want it to?)

so you'll have to apply gentle pressure with a medium grit sanding block for this effect

(haven't tried other methods yet, will update as we do)

Instead of wax, I chose to finish this piece off with a glaze

Once dry, I gently sanded the surface for a weathered look

As I was sanding some paint off the lip of the top, I started LOVING

the look of the wood, just that frame around the top

so I taped it off before I painted the top of the dresser

then glazed the whole thing to add richness to the wood without making it look too "new"

(don't you think it looks sort of weird when the body is distressed and the top is all shiny and perfect?)

 (as you can see, the new drawer stops were added AFTER I took pics...OOPS!)

The hardware sort of disappeared against the wood, 

but now, it's showcased so beautifully

The mirror is also original, and has all the patina you'd hope for in a piece of it's age

I highlighted the layers surrounding the mirror for a bit of added detail

I'm head over heels in love with this dresser...it's a perfect fit for my home

if only it actually FIT somewhere in my home...isn't that always the trouble?

Alas, you can find this piece in our Etsy Shop