Journal – Page 2 – me & mrs. jones

upstyle your furniture!

March 1, 2015 by Mrs. Jones Admin

uyf!

it’s here – mrs. jones’s first book, upstyle your furniture! uyf is a basic furniture painting & finishing how-to, with detailed tutorials and lots of (hopefully, at least) inspiration via over 300 color images. there’s also a section on embellishing upholstery. i hope you’ll love it! it’s available at both my shop & studio locations, as well as online through amazon and target. loads of smaller bookshops will also be carrying it, too, so please shop local when you can. (of course!)

i had enormous amounts of help from my super-awesome editors, natalia price-cabrera, tamsin richardson and isheeta mustafi at quarto. also owed a huge debt of gratitude: the exceedingly lovely friends (new and old) who contributed case studies: claire chalkley, christy black, meriweather adams, johnelle mancha, chris gatcum, natalia price-cabrera, and kate lancey-smith. and the whole enterprise would have not gotten off the ground without my brilliant agent martha hopkins.

we’ve had a fun weekend of parties and signings…flowers from friends, champagne and cupcakes, media chats, even an interview with my friend erica carpenter at five-thirty home. i’ve enjoyed every minute! but, since i haven’t folded laundry for a solid year now, i’d better get back to real life. (and upstyle my own dishwasher, perhaps.)

while you were out…

November 27, 2014 by Mrs. Jones Admin

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in mrs. jones’s previous work life at a bank, we took phone messages for one another on pink pads like this:

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at the studio, the girls did not leave me a message while i was traveling for a couple of days. instead, catherine, margaret, and jessica re-did a dresser…their message apparently being ‘let’s get on with it!’ here’s the before, from our favorite neighborhood junque shop:

and the after:

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after a good wipe-down, they applied two coats of paint in one of our favorite colors, this verdigris blue.

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because the front of this piece is so flat, it’s a perfect canvas for some pattern. using off-white paint and lisboa tile from royal design studio, the girls created a terrific look. {a little low-tack adhesive spray on the back of the stencil keeps it in place while you’re working, and we love the faded look you get when you offload most of the paint from your stenciling brush and pounce the paint on with a very ‘dry’ brush.}

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a coat of clear wax seals the paint and gives it a beautiful feel.

when in rome

November 5, 2014 by Mrs. Jones Admin

the jones boys recently helped clean a friends’ attic in exchange for a few pieces of furniture…a fantastic deal (for mrs. jones, at least.) one of the chests was something a novice woodworker had made, and after much puzzling, we found that each drawer only fit in one particular spot. when we finally had them right, i said ‘that’s it – we are numbering these drawers!’ to which charlie brilliantly said: ‘mom…what about roman numerals? that might look cool.’

so with a little help from my lovely friends at maison de stencils, roman number templates were soon at hand.

we used water-based paint in a deep blue, covered by a coat of dark gray…a buff off-white for the stencil, and then clear and dark brown tinted wax to seal the paint and add patina. this was a piece in progress when we held a waxing workshop at the studio, and the attendees challenged me to see how far a quarter-cup of wax would go…

using the best brush in my arsenal, i was able to get the whole dresser done with less than the allotted quarter-cup. (just ask…there were plenty of witnesses.) because the brush doesn’t absorb any wax – the way a cloth does – and the bristles are made to firmly but gently sweep the wax into the paint, you can use a very sparing amount and have an easier time of buffing with a totally gorgeous result.

after applying the clear wax, we rubbed the edges gently with 220-grit sandpaper, ‘easing’ the paint back for a bit of distressing…i had already softly distressed the stenciled pattern. then we brushed on a coat of dark brown wax to add more age.

(we left the knobs ‘as is’ for contrast and warmth.)

one final hint…when waxing, it’s easy to forget to let the wax dry overnight and then give it a good buffing, or polishing. but that’s when you bring up the gleam and bring the paint to life! a nice buffing also helps harden the wax and melds it together with the paint.

red desk for a red sox fan

October 29, 2014 by Mrs. Jones Admin

it was a pleasure to paint a desk for a budding young man of letters, whose parents are clients of lovely designer {and friend} susan hughes simpson. they were inspired by a plaid chair in his room, and asked us to re-do a piece from their attic. catherine began by applying two coats of a deep earthy red. once those were dry, susan sketched out the way she wanted the ‘plaid’ to translate to the desktop, and we taped the lines off and filled in with a khaki/tan and sage-y green. a coat of clear wax, buffed to a sheen, seals and protects the paint.

thank you, mr. christian!

October 18, 2014 by Mrs. Jones Admin

i am forever indebted to jonathan christian of signworks, graphic designer and sign wrangler extraordinaire. after putting together a great-looking design for the exterior at the new shop that would meet the strict standards of both the center and the city (and mrs. jones’s budget!) he and the intrepid cat glosson marched our municipal approval through, got the materials ready in no time, and had their crack crew there to install everything early on the morning of our grand opening.

i owe you, jc!

we love lucy

October 13, 2014 by Mrs. Jones Admin

last weekend, to help celebrate our grand opening in germantown, our gorgeous and talented friend lucy farmer came for the party, bringing some of her beautiful, unique jewelry to help glam up the place. she creates each piece using reclaimed architectural bits and vintage bobs.

{it’s kind of not fair that she is as pretty as she is clever. not that mrs. jones is the jealous type…but if lucy wasn’t so truly nice, generous, and funny, we just couldn’t be friends!}

we’re thrilled that she’s agreed to let us carry a selection of her necklaces and cuffs at the new shop. take a peek next time you’re in.

and watch this space for more details this winter on an ‘heirloom treasure’ workshop that lucy is going to do for us in memphis in a few months.

old/new/old doors

October 10, 2014 by Mrs. Jones Admin

mrs. jones has had to be away from custom work for just a bit, but a project for a wonderful neighbor was just too good to pass up. two doors down from the little pink house, an extensive renovation has been under way for several months. my neighbors had found some yummy old doors in new orleans, but the existing paint was a shambles – falling off in chunks – and had to be professionally stripped. the doors arrived at our studio bare, clean, and ready to go, but my lovely clients really wanted the crusty, crumbling look back again. a little paint, plus a secret (!) ingredient, we were able to (almost) replicate the look of years of weather upon layers of paint.

a layer of wax on top of the paint gives it some protection, but we left it barely-buffed and matte for a more authentic weathered look.

they’ve designed a bar/storage area to be hidden behind the doors, mounted on a track, barn-style. i love their minimal-and-clean-but-rustic-and-textured-kitchen.

just horsing around

September 24, 2014 by Mrs. Jones Admin

we had a wonderful time today teaching a workshop in the beautiful new stable at the farm park. a lovely group, a perfect-weather day, and a yummy picnic lunch in the shade on the lawn.

(i’ve got a new subway sign design just for germantown…our new shop opens there in 10 days!)

my lovely germantown team did a great job today…lizzy, lindy, kim & karla…y’all stepped lively!

testing 1, 2, 3

August 14, 2013 by Mrs. Jones Admin

please excuse the technical difficulties and the lack of posts here lately…a stolen laptop & photographs & a steep learning curve with new machines, a son leaving for college and twins beginning high school…it’s all been just enough to derail mrs. jones’s blogging efforts.

there is much to tell from a very productive summer: our interns painted lots of pretty pieces, we doubled the space at the studio and rearranged it all, hosted a training event for miss mustard seed’s milk paint with lovely folks from all over the country and canada, and attended haven – lots learned and gained and done over the past few weeks.

details are coming, i promise! i hope your summer was fabulous and full of fun and that you’ll check back soon.

(above test pattern image from wikipedia.)

the class of 2013

May 20, 2013 by Mrs. Jones Admin

it has really truly happened…our oldest son, will, has graduated from high school. we could not be more proud of him and his classmates.

as the generous shower of thoughtful graduation gifts began, the pressure was on to come up with something worthy with which to reciprocate. as with most occasions when mrs. jones finds her back flat against the wall, the situation called for paint.

i turned to the lovelies at maison de stencil {who will whip up a custom subway sign stencil for you, too…just send a list of the “stops” you would like included, and they will create a template.} for will’s friends, we chose some of their favorite dining spots, their school and other beloved memphis team mascots, and a few city landmarks laid out on two stencils, that we placed end-to-end. mr. jones cut plywood panels to size (12″ x 36″) and we sanded, painted, stenciled, distressed, and waxed until they became dorm room art for these fine young men.

a mix of clear and dark wax was used to seal and antique the painted panels.

my boy will be off to the university of arkansas in fayetteville this fall. {more than paint will be required to get me through that.}

walking in new orleans

April 8, 2013 by Mrs. Jones Admin

lisa rickert of jolie and her team do not mess around when it comes to training, support, and showing their stockists the love. along with “key personnel” kim and jessica, i spent a fantastic week in new orleans soaking up enormous heaps of great information on creativity, painting and the business thereof. during the couple of short breaks that we had, we made mad dashes through the french quarter, the bywater, lakeview, and the university district uptown, literally snapping photos on the fly…jessica, our native guide, knew all the shortcuts. here are some of my favorite color combinations sported by the fearless new orleanians…

but in their fierce climate, the colors don’t stay vibrant without occasional upkeep:

as you know, new orleans is a complete sensory feast…so much to see, smell, taste. hearing music is a big part of the experience there as well…

the gang created a treasure hunt through the shops and galleries on royal street for us one evening, ending with a private party at the presbytere (and crawfish etoufee and bread pudding. divine.) my favorite (non-food-related) stop of the night was at bevolo, where we chatted up a fedora-clad artisan making copper lanterns.

before leaving, we were able to squeeze in a visit with nadine & simon blake (completely lovely mutual friends of thomas jayne’s) whose wonderful shop on royal street is full of goodies for the home. we knew right away that we loved them…how can you not have a crush on someone whose command center includes a pink rotary phone, and carries the cutest canine-related things?

i hope that spying these god’s eyes will bring us luck, and another trip back soon.

mr. jayne visits me & mrs. jones

April 1, 2013 by Mrs. Jones Admin

way better than anything that would have fit into mrs. jones’s easter basket was a weekend visit by thomas jayne. (frequent readers already know of my unabashed admiration for him…detailed here, here and here.) thomas generously took time away from his family to greet his memphis friends and fans and sign copies of his gorgeous new book, american decoration. it’s no small feat to fit his 6-foot 6-inch frame (and even larger personality) into our little coop, but we did, and it was a wonderful afternoon.

after signing dozens of books, thomas was kind enough to speak for a few minutes on decoration in our region, and, more specifically, on the use of painted furniture (ahem!) as a potentially key bespoke element in a room’s scheme. entertaining questions in his typically thoughtful/insightful/cheeky way, he did happen to also point out that mrs. jones is not a painted lady, but a painting lady. (so there, those who think that we are teaching zumba lessons at the studio!) (he also left a note on my board to that effect. right next to a clipping about himself. as i said: cheeky.)

once we’d plied him with just a teensy bit of champagne, thomas also gave up the key to his fabulous pied-a-terre in the french quarter, where we were (coincidentally…or not?) headed the day after next. though we did not impose upon his hospitality with a prolonged stay, we were very tempted to push the limits of squatters’ rights…every inch is de-lish…an unforgettable and completely inspiring space! another post will follow soon with some of my favorite new orlean-ian color combos, but for now here is a little taste of the most perfect apartment on the planet:

many thanks to all of you who came to enjoy the afternoon with us.

glam armoire sneak peek

March 12, 2013 by Mrs. Jones Admin

we’re on spring break out west this week (more details coming) but here are a couple of process shots of one of a pair of armoires i’ll be finishing as soon as i get home…beautifully custom built for my lovely client with the guidance of jill sartelle street, they will house all of her family’s entertainment gadgetry. the finish is layers of buff-colored and soft-white paints with a layer of clear wax and then another coat of wax tinted just a little. gilt wax highlights the details. full “afters” coming soon, along with beautiful hardware and gilded metal stands.

crusty gray mirror frame

February 26, 2013 by Mrs. Jones Admin

here is a quick glimpse at a mirror frame done this week for a lovely client who has just finished a bathroom remodeling project. she loves her mirror for the shape, size and scale (and mrs. jones does too) but the existing finish no longer suited the renewed space.

a quick coat of gray paint was first. a spotty resist layer of vaseline and paste wax followed, applied with a chip brush, just to the higher areas on the frame. then, miss mustard seed’s milk paint in typewriter, lightened up with a dash of ironstone. the hoped-for crackling and peeling happened overnight as the paint dried, encouraged along with a piece of coarse steel wool this morning.

topped with raw-umber-tinted glaze to seal and mellow the finish out a bit, it’s ready to go home again. (onsite photos have been promised.)

shameless

February 7, 2013 by Mrs. Jones Admin

someone out there (thank you!) kindly nominated my journal for a homie award at apartment therapy in the home project & diy category. so, if you would like to, hop over and cast a vote. (note: you’ll have to scroll pretty far down the page!)

(this concludes my shameless self-promotional plug for the day. you may now return to your regularly scheduled web-surfing.)