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How to Get rid of the Blues with a Blue Daybed

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Disclosure: I was compensated for doing this post with product.  However, all the opinions stated here are my own. I only use products I love and would recommend to my viewers.
I’ve been working on transforming my small apartment space for the past few months. We had an old wood bed that we wanted to use as a daybed but it was in desperate  need of a makeover. Because this may have been in style 20 years ago but now it stuck out like a sore thumb in the room. 

If you have been following me you know that I am on a quest to make this room brighter and happier.  Here in Greece we are used to the bright light and blue skies and when autumn rolls around it can feel gloomy for us.  But with a bit of paint I hope to create a fun happy room that will shoo away those blues. 

Now that sounds kind of funny considering that blue is one of the predominant colors in the room but you get the idea! We are going to get rid of the blues with a blue daybed.

Old wooden twin bed, How to Get Rid of the Blues with a Blue Daybed www.theboondocksblog.com

What I used:

  • DecoArt Americana Decor chalky finish paint in Everlasting
  • sand paper
  • DecoArt Americana Decor chalky finish paint in Escape
  • DecoArt Metallics in Champagne
  • ​water to dilute the paint
  • my homemade beeswax

​​

chalky type paint How to Get Rid of the Blues with a Blue Daybed www.theboondocksblog.com

The How To:

Since the wood had a glossy finish to it, I sanded it down just a bit so the chalky paint would stick better. 
slats of bed, How to Get Rid of the Blues with a Blue Daybed www.theboondocksblog.com
After three coats it was done. But as pretty as that everlasting white may have been, I wanted something more.  You​ see one side of the headboard and foot board was flat…
headboard painted white How to Get Rid of the Blues with a Blue Daybed www.theboondocksblog.com
…but the other side had carvings to emulate the shape of the boards.
foot board with carved work, How to Get Rid of the Blues with a Blue Daybed www.theboondocksblog.com
I painted the carvings with the Americana Escape which is a beautiful blue. But I wanted a softer look so for the central panel, I added water to the paint and did a white wash, or in this case a blue wash. 
painting the carved area, How to Get Rid of the Blues with a Blue Daybed www.theboondocksblog.com
I just kept on randomly dragging brush strokes across the panel.  I was trying to emulate a look of blue clouds.
painting the raised area blue, How to Get Rid of the Blues with a Blue Daybed www.theboondocksblog.com
And then this happened!  And I loved it so much I tried to create more drops.
layers of blue painted on headboard, How to Get Rid of the Blues with a Blue Daybed www.theboondocksblog.com
And I got so carried away … I ended up with this!
additional blue layers, How to Get Rid of the Blues with a Blue Daybed www.theboondocksblog.com
And then I really went over board and watered down some acrylic paint in champagne which is a metallic color. I brushed that on too.  It gave a fine shimmer to the whole panel. Almost as if it had been kissed by champagne dust. 
mixing metallic champagne with water, How to Get Rid of the Blues with a Blue Daybed www.theboondocksblog.com
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Can you see the different shades and depth of the panel?
the headboard with layers of blue and metallic, How to Get Rid of the Blues with a Blue Daybed www.theboondocksblog.com
The final step was to distress it in areas to give it some more depth and then apply my homemade wax to seal everything in​A close up of the headboard.
finished headboard, How to Get Rid of the Blues with a Blue Daybed www.theboondocksblog.com
This technique is not for everyone but I particularly like it because it reminds me of the sea and the calm look of the bay.  I had to stop myself from drawing a little boat on there.
detail of painted daybed, How to Get Rid of the Blues with a Blue Daybed www.theboondocksblog.com
And here it is in the small apartment.  We are using it as a daybed.  You can also see  the ​bookcases I had painted a while back. And to the left of the daybed is the doily top side table.  I’ll be sharing the rest of the work in the small apartment in the coming weeks, so this is just one corner of the space.  
the painted daybed in the small apartment, How to Get Rid of the Blues with a Blue Daybed www.theboondocksblog.com
And so ends my story of how I managed to turn a dull wood bed into a fun daybed. Of course there was nothing wrong with the bed, but as you can guess it would have weighted down the rest of the room.  I think that these pretty blues are so much fun and add a note of cheer to the room. 

Would you have gone ahead and added a drawing of a boat?

how to paint a wood twin bed and turn it into a happy daybed, How to Get Rid of the Blues with a Blue Daybed www.theboondocksblog.com
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Keri Roberts

Wednesday 25th of October 2017

Mary, I love the effects you gave the headboard! It looks wonderful! Those blue tones are so lovely and soothing, what a beautiful space you've created!!

Mary

Wednesday 25th of October 2017

Keri it was quite a stretch for me but sometimes you have to try new things and see how the work out.

Katerina Konstantinou

Monday 2nd of October 2017

Great work Mary! It's bright and blue like a Greek island!

Mary

Tuesday 3rd of October 2017

Exactly Katerina! Just what I wanted to depict!

Linda at Mixed Kreations

Monday 2nd of October 2017

I hate to hear that you are having the blues Mary! I hope painting the daybed helped in getting rid of them. The bed turned out really pretty, you did a great job on it. I love the way you did the blue, and I love the distressing. Yes you should of went ahead and painted a boat. Then when you feel blue you can imagin your on the boat. 😊

Mary

Tuesday 3rd of October 2017

What a fun thought Linda. I wanted to keep things light and fun with this room so that in the winter when we only have a few hours of daylight we can still feel happy instead of feeling gloomy. I think most Greeks thrive on the sunshine.

Debrashoppeno5

Monday 2nd of October 2017

The daybed is so lovely. It certainly does look like water.

Mary

Tuesday 3rd of October 2017

Yay, that is what I wanted to hear. Thank you Debra!

Florence

Monday 2nd of October 2017

I liked the natural wood actually, but I LOVE the whitewash, and the blue in the middle is very cheery. It does remind you of the sea. Adding a boat would have been fine too, especially if you can draw. I can't.

Mary

Tuesday 3rd of October 2017

If I had left it with the natural wood it would have stuck out like a sore thumb. I also have no problem with the natural look, but in this case it just did not belong. Btw, I am not a drawer either but that never stops me. ;)

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