This coastal cutie caught my attention on Marketplace and I just had to have it!  It was stained so bad from cigarette smoke it looked like it was yellow.  Even scrubbing with vinegar and baking soda didn’t remove it!  It reeked of smoke as well.

What do you think of Sunshine now???

 After scrubbing each and every surface, including the back and interior, with vinegar and water, I wiped it down with clean water and let it dry. 

As you can see from the original images, this is a two-piece hutch which makes it much easier to move and haul.  There are brackets on the back you can fasten once you get it set up to keep the hutch from tipping or sliding off the base.

I applied a coat of clear shellac to every square inch of this piece, inside and out to block the smoke odor and prevent any bleed through from the smoke stains.  Then, I applied two coats of white primer.

I wanted to keep the coastal vibe of this piece by starting with Linen White as a base coat, blended with streaks of Country Grey and Classic Taupe to give it a driftwood look.  I had a hard time finding a spot in my house to take the pics of this piece that wasn’t shadowy.  These images don’t really showcase the colors at all, you really have to see it in person!

I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do on the drawers to create some contrast but I settled on painting them Linen White and just brushed the tops of the palm appliques with Seaside Villa which is a light aqua color.  I also applied Seaside Villa to the scalloped detail on the hutch and to the bottom of each drawer on the inside.  I added some tropical stenciling to the sides of the drawers for a touch of whimsy.

The drawer pulls that I thought were palm trees when I spied this hutch on Marketplace, are actually just regular drawer pulls.  The part that looks like the tree trunk is the only part that detaches.  The decorative palms that the pulls screw into are wooden appliques that are permanently attached to the drawers.  I brushed the tops of them with Seaside Villa and sprayed the metal pull section with flat metallic Burnished Amber.   I think they add a subtle tropical look to the hutch.  

I found a new Minwax Polycrylic I wanted to try called Clear Ultra Flat.  I stupidly assumed that there would be no shiny finish to something called Ultra Flat but I was wrong!  When the sealer dried I had a glossy finish which is NOT what I was going for at all!  So, I lightly hand-sanded and then repainted the entire thing! 😑  (Note to self:  Always test new products on scrap wood first.)  This time I finished it with Rustoleum Chalked in Matte Clear sealer.

I staged Sunshine as a liquor storage hutch, but she would make a cute addition to any coastal decor and could be used as a dresser/bookshelf combo, a desk, or a dining room storage hutch.

Products used:

• Zinsser shellac – clear
• B.I.N. primer – white
• Rustoleum Chalked – Linen White
• Rustoleum Chalked – Country Grey
• Rustoleum Chalked – Classic Taupe
• Rustoleum Chalked – Matte Clear
• Rustoleum Metallic spray – Burnished Amber
• Folk Art Home Decor – Seaside Villa