Blue buffet

I had not painted a buffet in a blue color before so I thought it was time to do that! I mixed together some colors to achieve the blue. I mixed Annie Sloan aubusson blue, florence and greek blue. It is a like a turquoise color, not as much green though.

Here is the before:

I stripped the top because there was damage there from water marks. I used 80 grit sandpaper first (with an electric sander) to get the majority of the stain and lacquer off. Then I used 120 grit and then 220 grit. I finished with 400 grit.

I then applied General Finishes gel stain in candlelite as it has a bit of an orange tint to it. I chose that because I already planned on using copper as the highlights on this buffet so I thought the candlelite would go well with copper.

I first applied wood conditioner. You can also use mineral spirits, which is what General Finishes recommends. Once the conditioner dried I applied the first coat of gel stain. I apply gel stain with a staining pad. I buy my pads from Woodcraft. Over the staining pad I put on a knee high. It helps to keep everything smooth.

In between the coats (on this one I used 2 coats) let dry according to the directions on the can.

I then applied the gel topcoat for the sealer. I like it best as it is oil based which means it is tougher and stronger than a water based sealer.

You want to make sure you are following drying instructions in between the stains and the sealers.

I applied 4 coats of the sealer to the top.

I have lots of how to videos on my YouTube channel on staining, topcoating the stain, painting, etc.

For the base I mixed the Annie Sloan colors greek blue, aubusson blue and florence. I then sealed with clear wax and then for the 2nd coat I added black wax so that I could achieve the areas of black for depth. Some people find wax tricky but wax is the best sealer as it is so tough and durable. You can buy my wax tutorial if you need help.

I added copper gilding wax to the hardware for that extra touch of copper.