A Marzipan Milk Painted Trunk

I picked up this gorgeous wooden trunk during my last trip to Consign it Furniture in Kennett Square.

The original finish had become "gatored" over time.

It had beautiful trim on the lid.

The inside was beautiful, despite scuffs and scratches.

The only problem was that the back of the trunk was bowed, causing the lid to fit awkwardly.

Marc and I went back and forth about how to get it to fit properly. (We actually got into a bit of an argument over it.) I was being impatient and just wanted to jump right into the painting part, but Marc suggested we create some shims. This required a quick run to my Mom and Dad's house, and I just wanted to get on with it. Marc convinced me to be patient and in the end, it was the right decision. We truly make a fantastic partnership - especially when it comes to business stuff.

Once the trunk was structurally sound again, I mixed up some of Miss Mustard Seed's Milk Paint in Marzipan. This warm neutral is named after the almond paste that is used to make Marzipan cookies and confectionary goodies.

My favorite way of mixing Miss Mustard Seed's Milk Paint is using a mini whisk. You can use a stir stick or an electric blender, but I find that the whisk helps to break up the lumps a bit better.

Things were looking better immediately!

Here's the trunk after one coat,

and here's a second coat going on.

The trunk took 3 coats of Marzipan total. Once the paint was taken care of, I turned my attention to the inside. I used Howard's Restor-A-Finish and some steel wool to revive the tired finish and make the scuff marks disappear.

I used the "Neutral" color and it worked like a champ. If you've never used this product to revive the finish on your wood pieces, you're really missing out. It's perfect to use if you don't want to strip and sand a surface. It helps to revive what's already there.

Once the paint had dried, the top started chipping.

I used 100 grit sandpaper and gently helped the chipping bits come off.

It was a bit messy, so I gave it a good once over with my vacuum.

I also hit the rest of the trunk with the sandpaper. The gatored texture was a perfect surface for distressing.

Whenever I have a piece that turns out chippy, I usually seal it with Miss Mustard Seed's Tough Coat. It's the perfect water-based topcoat to use because it's non-yellowing and it dries to a matte finish.

After putting the original handles back on, my Marzipan trunk was all ready for her photo shoot.

It's all chipped to perfection - especially the top.

Even the bottom distressed beautifully.

The original handles really pop now against the Marzipan.

The shims are holding up perfectly and you can't really see them anymore now that they're painted the same color as everything else.

I used two of my bigger lanterns to stage the trunk.

And one of my favorite wooden signs.

Here's the before and after. This is my favorite shot! It says it all.