Quirki Stuff is all about making preloved pieces of furniture quirky and loved again.  Sue and her husband Les have numerous pieces for sale on the Quirki Stuff website from telephone seats to shelving units to mantel clocks and re-upholstered chairs. They will also to work to commission so if you have a piece of furniture or even a small item lurking in the shed, that you’ve been meaning to do up for years,do give them a call. They will also source furniture and restore it to your specification if you wish too.

In order to provide you with the full  description of the services provided and to demonstrate their talents and keen eye, I decided to interview Sue for the blog. I hope you enjoy reading it.

1 Your pieces are certainly quirky, what do you think makes a traditional wooden piece of furniture so much more attractive when it is painted in a bright colour?

Some traditional wooden pieces of furniture have really interesting lines and details which respond very well to bright colours. These are the types of pieces that we tend to gravitate towards. The colours enhance the existing features, by making the lines more defined, highlighting the curves and creating interesting shadows. We are big fans of the Memphis Group who applied vibrant colours to furniture items specifically to emphasise the shape of the pieces.

But we certainly don’t advocate painting every piece of wooden furniture. In fact, we love wood, particularly wood that is a lighter shade and warm toned. If a piece has attractive wood we often strip it back and varnish or wax it…so that it becomes a feature. For example, in our upholstered pieces we often like to let the fabric do the talking (colour wise) and tend to strip and varnish the wooden components. However, much of the mid-century furniture that we work with is either veneered or dark stained timber, often damaged and sometimes requiring reconstruction…so more often than not, paint is the best option.

2 I can still remember stripping furniture of its paint back in the 90s, why has painted furniture become so popular again do you think?

We can remember that too…and very hard work it was! We think there are a number of reasons why painted furniture is enjoying renewed popularity. One reason is because it offers a (reasonably priced) alternative to discarding pieces when they become dated or you become bored with them. Recycling and upcycling are the order of the day.

Another reason is that it enables you to revitalise and transform a room with a splash of colour, provided by one strategically placed piece of furniture.

Also, now that houses are becoming regarded as homes rather than a commodity to be traded on, we have noticed that people are more willing to experiment with colour. There are more people who want their homes to say something about themselves other than “I want to be like everybody else.” Colour is the best way to personalise your home and to express your personality and painted furniture is one of the most effective vehicles for this.

3 Do you use a special type of paint or method of painting? Are they primed, undercoated etc (i.e. is there a danger of the paint chipping off or are they quite robust)?

We have experimented with a huge range of materials and techniques over the years. However, at the moment our favourite medium is spray painting. (Les actually spent many of his school holidays – in the far distant past – learning how to spray paint cars…so he has quite a bit of expertise!)

We aim for a finish that is smooth (needless to say no visible brush strokes, runs, drips etc) and lustrous, allowing the grain of the wood to show through if appropriate. But at the same time we don’t want the piece to be so highly finished that you can’t see its history. We try to use paints that are somewhere between matt and satin so that the colours are at their most vibrant and luminous.

For spray painting we use enamel spray paint that is weather and uv resistant, has excellent flexibility, good scratch resistance and strong adhesion. In addition, we always leave pieces to harden for at least a week. If a piece is to be used in a bathroom or needs to be particularly hard wearing, we apply a clear protective finish.

 For this type of finish thorough preparation is vital. Whatever type of paint is being used the surface has to be prepared sufficiently to provide a key for the paint. In addition it is vital that joints are tight, cracks are stabilised and so on. So we often spend the majority of time working on a piece on the preparation phase. This is where the fact that Les used to be carpenter in a past life comes in very handy!

In some cases we would prime the piece, particularly if reconditioning metal furniture. We would also definitely use undercoat to seal wood that has been stripped for repair or to stabilise surfaces that could otherwise lift or flake.

4 What is your most popular item? What tends to be the most fashionable?

Overall probably our most popular items are chairs, clocks and mirrors. Another item that is quite popular is the re-imagined china display cabinet. We have done several of them now, including commissions. They respond really well to being “quirkified” as they have such lovely lines and such potential for transformation. They turn out to be real statement pieces.

 Retro clocks do seem to be quite fashionable at the moment. They are such amazing shapes, they can carry off the most vibrant of colours. Luckily Les has discovered a previously unknown talent for fixing them, as many of the clocks that we find have ceased to tick!

5 Have you found pinterest good for spreading the word about your business or for gaining inspiration?

We find pinterest fantastic for inspiration. Sue does the pinning and has become a bona fide pinter-addict…it’s just so therapeutic after a stressful day! And, as someone said, it’s just like getting your favourite magazines everyday…but you get to choose the content!

We don’t find it particularly useful as a business tool though as, although we are getting increasing numbers of people clicking through to our website, most of these people are overseas so it doesn’t tend to lead to sales as we don’t ship overseas (yet!).

6 Given that you paint items in such bright colours, is it sometimes difficult trying to choose a colour? Do you sometimes have to repaint something if the colour hasn’t worked?

Choosing the colours is probably our favourite part of the whole process. We spend a lot of time agonising (in an enjoyable way!) over the choice of colour before we actually start to paint. And of course, once we have chosen a colour, we then agonise further about the exact shade of that particular colour. We have developed our own library of extra large shade cards which we find immensely helpful, as it makes it much easier to visualise the finished item.

 Despite all this, we do still occasionally change our minds and have to repaint. The good thing is we nearly always agree…otherwise things could get messy!

7 For those who have a piece of furniture languishing in a shed or even in the living room, do you take in pieces and transform them for people.

We love to do commissions for people. Sometimes people will say that they have no idea whatsoever what to do and give us carte blanche, other times we will work closely with people to put their ideas into practice. Either way we find it really enjoyable. It’s very satisfying to see how much pleasure it gives to people to be able to transform something that has become outdated or just doesn’t fit with their lifestyle into something new and vibrant.

We can also source pieces for people and transform them to their specification. We get a lot of pleasure from trawling through charity shops, auction houses and even the odd bit of skip diving!

8 Have you any tips for anyone considering upcycling or transforming any items of furniture?

Probably the main tip is to remember that preparation is all important. Also practise makes perfect…so don’t experiment on your favourite piece of furniture. Practise on small items until you get confident.

And for people who are chronic procrastinators our tip would be…give us a call!

9 Where can people buy your furniture and smaller items?

At the moment we sell through our website. If someone sees something that they like they can email us or give us a call and we can take payment and arrange delivery. People can either pick up from our premises or we will deliver (free of charge) to anyone in the greater Dublin/Wicklow area, or we can arrange a courier. Of course we are very happy for people to come and have a look at things before they buy.

We also occasionally go to markets and keep people informed of any impending dates on our website and facebook page.

There you have it – the full details of where to know if you want a piece customised or if you are looking for a quirky table, chair, clock or other item.  Sue pins away on Pinterest too so don’t forget to follow her there too.

Annie Sloan Colours

What makes Annie Sloan chalk paint different to other paints? Well, it is environmentally friendly, has low odour, is very easy to work with, dries quickly and what is especially handy is that it sticks to virtually anything and doesn’t require a primer or undercoat. The colour palette is inspired by European painted furniture colours from the 1700s and you can also mix your own colours, adding wax to add a distressed effect and to protect the piece.  Shabby Sweet Tea describes the paint and waxing process in this blog post. I love the picture of this Antibes Green taken from the 2 Friends & 2 Cities blog.

Entry Table painted with Annie Sloan Antibes Green paint

Selina at Eclectic Interiors has been painting and upcycling furniture for years in her workshop at Castlecomer Estate Yard.

Alongside painted tables, wardrobes, desks, beds, tables and chairs are many pieces of  antique furniture and smaller antique accessories.

Selina will also be running workshops showing people how to paint with the Annie Sloan paint and full details will be up on her website once she has decided on dates.

Have you tried Annie Sloan paint yet? I have a couple of pieces awaiting some work so I’m looking forward to giving it a try.

Unfortunately my camera seemed to be slightly out of focus because the photographs I took are slightly unfocused. Sasha will be getting professional photographs taken at some point soon so I only took a couple in any case to share with you. Apologies for the quality of the photographs but I hope you agree the house looks fabulous and I’m so looking forward to seeing it professionally photographed.

One particular feature I loved was the inclusion of these little wooden ‘door windows’ in most of the rooms – quirky, a lovely size, giving a sense of an old house – Sasha mentioned that one night her sister in law was staying and woke up to find the spare bedroom flooded with light as the May moon was at the right level to shine in the open small window. The colour is this room is fabulous too – Designers Guild Moss Green paint.

The Designers Guild Leopold Marine wallpaper in the Living room is fabulous, they have installed a sliding door and wallpapered it too.

We’ve started on Kate’s bedroom.  I have given in and am letting her have pink walls in the hope that having to sleep within pink walls for a couple of years will eventually steer her in the direction of some vivid teals and greens which look fab with her red hair!

So, it is going to be Designers Guild’s Petal on the walls.  I had thought about getting full length eyelet ready made curtains but our windows are very wide, over 100 inches/250 cm and the 90 inch curtains would be too skimpy and I couldn’t find anything I liked in the 106in.  Then, I reckoned she’s be putting toys/storage under the window so decided to go with Mulberry Walk fabric.  We can’t do roman blinds as it is to the front of the house and would look naff from the outside so made to measure curtains it is but just to below the cill.

Mulberry Walk curtains

The Mulberry Walk has just enough green in it to keep me happy and enough pink for her so all is well

She has decided she has outgrown her homemade castle bed.  I have an antique oak single bed – headboard and footboard but without the irons – that I bought at an auction over 10 years ago and we have never used it.  So the plan is to paint it and Brian will connect it somehow to her bed.  And we will finish it off with some Mulberry Walk bedlinen.  I’m also going to let her choose some of the Mae fabric wall stickers when they arrive – all in the name of research, you understand!

We started painting it yesterday evening and the children were painting the lower edges with 2 tiny little brushes and some paint in a jar and they did so well and enjoyed it so much.  Okay, they wouldn’t win decorator of the year but I gave it the occasional brush stroke to brush out the harsh edges or any excess and it was fine.

Pics of the actual room coming up soon then – hopefully!

And I will soon be able to show you photos of some rooms in my house painted with Designers Guild paint! Do you remember my new year’s resolution whereby I planned to decorate a room every 6 weeks or so?  Well, I made that resolution when my energy levels were very high, I had just had 5 steroid injections in about 6 weeks in an attempt by my consultant to reduce my IGE levels – as a result, my eczema cleared up, my skin felt great, I was able to stop taking anti-histamine, I had loads of energy, I felt like I could take on the world. Unfortunately, having steroid injections regularly isn’t necessarily that good for one’s health and I have recently felt the results of having them wear off – in that, keeping the house, keeping a business going and looking after the kids seems to consume my energies. I did hack the tiles off the floor of the downstairs loo and Brian removed the loo and I painted the ceiling and then it stopped for 3 weeks – partly due to my low energy levels and Brian’s lack of sleep with cows calving but I am determined to get it done by the end of March.

I’m definitely getting old – I even fell asleep watching the Late Late show the last 2 weeks, while waiting for Jonathan Ross to come on!

Why not get a decorator in? I hear you ask!  Because I love decorating!  I actually find it quite relaxing and refreshing to spend an afternoon or evening painting – not so relaxing when it involves multi-tasking keeping 2 kids amused and getting them to bed I must admit but I do enjoy it. Having decorated a number of houses in the past too, I would consider myself a woose if I didn’t do it!  So hopefully I will have some pics for you soon.

I used Farrow and Ball’s Carriage Green, a fabulous dark green. Indeed, according to  F & B, they describe it as a ‘front door’ green. Do you agree with them??

Apparently, in Georgian times, red was a very popular colour for the front doors of Dublin as it was more durable!

The Doors of Dublin

It’s a great source of inspiration if you are looking for some ideas and have some time on your hands!  As we are post-birthday party here today, we’re all a little tired and on a go-slow so I’ve just about got sufficient energy to surf the net rather than get out with the sandpaper and paint brushes.  Another great blog is Pretty Far West, where Brid just about paints anything that moves!!

I visited a friend in her new house recently and she was asking me about painting her stairs – painting stairs is often a popular topic so I just thought I would show you ours. Please excuse the quality of the photos, the artificial light in the hall isn’t the best and I took the photos only half an hour ago!

The treads and banister are oak.  The risers and sides are just red deal so we painted them by simply priming them with undercoat, primer and then I think it was 3 coats of eggshell Farrow and Ball, I think White Tie but to be honest, I did so much painting of other doors and rooms at around the same time I did those stairs, I can barely remember.  We put in this stairs about 3 years ago as the previous stairs came out into the middle of the hall, thereby taking up too much room, plus they were quite a fussy barley twist and as they were a dark teak, made the hall even darker.  The paint lightens the room, plus being able to paint the ‘cheaper wood’ meant that the price of the stairs was reduced somewhat, yet we still have the quality of the oak.

If you are thinking that the turquoise in the Designers Guild chair looks a little out of place, it is to tie in with the occasional stripe of turquoise in the curtains (along with fabulous turqoise Moulin Rouge tiebacks on the downstairs windows) – you can see the curtain on the window upstairs.

Don’t leave the masking tape on the steps for too long.  If it is going to take you quite a long time to paint each riser, then do a couple at a time, repaint the next day and then move on. The reason being is that dust does tend to stick and accumulate under the masking tape if it is left for more than a week, it becomes harder to remove, and it is also quite difficult to scrub the sticky dust off as it almost becomes engrained into the wood – I speak from experience from a couple of steps!!

Turquoise Moulin Rouge Tieback

Please ignore the carpet on the upstairs landing!  I fell in love with the carpet we got for the hall downstairs and as it was a remnant from a very posh hotel, unfortunately there wasn’t enough to do the landing upstairs too so I’m still on the hunt for a co-ordinating carpet for there!  I do love my Singer sewing maching table – Brian bought it for me at an auction in Salisbury for a mere £22 – we were lucky with that one.  We have another one that is larger with drawers the whole way down that cost £80 but was riddled with woodworm underneath so still needs to be repaired somewhat – maybe next winter!

And if you are thinking of applying wallpaper to the risers on your stairs like Shawna’s stairs below, check out here and here for instructions ( I couldn’t find the post on Shawna’s blog but found it on Homebug)

Shawna's Stairs - Design in Dublin blog

PS It’s 11.15pm now and the first silage trailer has just arrived so I’d better start making sandwiches. Just as well I have chocolate biscuit cake to keep their energy levels up. The joys of being married to a farmer!