My husband is disabled with progressive Multiple Sclerosis and was still able to makeover this beautiful china hutch he built. He took it from the 1990’s hunter green to this fabulously distressed farmhouse chic masterpiece!
A trip back to the 1990’s
Allow me to journey back to the 1990’s when my husband and I were at an antique auction and fell in love with a piece of furniture that was just the upper portion of an old china hutch. There was not a lower portion to the hutch available. But I didn’t care, I loved the upper portion and wanted it. We had the winning bid and took our new treasure home for a mere $10.00!
The china hutch needed a base
And so began the next task for my husband…he had to build a base to support the upper portion of the china hutch. He amazed me with a wonderful base that contained shelves, drawers and doors. So functional, so pretty and exactly what I wanted. He even constructed scalloped trim on the lower portion to match the same detail on the upper portion of the hutch. The result was absolutely perfect!
1990’s Hunter Green was all the rage
And then to choose a paint color for the hutch. At the time, hunter green was all the rage. So I had him paint the china hutch hunter green. He also left some natural wood accents to offset the green. We proudly displayed this beautiful china hutch in our former dining room for many years.
Downsizing meant passing on a family heirloom
We enjoyed the china hutch for 21 years until we had to downsize and move south. Knowing the hunter green giant wouldn’t fit in our new dining room, we promised it to our oldest son and his wife for their new home. But their home wasn’t ready yet. So after our move, the hutch resided on our back porch. I loved having it on my “she porch”. It gave a homey quality to the space, kind of an extension of our dining room and best of all, it provided extra storage. But alas came the day when it had to go to it’s new home. What an honor to pass on such a cherished family heirloom.
The china hutch needed a makeover
Before the china hutch left for it’s new home, it needed a makeover. Our beautiful daughter-in-law loves the white distressed farmhouse chic look in their home. Which meant the 1990’s hunter green had to go. So, Mike was challenged to another project. Honestly, it did him good to work on it.
His M.S. Disability didn’t stop him
I’m so proud of my husband’s talents and for not letting the M.S. prevent him from such challenges. Our youngest son and I had to go out a few times to move and flip the hutch as necessary to assist Mike. But, despite being wheelchair bound, Mike found ways to work around his inabilities to get the rest of the job done. Though I won’t elaborate about the paint splatters on his wheelchair or the areas of spilled paint on the back porch floor. Ha, Ha…just collateral damage for a job well done and more memories.
He did it his way
I can’t provide all the steps to the makeover, because Mike was a bit secretive about it. He took his time and learned ways to do what had to be done to the hutch despite the limitations of his disability. He hates to have his picture taken, so I’m a bit lacking in the captured photo moments of the steps he took to makeover the china hutch. Honestly, this story is not as much a DIY informative, but more of a chance to express pride and show what Mike accomplished. With his M.S. progressing, this may be one of the few last projects he will be able to accomplish. So, it was important he did it his way. Seeing him work on the china hutch brought cherished moments to this family treasure.
How he frugally distressed the china hutch
To prepare the hutch for distressing, Mike painted all the hinges, knobs and closer with black spray paint. Painting them himself was much more affordable than buying all new hardware. He also added sprays of black paint on many areas to cover the green before applying the white paint for distressing. He read an article on-line that mentioned about using candle wax to coat the base paint before adding a top coat or in this case…three coats. To achieve the distressed look, there was some hammering, painting, sanding and steel wool involved. And since it came out so beautifully, this link really helped. Please check out the link below for more information.
https://www.architecturaldigest.com/story/how-to-distress-furniture-in-6-easy-steps
It took 3 coats of white paint to cover that silly hunter green. I’m fairly certain my husband fussed under his breath at me many times as he painted, and painted and painted! Sorry honey! The distressing brought out portions of black paint as well as the hunter green. Making it a perfect heirloom highlighting the past and future. Here’s a link to the white paint that was used.
Chicken wire to replace the old wood panels
To finish the farmhouse look, Mike removed the wood panel inserts in all 4 doors of the china hutch and then he cut chicken wire to fit in each of the doors. He used a staple gun to secure the chicken wire on the back of the doors. What a perfect farmhouse appearance it gave. During these COVID times, I happily used the curbside pickup option at Lowe’s to retrieve a roll of chicken wire Mike ordered. I can’t wait to use the remaining chicken wire in other projects.
Fabulous Farmhouse Chic Masterpiece
The finished product is a farmhouse chic masterpiece. This china hutch in all its distressed white glory, is truly a treasure that will be cherished for many years to come. The costs were minimal, the results amazing! Great job Mike! I absolutely LOVE it! What do you folks think?
