Milk Paint and an Old Wooden Box

Remember this?

Yeah, I know. It’s an old wooden box. My mom brought it to me to use as a step up onto my too high front porch. Turned flat, it would have served very well for a time.

But I just couldn’t do that to this old, serviceable box. It looked like it could be something more.

A good scrub got rid of the grime and the dead bugs.

And then… It sat around and waited for me to get a few free hours.

I was so glad when my handsome honey brought this lovely Milk Paint home. Those are my two favorite colors, a deep red and an old fashioned green similar to the paint on my potting bench.

The paint comes in a powder form. Just add water. It really is that simple. I mixed up a small batch to test it out.

I wiped the dust away with a damp cloth and got busy painting.

I love how the grain of the wood shows through the paint.

The paint dries a bit lighter and looks a bit dull, but we’re not finished yet.

A block of wood and a bit of sandpaper helped me to rough up the edges, true to it’s found in the barn past.

Pretty but still not done.

An old rag and some linseed oil added a bit of shine.

  

Now imagine this 5 inch deep box, hung on my kitchen wall (it will be soon). The dividers will serve as shelves, just deep enough for a photo frame or some pint jars of apple butter or strawberry jam.

Not too bad for an old box.