Revitalized Jewelry box

Some of my happiest memories come from the summers I used to spend with my grandmother in Arizona. My sister and I would go visit and she would let us stay in her room since it had the larger bed. On her dresser, I remember seeing a large jewelry chest. I always thought there was something a little magical about those tiny doors that opened to reveal more drawers. I'm not sure what it was about the tiny portal that so enamored me but I always loved it.

Sadly, when I was 21, my sweet grandma passed away. Over the years, I had all but forgotten about the jewelry chest but just this year my step-mom (whom I utterly adore) called me upstairs during a visit to her home and she showed me the old box sitting in one of the rooms. She had saved it all these years and after my father passed away two years ago, she had moved houses and found it again in the process. She's so incredibly loving that she set it aside just to see if I wanted to have it when I came to visit her. 

It had not weathered well and the dull brown finish on it seemed a lot less magical when I saw it again but somewhere in me, the crafter screamed that I could give it new life. My grandma had always been a crafter herself and I had learned much of my love for the handmade from those summers with her. I knew she would love to see her old things renovated into a new life. I scooped it up and brought it home. 

I wish I'd taken photos of it BEFORE I painted it but I completely forgot to. The old brown paint job was pretty awful, just trust me on this, but the inside of it was lined in deep blue velvet. I used saran wrap and painter's tape to protect the lining and then grabbed a can of krylon white spray paint. I coated the whole thing with white paint and then hand painted the little brass handles with a midnight blue that would match the velvet. I brushed a soft gold over the drawer knobs behind those tiny doors as well. 

VOILA! Suddenly the weathered and worn jewelry box was vibrant and beautiful!

She sits next to my bedside now. :) 

Isn't this blue velvet just gorgeous??

After I painted her, I just felt she still needed a bit more so I took a page from a Alphonse Mucha calendar my friend gave me and modge podged it to the top! Mucha has been my inspiration and my love  since I was little when it comes to art so this just made me even happier. 

So what old things have you given a renewed life to? 

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