Standing the Test of Time

Was: Plain, solid wood trunk
Recreated Into: Beautiful striped trunk with a padded seat that will grow with the kids that it was recreated for

This sturdy wooden trunk was brought to me by a client for recreating.  She wanted to use this trunk as a toy box for her two young sons and her only request was that the corners be covered so that they don’t hurt themselves on them…. otherwise, it was “Do what you want with it!” 🙂

I wanted a design for this trunk that would not only serve the purpose of a toy trunk now, but that would ‘grow” with the boys so that they could use it for a long time to come.   I have been wanting to use Miss Mustard Seed Milk Paint® on a larger piece for awhile now and decided that the Artissimo would be the perfect match!   Miss Mustard Seed Milk Paint is non-toxic and completely safe for kids so this was the perfect paint for this piece.

I began by taping off different width of stripes with painters tape and painted them in with the Artissimo  coloured milk paint.  I love the sophisticated look of the blue and brown!  The striping went completely around the trunk and onto the legs.  The entire inside of the trunk was then painted all blue; no stripes… just blue.  The entire trunk was then finished in hemp oil to refresh the wood and seal the paint.

The paint job was very intentional as I purchased an assortment of vehicle decals that are going to go on the trunk while the boys are young and then will get pealed off when they outgrow them.  The stripes are now “roads” for the wheeled vehicles and the inside of the lid is now the “sky” for the flying vehicles!

For the top of the trunk, I chose a fun, cotton fabric that matched the decor in the boy’s rooms.  They love gears and bold colours so this fabric was perfect for them 🙂  I padded the top of the trunk and then placed the fabric overtop and right over the sides of the lid.  I stapled the fabric to the inside lip of the lid and then finished it off with a cotton “tape” to cover the staples.  I also Scotch Guarded all of the fabric so that the client doesn’t have to worry about dirty little hands being all of it 🙂

I loved this project and am so glad that painting a wooden trunk can not only transform it’s look but will serve the purpose of a fun toy box now and a “grown-up” trunk later.

Before

After

 I don’t have any pictures with the decals on yet, but as soon as I do, will add those.  You can see what they look like though in the last picture and can use your imagination 🙂