Grandma Claire’s Jewelry Box

My Grandma Claire was a glamorous woman with a pair of big colorful clip-on earrings to match every outfit. She kept them in this jewelry box on top of her dresser.

The jewelry box now sits on top of my sister Colleen’s dresser, but it doesn’t really match. Colleen’s bedroom is crazy-big-huge (like bigger than your entire first apartment huge). It is also modern and sleek with black furniture, a plush red sofa and awesome black-and-white chevron draperies.

We decided the jewelry box needed a makeover.

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This isn’t the first makeover I’ve done on something that belonged to our grandmother. I painted and decoupaged a picture of our kids onto the top of one of Grandma Claire’s tables for Colleen’s birthday present a few years ago. It sits in the entryway of her house now and makes me happy every time I walk through her front door and see it. I also painted a table for my living room—another piece that I love.

Grandma Claire’s jewelry box was a simple project—no fancy new techniques to share here today. Colleen wanted it black to match the furniture in her bedroom. I couldn’t resist adding a stencil down the sides of the drawers and on the drawer fronts for a surprise pop of gold when you open the doors. I used metallic gold craft paint.

I didn’t want to wax the jewelry box because it will be opened and closed every day and may start to look smudgy after awhile. Instead, I used Low Sheen Burnishing Paste from Real Milk Paint Company, which we sell in our shop All Things New Again in Leesburg, Virginia.

I LOVE THIS STUFF! Here’s a link for more information on Real Milk Paint Company’s Burnishing Paste. It is an environmentally-friendly, non-toxic, NO VOC top coat that provides great protection for high traffic areas like kitchen cabinets without harsh chemicals. It looks like lotion and can be applied with a brush, sponge or clean rag. I brushed on the outside of the jewelry box and used an old t-shirt on tight spots like the trim on the bottom. It works perfectly with Real Milk Paint, of course, but it is also compatible with most brands of chalk/mineral paints.

Burnishing Paste makes the paint color a shade darker, which was perfect to make the black jewelry box even blacker. It also helps hide imperfections in your paint job. Check out this side-by-side shot:

And here’s the finished jewelry box:

Those pictures were taken in MY bedroom. I deliver it to Colleen tomorrow. I know she will love it—and I know Grandma Claire would love it too.

~ Courtney

All Things New Again is a family-owned furniture and paint boutique in Leesburg, Virginia (about an hour or so west of Washington, D.C.) We sell hand-painted furniture and several lines of paint for your next DIY project, including Real Milk Paint Company environmentally-friendly products. We also offer painting classes and workshops. Click here for more information about our Intro to Milk Paint Class.