HOW TO APPLY A GOLD LEAF STENCIL | CHRISTMAS WASHSTAND MAKEOVER 2024 | YOUTUBE VIDEO COMING THIS SATURDAY!

Hello sweet friends, and welcome back to the last Trashy Treasure Tuesday of 2024! I’m sharing a Christmas tradition – the curbshopped washstand I’ve been giving a brand NEW holiday look for the previous 6 years. This year is very different. Dark – moody – glitzy – festive.  I can’t wait to hear your thoughts. I’ve also included links to the past 6 previous washstands in the Related Posts so I hope you hop on over to check them out as well.

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As I mentioned, I’m also joining my TTT crew and sharing links to their projects below. I’m looking forward to seeing what they’ve created and I hope you join me on today’s tour as well!

Here is the washstand (in its original state) that was curb-shopped back in 2017.

This is what I’m making over for this years restyle. Last year’s 2023 makeover was a soft pink with an airbrushed stencil design. I didn’t include the towel bar so that is why it’s still white from the 2022 makeover.

It held up pretty well in my storage throughout the year. There were a few scratches/scuffs. The towel bar had the glue impression from the removed Woodubend.

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WHAT YOU’LL NEED

Trashed 2017 Washstand  – SALVAGED
Bosch Sander
Coffee Bean Chalk Mineral Paint
Paint Brushes
Stick With Me Glue
Holiday Joy Christmas Stencil
Gold Leaf
Clear Wax Finish

HOW TO STENCIL GOLD LEAF

Here’s how I transformed this washstand into a glitzy dark beauty…

STEP #1  SCUFF SAND

This was sitting in storage for the year so all it required was a quick wipe down and then I went ahead and started the scuff sanding. I used my Bosch Sander with a 120 grit sand paper to scuff up the body, drawer, and towel holder. I especially focused on any scuffs and the glue residue where the Woodubend had been removed.

STEP # 2 PAINT

For the base paint color, I picked one of my favorite black/browns – Coffee Bean Chalk Mineral Paint. Because this paint has awesome coverage and is so much darker than last year’s pink,  no primer was needed or applied.

I painted two coats for full coverage. Here’s what it looked like after the first coat.

STEP #3 DESIGN PREP 

Now for the fun part… glamming up this dark moody base! I decided to stencil using gold leaf! I’m really into the Gold Leaf this season which you can see here, here and here. I picked this Holiday Joy Christmas Stencil and gathered the rest of my supplies.

To make it easier and cleaner to work with the stencil, I cut out some individual stencil designs.

STEP #4 APPLYING THE GOLD LEAF

I added glue onto a paper plate. Using a foam brush, I dipped it into the glue and then removed the excess. Removing the excess is super important because you don’t want to flood the stencil with this sticky glue. I placed the stencil design in the position I wanted and dabbed on the glue overtop the stencil.

You have to hold onto the stencil to keep it in place when you start, but once the glue is partially on, it sticks and holds the stencil in place nicely.

I worked my way around the front of the washstand switching up designs and having fun. The glue goes on milky, and dries to a clear sheen within 15-20 minutes. Once it’s a clear sheen, it’s VERY sticky and ready to apply the gold leaf.

I stuck the sheets of gold leaf onto the glue, pressed it flat with my hand and then used a soft brush to removed the excess gold leaf that isn’t being held on by any glue. Check this out. Isn’t is beautiful?! The stencil design appears like magic which I’ll share in this weekends video! I worked my way around the front of this piece including the harp towel bar until all my Christmas gold leaf was adhered.

STEP #5 FINISHING TOUCHES

I noticed that I had forgot to paint the underlip of the door and bottom of this piece when I had it laying flat to apply the gold leaf. So I went back and did a few paint touch ups.

I also sealed the paint and gold leaf with clear wax. I don’t use wax to top coat as much as I used to. I forgot what a beautiful sheen it gives and how darn easy it is to use!

I found these simple ‘gold’ knobs in my stash and think they are perfect because they don’t take away from the design.

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