What Would You Do With a Free Quart of Paint?

Attic Gal Rachelle says:

Last month I discovered that Glidden had an offer for a free can of paint.  All I had to do was pick a color and go online and give them my address and color choice, and they would send it in the mail absolutely FREE!  Well, the only thing I love more than cheap is free!  So I picked a color that I loved, eggshell Vintage Yellow.

The little box arrived in the mail this week containing a shiny green can of yellow possibilities!  Yippie!

I got started right away.  Wanna see what I did?

I have this old hutch that I found at a garage sale years ago for like $20. It holds all my table linens nicely. I just love the shape and height of it, and it fits perfectly in a spot in my family room.  But, I'm embarassed to say, it has been in my family room, in this condition, this whole time - a beat up, scuffed up mess.

Until my free can of paint arrived...

I quickly sanded then carefully painted it the creamy Vintage Yellow.  Four coats.  But in the morning light I wasn't quite pleased.  It was too pale, too pastel, too pretty.  It looked like it belonged in a baby girl nursery, not a family room.

So I bravely pulled the sander back out and gave it a good roughing up.  Hubby and kids all thought I was crazy.  I had just carefully painted it to make it look new, and now I was beating it up to make it look old again.  Then they really thought I was insane when I pulled out the antiquing glaze and started to rub brown stuff on it to make it look dirty.  Kids rolled their eyes and Hubby kindly said, "If you like it, then I like it."

They really should learn to trust me. (Plus, I could always repaint it, right?  Except I'd have to actually buy the paint this time.)

No need to repaint.  It worked out beautifully!  The free paint really transformed the piece, and the antiquing gave it a golden warmth. The yellow hutch really brightens up the whole room.

Here is a close up of the pretty detailing that was not really noticeable before it was painted.

And this morning when my Hubby walked in the room he said. "Wow, it turned out really terrific!"  I knew he'd come around.

So thanks to Glidden for the free paint.  It is a smooth and easy to use paint.  Very nice!  And an offer of free paint was just the motivation I needed to get this project done.

So, what would you do with a free quart of paint, or a purchased one for that matter?  

Great idea!  Now go do it!  Nothing brings such quick satisfaction than a little paint. (Just ignore the eyes rolling at you, and for heaven's sake don't roll them at yourself.  Trust yourself!  It will be terrific!)