Meet Jen Talley!

I have been refinishing furniture for about 6 years.

It all started with a desk! We were going to throw it out anyway, so I decided to try and paint it - for fun. I used this bright, gaudy orange color, distressed it in all the wrong places, and used a top coat that turned yellow. But, I did it! I was proud of myself for transforming it. From that point on, I was hooked! We had just purchased our first home and it was much bigger than the duplex we’d been renting. We bought a lot of “big box” store furniture because we had to fill it. I quickly realized that not only was that very expensive, it did not hold up. So, I started finding and transforming pieces for myself. I’m happy to say that my entire home is almost 100% furnished with my own pieces now. I was encouraged to start a Facebook page and it kind of blew up from there!

Both! I sell pieces and I also do custom work.

I love any style of vintage furniture. From Jacobean to Art Deco, to MCM. I really do not discriminate! I love seeing the potential and beauty in pieces and watching them come back to life!

My favorite paint to use is ceramic based or chalk based paints. I do use milk paint also, I’m just not quite as comfortable with that ... yet! I only brush my pieces, I do not spray - even though I have a sprayer.

Oh my gosh, it’s so hard to pick one! The one that almost always comes to mind though is a buffet I did in black milk paint. It was VERY chippy, and at first I didn’t know what to do or how to deal with it, because it just kept chippy - more and more. Finally, I decided to go with it and let the paint do it’s thing. I loved the outcome! To me, it looked like a unique work of art. Something that could not be replicated.

Green. Always, green!

Being a Mom and wife and spending time with my family!  I have 2 kids - both almost teenagers now but they are only 13 months apart. Those early years kept me very busy! They still need me now, but in a different way. I love that I am still able to do that, while also running my own business. I also have 2 dogs (that I’m obsessed with), and 2 cats. I’m a huge animal lover.  I also love decorating and thrifting.

Go with your gut! Trust yourself. If you are ever unsure about what color to use, or how to refinish a piece...go with your gut! It’s so easy to get caught up in the “noise” or looking at the thousands of inspiration photos and get overwhelmed. Also, the best way to learn or get better at this, is to make mistakes. I have learned something from every single piece I’ve done. You can watch a million tutorials, read blog posts, etc, on how to refinish furniture, but the best way to learn is just to do it! Make mistakes, fix them, and with each piece, you’ll get better and better!

It's so hard to pick one! I think my favorite brush is the fan brush. I love how much coverage it offers. I also love the square brush because it is so precise for getting straight lines and for little details. I also love the palm pro. I love the easy grip and how smoothly it brushes on – especially with milk paint!