Top drawer

With a qualification and background in art and design, Tjhoko Champs 2022 entrant Tanya Botbijl of Pretoria first started painting furniture as a hobby – and it soon became a small home business called L’abeille. “I source pre-loved, second-hand furniture and décor items which

HERE’S HOW TANYA DID IT…

1 The chest of drawers was stripped of all its hardware and cleaned, and any imperfections and holes were filled with wood filler. Once dry, the piece was sanded lightly with an electric sander and 120-grit sandpaper.

2 To enhance the woodgrain on the top and the upper drawers, Tanya used her electric sander and 80-grit sandpaper; thereafter, she treated the wood with domestic bleach. The bleach was painted on with a synthetic brush and left in the sun to dry. “I repeated the bleaching process three times before neutralising the bleach by wiping the surfaces well with a solution of vinegar and water (50:50),” says Tanya. The chest of drawers was left to dry then sanded again with the electric sander and a fine-grit sandpaper to give the wood a silky smooth finish. Tanya used Gripseal Resilience Velvet as a sealant; it creates a hard-wearing topcoat that’s

UV- and water-resistant.

3 Next, the sides and bottom two drawers were painted with a base coat in Tjhoko Paint Cloud White and the middle two drawers and edges of the top drawers were painted with Tjhoko Paint Sherif’s Stone.

4 The stencilling on the middle drawers and sides was done with Tjhoko Paint Stencil of Paris to create a raised

I use as my canvas to create bespoke statement pieces. I love using quality ecofriendly paint, decorative applications, and finishes,” says Tanya, who transformed this pine chest of drawers into a showstopper. We particularly love the faux drawer fronts at the bottom; these were inspired by an apothecary chest of drawers and they certainly add the ‘wow factor’. effect. Once dry, Tanya carefully painted the raised leaf design using Tjhoko Paint Olivia’s Pale, Cloud White and Charm’s Silver.

5 The faux drawers at the bottom were created by measuring out the squares, masking them with masking tape, and painting them with Tjhoko Paint Sherif’s Stone. Tanya then added a silver cup handle to each square to create the illusion of eight small drawers.

6 New handles were fitted on the other drawers and a coat of diluted Tjhoko Paint Clear Glaze (100ml glaze:20ml water) provides added protection. >>