I then removed all of the hardware.and sprayed the whole piece with a can of Rustoleum spray primer.  Here is a picture of the piece primed.

talldrbefore1

Next, I painted two coats of Annie Sloan’s ‘Old Ochre’ paint.  I used a wide 4″ brush and also a 2 & 1/2 inch brush in different parts.  Once the paint was dry, I distressed the whole thing with a hand sander and 320 grit sandpaper.  I made sure to let the wood underneath show on the edges and details.