October 18, 2011

A work in progress!!


 I couldn't sit around any longer today knowing that there was a piece of furniture out there waiting for me to come to the rescue.  I have been itching to make a mess and I decided to load my girls up in the van and go flea marketing!  My daughter, Audrey (7), was excited until she realized we were not going to Wal Mart and instead were going to the flea stores as she calls them.  After four flea markets and a ton of whining I finally found what I was looking for, a cute little wooden coffee table!  It was sturdy and only had one original coat of varnish, which is an awesome find!!!  You always want to avoid refinishing furniture that has layers upon layers of paint.  In the end you are a tired, sticky, gross mess after using the chemical stripper and the furniture piece will still need sanded.  There are always exceptions to the rule though.....if it's awesome under all that paint then you just have to go for it!

Here she is in all her chipped up glory!!



I sanded for about an hour, but wasn't too picky since I'm going to give the table a distressed finish.






I then applied a coat of Kilz primer with a brush.



I'm going to let this dry over night and tackle it again in the morning.



It has taken me a few days to finish this little table because I just couldn't decide if I wanted it to be ultra glossy white or distressed.  After painting and repainting it a few times I finally settled on distressed because it has several gouges and blemishes.  The distressed finish made the imperfections look good ;)

When distressing furniture with several colors underneath the piece always looks HORRIBLE until you put on the final coat!!  Don't lose heart and abandon the project!  I applied a layer of yellow over the green in some areas, but forgot to take a picture while at it's worst!

After a good sanding and a layer of bright white spray paint I sanded this little thing like crazy to show all those layers of paint.  When it was exactly how I wanted it I brushed all the dust away and gave the entire table a good coat of clear to give it a nice shine :)




I used my Cricut to cut the "Love" out of removable vinyl and made this project complete!!


I truly love this table!!!!



Thanks for stopping by and don't forget about my GIVEAWAY I posted about HERE!!!!  I can't wait to giveaway one of my mini bookpage wreaths!!




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30 comments:

  1. I'm so glad you said you didn't sand too much. I'm working on a beginner's project, and I've been wondering if I sanded enough.
    Your table looks lovely.:)

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  2. The distressing hides the imperfections which is AWESOME!!! I've started making my own chalkpaint and LOVE it!! It goes on without any fuss and sands super easy without gumming up the sandpaper.....I'm an impatient painter and never wait long enough before I start sanding ;)

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  3. I love the touch of the vinyl letters showcasing "love".

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  4. Great work! The table looks fabulous!

    Thanks for linking to a Round Tuit!
    Hope you have a great week!
    Jill @ Creating my way to Success
    http://www.jembellish.blogspot.com/

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  5. Wow....this table is really amazing! You did a great job! Thanks for sharing!

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  6. Wow - what a great job you did, Karima

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  7. What a lovely upcycle! Awesome! I'd love for you to link these up to my Things I've Done Thursday link party that opens up tonight!

    bearrabbitbear.blogspot.com

    Melanie
    Sew Rugged @ bear rabbit bear

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  8. Thanks! I'll do that tonight :)

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  9. It turned out beautifully! 'Flea stores' - priceless :)
    -Jill

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  10. She is just one of those kids that says stuff....that you wish she wouldn't ;) She makes life fun!!

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  11. Awesome! Love the greenish yellow that peeks through! Great Job ;)

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  12. So pretty. I don't think that I would hvave thought to add the wording but it totally makes it.

    Thank-you so much for joining our Pin'Inspiration party. Would love for you to hop over and grab a button.

    Happy new follower.

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  13. Thanks so much for linking up to Things I’ve Done Thursday!!

    Melanie
    Sew Rugged @ bear rabbit bear
    bearrabbitbear.blogspot.com

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  14. I LOVE the Love table!!! Thanks for linking up to Home and Family Friday. I see you're a new blogger. I'd be happy to help, if you have any questions.

    Becca

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  15. i "LOVE" this table!I am hosting my first EVAH link party this weekend. It is up and running now and I would love for you to come link up some of your projects!

    Kim @ Too Much Time

    http://kim-toomuchtimeonmyhands.blogspot.com/search/label/get%20schooled%20saturday

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  16. I love it! The stencil is so cute :) What type of product do you use for the clear shiny coat? I tried something recently and it gave my white piece a yellowy tinge...

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  17. Thanks for hosting all the link parties ladies! I need to work up a list of all your great parties on my blog :)

    Shhhh, I used the cheap $1 clear spray paint at Walmart. I didn't have any clear poly on hand and wanted a high gloss shine so I grabbed this can out of the cabinet. I've used it on tons of projects and never had any problems with yellowing...

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  18. Oooh, I love it, too! The green distressing is wonderful, what a great idea!

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  19. How pretty! You've done a wonderful job. My Saturday Splendour Party is still open if you'd like to share: http://www.megandmums.com/2011/12/m-ms-saturday-splendour-no-2.html
    Megan :)

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  20. Beautiful job! Chances are on the top shiny spray, it is a water based coat. Oil based turns yellow so check the label before you buy.

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  21. Wow --- this is beautiful! Thank you for sharing!
    Blessings, Becky
    www.fromgentogen.com

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  22. wow! I truly love your table too! it's really beautiful.
    Thanks for sharing at Catch as Catch Can.
    gail

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  23. I love this table too. And didn't realize you could cut out letters with a cricut!

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  24. It is a beautiful table, and you did a great job. Love the word Love on the table. Painting it brought out all the deets of the legs. Thanks for sharing at Sunday's Best. Now following you.

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  25. Following you back ;) We also have a REALLY old house and I struggle everyday learning how to love her imperfections, but when people come over and oogle our porch or stairway I remember why I fell in love :)

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  26. Misty-you said you make your own chalk paint?? Do you mind sharing? Nice work!
    Holly

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  27. I don't measure....so you have to go by feel. I just fill a mason jar halfway and then add 2-3 heaping tablespoons of plaster of paris and mix it like crazy. It's thick and lumpy, but that's ok because it sands off super easily. It goes on super thick and doesn't require sanding or priming....but I still do...just a little. It looks horrible and will make you think it's a ruined project UNTIL you start sanding! If you've ever sanded sheetrock you will understand how WONDERFUL this is!!! It doesn't gum up your sandpaper and takes very little time to dry....which is great for me because I'm very impatient :)

    Maybe when we get a warm day here in Missouri I will make a tutorial with pictures!

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