Thursday Favorite Things: Farmhouse Table Makeover

Katherin's Corner Thursday Favorite Things Hop 184

Yay it is Thursday and I can finally share my Thursday Favorite thing with you!  Here she is.  My new/old table.

I find it so much easier to paint things for myself than try and decipher what someone else will love.  The only problem is my hubby, bless his heart, doesn't always understand why I am painting "A perfectly fine ____."  He's so cute.  He doesn't notice things the way I do.  He doesn't look at his old table from his prior life and think "It's got good bones but it needs a update." It's ok, I don't notice things fishing he wishes I would.  So this week I am sharing with you my upcycled farmhouse table.   

Dated but solid

The table had good lines but was stuck in 1999 so I thought it was time to bring it into this decade.  Confession time, I haven't started on the chairs yet.  We have been without the table for days and days so for now I am planning on working on one chair at a time until all 6 are finished.  

This started with a good cleaning and sanding.  I used liquid TSP alternative and a couple of different sanders.  My go to is an orbital.  I know, I should love a palm sander but I love my orbital.  I also used a belt sander to beat this baby up a little.  This is the rough coat on the top.  It took a lot of tweeking and sanding more here and less there to get the final finish. 

Jave top and base leg coat

For the legs I started out with a blue-green color I custom mixed from several paint colors I had.  Actually there are about 5 blues, greens, or grays that make up the legs and side and that's the bottom layer.  I did this knowing I was going to cover it with moss green but wanting to bring out a color that was close to my kitchen and dining room wall color and near the darker turquoise kitchen cabinets. 

This top took a lot of purposed distressing. 

Meanwhile I decided to distress the top.   I used the belt sander, orbital sander, dremel, and hammer for this process.  Like I said, I beat it up.  My kiddo came out to find me hitting the table with a hammer and she put her 11 year old body on the table and said "You are hurting the table!"  I should say, she was not at all behind this transformation.   This was her childhood table growing up and she was not happy that I was changing the table she and her parents used for years.   I think she thinks I am a little paint crazy but she keeps asking me to do her room next so you know, you win some and lose some.  

The stain is Java gel by General Finishes and the look I was going for was not a uniform stain but a loved look: used and a little abused but beautiful.  I worked and worked to get this top perfectly imperfect.  (Meanwhile hubs kept asking me why "we" needed to refinish the perfectly good table at all?" Between the boat and the table our roomy garage was  cramped!) 

Can you see the turquoise peeking out from the moss green?

Next the legs got 2 coats of Moss Green paint by Waverly. This was my first time using Waverly chalk but it won't be my last. I love that it is cheap enough that I can buy out my Walmart on colors and  I am pretty pleased with the coverage which was smooth and self leveled very well.  Are you designer paint companies taking note?  Inexpensive alternatives to $40 pints of boutique paint and home made chalk paint are the loves of my life.   I live at the miss-tint section of my local big box stores! 

Once the Java gel dried for 3 days...3 long days...3 incredibly long and torturous days...I hate waiting, it was finally time to put on the protection.  It is my table so of course I wanted really durable.  General Finishes High Performance top coats. The finish is satin but you can't tell.   Why? Because after the poly dried (all 4 coats) everything for a coat of clear wax and the legs and side panels for a coat of a light brown wax.   After buffing the top it was time to move the table back into the house. 

Trust me it isn't this dark in the house normally. Yes, I need candles for my center piece. 

Where the lights never cooperate with me but that is life!  See why the bottom coat was turquoise?

I am happily surprised that I love the top.  It had me worried! (see the chairs in the background? LOL)

The table top was polished to a high shine because...well look at it!  

After wax the moss was a little deeper. 

If you look close you can see the turquoise under the moss along with a little of the wood. 

And just enough turquoise peeks through to give my walls love!

And someday the chairs will match the table.  I have to make some time to work on those when the kiddo isn't around.  

Perfect---just ignore Sadie's bowl on the floor.  It was dinner time.  

I am in total love and even hubby realized when it was done that it was pretty amazing!  He asked me this morning, "Can we use the table?"  Well of course!  It wouldn't be good for much if we couldn't.   I protected it from us.  Oh, and once it was finished, the man could not stop bragging about how much better it looked.  One day he is going to learn to trust me on this stuff.   Even the kiddo admitted that it looks nice.  

Alright folks, that is my Favorite Thing this week.  It's Opening Week of baseball season so the fact that anything beats that really shows how much I love my furniture.