Table redo

A few years back, my dear mother in law offered us her table. Her ginormous, seats up to 16, wide awesome table.

The table that Jeff grew up with.

Um, would I like a table that can fit my family plus guests? Uh, of course!

But with one caveat, can I paint it?

She had no problem with that.

And I had grand schemes to redo it's 80's oak.

But it sat. And sat. Other projects came and went. And the table sat.

Mostly because I thought I would have to take it into the garage to refinish it. And that thing is mammoth!!!

So it waited.

Until last week.

My boutique was over, living room and family room redo's over. So I had time.

And of course, as is normal for me, I get so excited to start a project, that I can't be bothered to take a before picture.

But here is the closest thing:



Brown oak, pedestal. Very typical of the 80's. And I'm sure in future decorating trends when my girls are adults, they will search and search for this table, untouched. And ask me, "WHY DID YOU PAINT GRANDMAS TABLE?"

Oh well.

I got all of my instructions on how to do this from Centsational Girl. Here is the link

I started with two coats of oil based primer. I like this best, you don't have to wait as long to paint it. It cures within 24 hours, unlike water based which takes a week.



And yes, I did it indoors. Windows open for ventilation.

After two coats of primer, I lightly sanded it to get rid of any rough spots.

Then I applied 3 coats of paint. Waiting 4 hours in between each coat.




I know the two pictures don't really look that different from each other. But let me tell you. The hours of painting really did go into this. Even if it doesn't photograph well.

I then very lightly distressed it. Seriously lightly for me. I just didn't want it to look too perfect.



I finished by putting a coat of wax on the top. Centsational girl recommended this. I love wax for other furniture. But I've decided after a few days, that wax is just not enough of a protectant for our kitchen table. So I will be going over it with good ol' fashioned clear coat.

But all in all, I love how it looks. It brightens up the space and really showcases the Christmas colors of the runner my mom made for me.



This project took 4 days. That is a lifetime for one as impatient as me. And I didn't skip any steps or rush through it. Again, it's a miracle. But I do like how it looks.

Now to do something with those chairs.......