The Tale of Two Tables


*This blog post is brought to you buy two thrifting pals, who never leave a thrift shop empty handed! 
If you want to read the other half of the story you can read it here.

Once upon a time in a land far, far away, where the rain falls freely, giant trees tower above, snow covered peaks loom and the ocean waves crash upon the shore...

Two blogging and thrifting pals, Barbara from hodge:podge and Carol from The Design Pages, were on the hunt for an end table for their lovely daughters. While on one of their thriftting excursions they hunted high and low for the perfect table, one that had good "bones".  But alas, they came away without finding that perfect table {but they found other treasures, that is a another story for another day}

Sniff....

The one friend decided to search Craigslist to see what she could find. One stormy evening she stumbled across a bedroom set that had the perfect pair of end tables. She emailed the seller and asked if they would be willing to separate the set. The seller said "yes". Quickly,  the ever-so-excited-friend emailed the other friend a link and asked if she was interested. $50 bucks for the pair! 
"Why yes!!!" she said, "how perfect!"

The thrifty gals took their tables home and worked their magic on them, transforming them from their 70's lacquered horror to glamourous side tables fit for their princesses.

They went from this:


To this:


Carol  painted her table with a glossy black paint and silver leafed the top and handles to create a table fit for a queen.

Want to know her costs? And how she did it? Visit her blog to find out more.

Want to know how I worked my magic? 


My costs:

Table: $25
Paint: 1 quart Behr indoor latex in satin finish, $18
{colour matched to Benjamin Moore's Spectra Blue}
Primer: Benjamin Moore's oil-based primer, already had on hand {cost $18}
Sealant: Diamond Finish Sealant in satin by Varathane, already had on hand {$14}
Handles were left as-is

Total cost: $34

How I did it:

Using a power sander I sanded the surface of the table as the finish was quite damaged. Then I painted on a coat of oil-based primer with a foam roller for a nice smooth finish and using a foam brush for the crevices. Next, I painted the table with 2 coats of the Behr paint, using a foam roller and good quality paint brush.  Finally, using a foam brush I painted on 3 coats of the Varathane sealant.
Screw back on the handles and 

voila!


And this table lived happily ever after.

The End

xo Barbara

14 comments

  1. LOVE both afters. But I'm such a sucker for a pale aqua blue!

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  2. Cute tale :) Love both of the afters! Such great little tables!!

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  3. If you decide to give up decorating you can become a story teller! Love your post and love your table.

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  4. That was a great story ...and an even better project!
    Wonderful how the same item can be so magically & so differently transformed...lucky girls!

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  5. Love the side by side of the two finished pieces, the same yet different. That blue is gorgeous! Makes my inept self want to DIY...

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  6. Not only do you gussy stuff up...you write well too!! Great post! Love your table...I saw Carol's too....I am nicknaming you two the "Vancouver Talent Babes"...!!!

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  7. Love your story Barbara! And the ending is so darn satisfying, cause your table turned out just fab :) Hugs,
    Nancy xo

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  8. Love the colour choice! There's really nothing more satisfying than a great DIY project.

    xo, Vanessa Elizabeth

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  9. I love your story telling Barb. The ending is the best, because both projects are done right?

    Well done to both of you.

    Jodi

    The Simply Inspired Home

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  10. you did a wonderful job. i love the color and the look of that blue.

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  11. Such a fun post! I love how both of the tables turned out.

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  12. pretty blue!! LOVE! I cant wit to have some paint weather! I have no room in the garage :( Where do you paint?

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