Coffee Table Makeover

From Drab to Fab: My First Successful Furniture Transformation Using Chalk Paint

Hello everyone!!!  I didn't think I would be writing this blog post so soon but I'm super excited to share this with you all. I thought I would be sharing it next week but the project didn't take as long as I thought.  In my last post here, I shared about how I discovered chalk paint and I'm telling you it is amazing!! And because it dries so quickly I was able to finish this project quicker than I thought.

I also shared in my last post that I was going to repurpose this old beaten up Ikea Lack coffee table.

The great thing is that with chalk paint barely any prep work is required.  My type of project.  All I did was give the table a good cleaning.  I used disinfectant wipes to really wipe it down.  After wiping gathered my supplies and got to working.

I wanted a farmhouse top style table so   from Home Depot   I picked up four 1"x4"x8' common board and had them cut them down to the lengths I needed.  This gave me 8 pieces but my table required only 7. Stain for the wood.  I used a combination Minwax Special Walnut and Classic Grey (more on that later), liquid nails to glue the board onto the table, screws, Americana Decor Chalk Paint in Vintage

 

Supplies

1  1x4s

2  sand paper 120 grit, 220 grit and 400 grit

3  Stain

4  Chalk Paint

5  Good quality paint brush

6  Clear Cream Wax

7  Dark Cream Wax

8  Clean rags

9  Liquid Nails/wood glue

10          Screws

Polycrylic/Polyurethane

 

I started out by sanding my 1x4s.  It didn't require a lot of sanding as the boards were pretty smooth.  Start with 12o grit sand paper then smooth out with 220 grit.  After sanding I wiped off all the dust with a tack cloth then proceeded to staining. Before staining I always use a pre-stain wood conditioner.  This helps the wood absorb the stain and prepare splotchiness.  I use Minwax wood conditioner.

After sanding I proceeded to stain.  I stained with Minwax Special Walnut first and after letting that dry for about 6 hours I applied a second coat of stain with the Minwax Classic Grey then let the stain dry for 24 hours.

 

While the boards were drying I started painting my a table.  Like I said earlier the only prep required for painting with the chalk paint was cleaning the table.  I used the Americana Decor Chalk Paint and I have to say I love it.  It gave good coverage and dried super fast.  The only thing was that there were visible brush strokes though after applying the second coat the reduced drastically but brush strokes were still visible.  As I was going for a textured look this didn't bother me.

After the paint dried, I sanded with 400 grit sandpaper just to smooth out the paint.  Then I took my 220 grit sand paper and started to distress. I wanted sort of a shabby chic vintage distressed look.  I wanted a light distress so I mostly sanded the edges which gave it a lightly worn out look.

So with chalk paint, in order to preserve it from chipping you need to wax it.  From my research I found that there is clear wax which and there is dark wax.  Clear wax is a must and the dark is optional.  The dark wax helps to give the furniture the antique look.  So I started with the Americana Decor Clear Creme Wax.  I just followed the instructions.  I applied it on with a clean rag, wiping off any excess and then allowed to dry.  After drying I buffed to give it some sheen.  If you are going for a matte look this step is not necessary.  I decided I wanted to give the table an antique look so I decided to try the dark wax also by American Decor.  Also followed the instructions: applied with a clean rag, wiped off and allowed to dry. Once dry a buffed to get a nice sheen.  I have to say I like the antiquing effect.

Once I was happy with the paint job, and my boards were dry it was time to attach the boards to the table top.  Note that I didn't paint the top of the table since the boards were going on top of them.  I ran a 120 grit sand paper on the table top just to roughen it up a bit to allow the liquid nails to adhere.  Then I wiped down so as to remove any dust.  Then I started gluing my boards to the top.

Once all the boards were glued on I let it sit for about half an hour to allow the glue to adhere properly.  I also placed heavy objects on them since I don't have a clamp.  All my big heavy nursing textbooks came in handy for this lol. After about half an hour I proceeded to add my screws.  I want to use screws for two reasons, one it makes the boards more secure on the table.  Secondly, aesthetic purposes.  The screw heads on the table gave the table an industrial feel that I like.  If you don't like the screws showing you can screw from underneath.

After the screws were installed I proceeded to seal my table top with polycrylic.  You can use either polycrylic or polyurethane for this step but from research that I've done polyurethane causes the wood to yellow over time so I opted for polycrylic. The polycrylic helps to protect the wood.  I used a semi gloss so it gave it a bit of a sheen.  I applied three coats letting dry for two hours in between coats and sanding with 22o grit sandpaper in between the coats also.

And with that the table is done yay!! I really love the transformation.  What do you all think?

Kandi Brown

https://kandilandsite.wordpress.com/2016/08/04/from-drab-to-fab-my-first-successful-furniture-transformation-using-chalk-paint/

Welcome to Kandiland!

Welcome to Kandiland!! 

So I decided to start this blog so as to share the DIY projects I am working on. A little bit about me, I'm a married mom with the most beautiful little girl (I know I'm biased lol). Her impending arrival is actually what started my whole DIY journey. 

Before she arrived, even though at the time we lived in a one bedroom apartment and she wasn't going to have a nursery a space was made for her in our bedroom and I still wanted it to be cute for her. Initially I was looking to buy decorations/artwork to hang on the wall but my goodness!! Everything is so super expensive!! 

So I started looking on Pinterest for ideas and from there realized I can try to make my own decor. Mind you I've never thought I was creative or imaginative so at first I thought it was going to be near impossible. But Mike (my husband) was a huge source of encouragement and helped to boost my confidence. And thus it all began. 

Below are some of the decor I created for her space. We have since bought our first house and I'm now currently working on her nursery. I've incorporated the pieces I made for her space while in the apartment into the nursery. And working on adding a few other things which I'll be updating you all on here on the blog. I also look forward to sharing the other projects I have going on around the house. 

I have included pictures of what I did in the apartment and her nursery currently. My favorite thing is the giraffe art hanging over her crib. I've never been able to draw and I had to painstakingly practice this over and over on sheets of paper till I was able to get it right and I'm quite happy with how it came out. Maybe one day Kennedy will pass it on to her child lol.

Anyways please feel free to comment and ask any questions 😀😀

KAB

Kitchen Shelves DIY

So it's been a few weeks now since we moved into our new house but it's been slow go getting organized and working on the list of DIY projects that I have planned.


Between Kennedy and summer school, getting shit done has been a tad tough lol.


But summer school is finally over and I finally completed my first project. I wanted to put up some shelves in the kitchen as the cabinet space is just not enough for all my stuff. So at first I thought I would just buy some shelves and install so I went on Etsy and saw these industrial pipe shelves that I just loved.

Alas they were way too expensive. No way I was gonna shell out $200 for a couple of shelves. Anyways Pinterest to the rescue.


I found several sites with tutorials on how to build the shelves for a fraction of the cost. So I got two pieces of pine wood boards, and stained them, got some steel pluming pipe parts,cleaned them and then spray painted bronze and copper to kinda give them an aged metal look. Attached the pipes to the wood and mounted on the wall and voilà I got my industrial pipe shelves.


Now on to the next project.