Look what I found sitting in the alley recently– this cute table! I really felt like it had potential to become a “treasure” and couldn’t resist the urge to rescue it. Plus, I found a recipe for chalk paint and wanted to try that out. And what better way to experiment than with a free piece of furniture salvaged from the trash, right? As you can see, my little table needed some rehab–it was nothing some sandpaper and a bit of paint couldn’t fix.
I started my project by hand-sanding the table. About 15 minutes into it I was really wishing I would have busted out the power sander (as you can imagine). All things considered, the sanding part was pretty easy- it’s a small table. I’d been doing a lot of research on chalk paint and wanted to try it out to see what all the hype was about. Price-wise the “real thing” is a shade on the expensive side so I decided to make my own version. Here is the recipe I used:
Chalk Paint
- 1/2 cup hot water
- 1/2 cup plaster of paris
- 1 1/2 cups satin latex paint
Combine hot water and plaster of paris. Whisk. Add to satin latex paint. Mix well.
I bought my paint at Lowe’s– I got a small-sized sample container of paint for approximately $2.50. This paint was easy to mix up and extremely user-friendly. It coated the table well– in this case I used 2 coats of paint. Luckily it dries fast so I was able to finish the project all at once. I had some leftover paint mixture and was pleased to find out that you can save it in an airtight container and it works just fine the next day (I saved some for touch ups).
I distressed the edges slightly with sandpaper and I’m still thinking about putting small tiles or maybe glass on top. I’d also like to put a sealant over it to prevent watermarks and protect the wood. Considering this is a piece of furniture that I “rescued” from the trash it turned out pretty cute. Part of me wants to sell this and part of me wants to keep it….. any offers out there??!
Cheers!
Right now I’m using this as a side table by the sofa to catch my overflow of magazines and books and computers. It’s a great place to rest my ipad.
Thrift Shopping Buzz 
I love this! Must have been all those years in 4-H that you learned how to do this, Right?
Definitely all those years of 4-H! I really like re-doing furniture though. Better yet when it’s something I “found” for free. Like the table in this blog post.
Great job! I love the color choice!!
Many thanks. I’m still thinking about changing it somewhat though. We shall see. Cheers!