HELLO!! It has been way too long!
I am entering the blogging world once more to share with you some home DIY. I was going to try and share all these tips on my Insta or Facebook stories but decided it would be much easier to direct you here with more information and pictures that don't "disappear" in seconds.
Last year I completed a major kitchen remodel. Yes, I do plan on sharing more on that with BEFORE and AFTER pictures if it seems that people still read this little old blog!
I am loving everything farmhouse style and this table waited about a year until I finally got around to fixing it up.
This is BEFORE...
I found it on marketplace for $20 and that included three chairs! I see tables like this posted all the time on marketplace for dirt cheap. I still have an extra chair because I only needed two chairs to fit perfect in this little nook I had created during the kitchen model redo.
I searched Pinterest for ideas and inspiration for this table redo. Here is my Pinterest board on this topic. There were a lot of great reviews for General Mills milk paint and I knew I wanted a black base and natural wood top. So, I ordered lamp black General Mills paint.
Disclaimer: The links on products throughout this post take you to my Amazon affliliate link. This means I earn a small advertising fee if you were to purchase using any of the Amazon links in this post. I was not paid by Amazon or any other company to write this post or advertise any of these products I used.
Information from Amazon:
- This paint is self-sealing and does not require a topcoat
- Do not apply clear topcoats over bright white paint, as yellowing may occur due to a reaction to the substrate. Light color paints may also experience yellowing due to topcoat application, but it will less noticeable
- Extremely durable premium furniture paint with high adhesion rated for interior or exterior use.
- Apply over raw wood or prepped existing finishes. Perfect for upcycling and cabinet refinishing.
- Apply 2-3 coats by roller, brush or sprayer with an HVLP 2.0 tip. Water cleanup.
Before I started painting the base or the chairs, I tackled the top of the table first. I removed it from the base and brought it outside to sand with my round electric sander. It was super fast. I started with a 60 grit to remove the old finish, then used a 120 grit and finally briefly a 220 grit. If you sand too long with a fine grit like 220, it closes up the pores of the wood, so less finish will soak into the wood. It was smooth to the touch after just a bit of 220 sanding.
Before
After Sanding
Next, I used my favorite color stain, Minwax English Chestnut that matches the original cupboards and woodwork on one side of my kitchen that I refinished years ago. I also always use a pre-stain wood conditioner before applying stain. This trick I learned years ago after refinishing almost all of my existing woodwork in my house. My wood is a douglas fir. The table was oak I believe though. The wood conditioner just gives a nice even stain coat.
After Staining
After letting the stain dry overnight, I was ready to apply the first layer of topcoat. After reading many reviews for durability, I decided to try General Finishes Arm-R-Seal satin Oil Based Topcoat. I am so absolutely THRILLED with how this topcoat turned out! It is amazing. No bubbles, drips, etc. I applied four coats with a lint free cloth. I wiped fast and did not put much product on each time. I sanded very lightly with 220 in between each coat. This table will stand up to years with my kids and leaves no water marks at all! I did let it sit for THREE weeks before I placed any dishes on it.
It was worth the wait!
Then, I got to work using the General Finishes lamp black milk paint on the table base and chairs. It performed exactly like the reviews I read! I only lightly sanded the base and chairs and the paint was so easy to work with! I used two coats on everything.
After one coat...
General Finishes milk paint does not require a topcoat but since these were chairs and I wanted a little more "slip" to them when sitting down and also a little more protection from daily wear, I covered them with the General Finishes satin water based topcoat.
This was just as easy to work with as the oil based but minus the smell and water based is recommended for a topcoat over the paint. Even though I used black paint (white really would show yellowing with oil based topcoat), I still didn't want to use the oil based on top of the paint. I only applied one coat of the topcoat. No chips or any signs of wear and it has been about two months of use with sliding chairs to the table.
I was so thrilled with how easy it was to use milk paint that I tackled another project!
This shelf got a makeover!
Stay tuned for a post on that. :)
