BrittanyMakes

{In your best infomercial voice} Tired of your rinky-dink, blah-wood, scuffed-up coffee table? Do you want to add a little elegance to your living room or family room without spending a ton of money? Better yet, are you itching to spray paint something for the very first time? Well, today is your lucky day!

No seriously, today is your lucky day. It's hump day, the sun is shining, its still summer, we're 3 days into shark week, and I'm about to share the beginner's guide to transforming your boring coffee table into something sophisticated and fabulous!

Here's a glimpse of the transformed coffee table…

Beautiful, right?? So clean and crisp and chic. Well, she didn't always look this great, here's what she looked like when I got her:

I'm sure she was a beauty in her day. I picked this table up from a consignment store in Berkeley a while back. I fell for her lines and brass pulls, and her potential to be all-done-up in white. I've seen many tables like this one in local thrift stores, some with bolder lines and heavier pulls, but in essence the same boxy storage-like table. Very versatile and friendly, you could store the remotes inside, as well as extra blankets or throw pillows.

You could definitely complete this project over two afternoons. I tend to let things dry overnight, mainly because I usually don't have an entire afternoon's time to spend working on projects. The accountant here is a busy gal!

Here are the steps to complete this basic coffee table transformation in two afternoons…

Sand, Wipe, Prime, Sand & Wipe

Step 1 – Remove all hardware with a screw driver. I had some trouble removing all the screws, a couple of them were stripped. I was still able to take the doors off, so I wasn't too worried, and I had an alternative plan on how to refinish the hinges.

Step 2 – Sand the doors, both sides, with an electric sander. I used a hand held vibrating sander, I also have an orbit sander which would've also been perfect.

Step 3 – Wipe off the dust with a wet cloth or a baby wipe.

Step 4 – Sand the big guy! be cautious of the grain of the wood, I know you've heard the phrase "go with the grain". Once you're finished sanding, wipe with a wet cloth or baby wipe. Make sure to get all the dust off.

Step 5 – Prime! Prime the doors and the table. Prime the inside too. I used Zissner spray primer for it's easy spray-on coverage. I didn't go with the paint on primer because I didn't want to deal with any streaks. Plus, rattle-cans apply and dry faster. Let the primer dry for about an hour.

Step 6 – Sand the primer, especially if you find any drips, sand those off. The goal here is to get a smooth even surface before applying your first coat of paint.

Paint, Sand, Wipe, Paint & Poly

Step 7 – Spray paint it! I grabbed my favorite go-to paint, Rustoleum's Heirloom White, and painted the doors first. You want to lay he doors flat to prevent the paint from dripping, spray in a slow and steady back and forth motion to minimize blotchy spots.  Also, be careful not to apply the first coat too thick, you can always go back for a second or third coat if needed. Once the doors are dry, flip them over and apply a coat to the back sides.

Step 8 – Now that you've painted the doors, you're a pro! Now go paint the table.  I sprayed the sides of the table first, then sprayed the inside of the table, and sprayed the top last.  I definitely recommend wearing a mask when spraying, you really don't want to inhale that stuff. Let the table dry for at least an hour before applying a second coat.  Feel free to give the table a light sanding in between coats, especially if you find any drips you forgot to smooth out when the paint was wet.

Step 9 – Let's paint the hardware.  This was my first time using Krylon's metallic spray paint in classic gold, and it turned out pretty well.  I poked all the screws through the back of a water box and sprayed. 

Step 10 – Next, spray the pulls and hinges, then flipped them over when dry to coat the back sides.

Step 11 – Remember earlier I couldn't get the second set of hinges off because the nails were stripped? Well, here was my solution.  I taped the hinges with painters tape before priming in step 5 so that the hinges would not get covered in primer and paint.  I removed the tape after step 8, then taped a garbage bag around the hinges to protect the white table from getting sprayed with the metallic spray.

Step 12 – Remove the tape and garbage bags from the table within 10 minutes of spraying the metallic paint on the hinges.  Now your table is ready for a clear protective coat.  I suggest using Minwax's wipe on polyurethane, it dries fast and is super easy to apply.  I forgot to take a photo of applying the poly, however you can check where I used it on my restored antique dining chairs.  I usually let poly dry overnight, it tends to be pretty sticky if handled before its completely dry.

And the finished product…

So pretty! And the final wow…

Look at those golden pulls, so glamorous! Do you love?

Don't let a table like this scare you away. The basic steps to refinishing any piece of furniture are  generally the same: sand, clean, prime, sand, clean, spray & coat.  It just takes a few hours, some patience and a couple tools to transform a piece like this into something that adds light and sophistication to any living room.