Thrift Store Side Table, To Paint or Not to Paint

Today I’m tackling this cute little side table I picked up from a flea market a few years ago. Sitting in my storage room for all those years, his time for a makeover is long overdue.

Right now he is wearing a nice coat of glossy brown paint covered in dust with lots of chips on his edges.

Now, the question arises, should I strip off the old paint or just paint.

What kind of wood are we dealing with?

Out came the sander. It looks like we’re dealing with 4 layers of paint and varnish. The original varnish, light blue, white and the final coat of brown.

But what I’m really looking for is, what kind of grain is in the wood? Is is worth taking off all those old layers? And those spindles would be a bear.

For this piece, I see another coat of paint in his future. The wood grain is practically nonexistent and wouldn’t be enhanced at all by stain or varnish.

I continued with the electric sander on the top, this time to even out all of those old paint layers and chips.

For this project I’m using chalk paint in a Sand color. It goes with everything and, more importantly, that’s what I had in my cupboard.

To cover up the brown, he’s going to need 2 coats.

When you think you’ve covered all your surfaces with paint, turn him over and be amazed at how many spots you missed. I find this especially true with spindles and chairs.

When you have a beautiful coat of paint (or two) on your piece, and it’s all dry, you may consider hitting the edges lightly with a fine sandpaper . The little glimpses of wood shining thru give a little personality to your piece and makes the inevitable chips and scratches look more purposeful.

If you did use chalk paint, finish your piece with a coat of clear wax. Just paint on, wipe off the excess with a rag or soft cloth. When dry, buff with fine steel wool.

I know my piece looks white, I just wanted to show you the table against white cabinets.