White Painted Table-Part One

Oh my-its been a looong time since my last blog post. I don't know if its because I have too much to say, or not enough.

So far, I am loving everything about Arizona. I never thought I'd find another city with people as friendly as those in my hometown of San Antonio, but Gilbert seems to be the winner. We've made friends so quickly! I've gone to lunch twice with new friends, started walking every morning at 6 AM with one of them, and Heather, the mom of one of the cutest boys I've ever met, took M for the entire day on Friday so that I could have a day to myself. Is that awesome or WHAT!!!

So, what did I do all day long? I painted a dining table! I bought it just before we left Texas, along with 6 chairs that I plan to recover. The table was just the right size for our family, the chairs were sturdy and gorgeous, and the entire set was a steal at $200.

I have wanted a white dining set for ages. Check out some of my inspiration photos:

The chairs are pretty similar to these, except mine have a rattan back instead of fabric:

I love the detailing on this table, but it's a little too fussy for how we live:

This Pottery Barn table is fabulous:

Can you tell that I love pedestal based tables?

This table is the one I am trying to copy. It's a closeup of the Pottery Barn table above, but without the leaf. Note the creamy finish and the darker colored detailing. I really hope I can pull this off:

Here is my table:

You can't tell, but it has a double pedestal base:


A close look reveals the water damage:


And the stained fabric on the chairs:


I really believe I can fix those problems, and get the dining set of my dreams for under $300.

My first step was to sand the bad spots, then prime.


It wasn't necessary to sand the entire table, because the primer that I used, Zinnser's BullsEye 1-2-3, covers glossy surfaces. I did two thin coats, applied with a foam roller on the table top and a brush on the sides and legs.



So far, so good! Now that the table is primed, I'll let it cure for a week before painting with my color of choice-Valspar's Off White in a satin finish. Its a creamy and dreamy white, the color of melted vanilla ice-cream. When that's done, I'll post part two. Until then, we'll be eating our meals outside. Hopefully it doesn't rain at dinner time this week!