Thursday, February 23, 2012

Herringbone Side Table

Update! My furniture restlessness continues, and this table is now for sale in my shop


Wayyyyy back when, I showed you that the nightstands I planned to use in my room were majorly small compared to my big beautiful grownup bed. I replaced the tables with bookshelves, which are still there. One of those little tables has been sitting in my dining room (also known as Sarah’s furniture storage space, sorry roomies) for a while.

I haven’t been happy with the side table (which I refinished) next to our sofa for a while, so I decided to nix it and move my ex-nightstand into our living room. Only, white painted furniture looks kind of odd in our living room because we have an ugly rental neutral on our walls, and the white looks a little dirty. And I kind of rushed to finish a paint job on this little guy (girl?) before I moved out of my parents’ house, so it needed a new paint job anyway.

Ummm this corner is really dark, so please excuse the hideous attempt at photo editing.  

Read more after the jump!
Even though I didn’t want to go with white, I still wanted this table to be neutral so that it didn’t compete with our beautiful pink TV console. I decided to paint the table gray. I used Glidden flat paint in Cobblestone, which is actually a Martha Stewart color. When choosing a gray, I made sure that it went with the fabric I bought recently, which I plan to make pillows out of soon.

I sanded the table somewhat lightly, and then used a paintbrush and a roller to apply three coats of paint onto the table. Once the gray was dry, I decided that the table needed something…a paint treatment perhaps? I decided to add a herringbone pattern to the tabletop with white paint I had on hand. Oh, and I did all this at night, so excuse these blurry and off-colored photos. 


To paint the herringbone pattern, I marked up the tabletop and taped it off for all the stripes. I used the tutorial from this beautifulceiling as a guide. This process was not as easy as I thought it would be. It actually made me feel kind of stupid. And not to brag, but I took calculus as a junior in high school so things like this are not supposed to be difficult for me. But I also think my math skills have declined over the years, so that could explain it. Meh, oh well. I digress.

So like three episodes of Sex & the City later, I finally had my table taped off. Check out the pile of failed tape in the corner of this pic. Yep, it was a trial and error process indeed.


Once I had the table taped off, I used a brush to get the edges, and then rolled on three coats of white paint. Oh, funny thing…it was the white paint that was already on the tabletop. Shortly after I put the third coat on (before it was dry), I pulled off the painters’ tape to reveal beautiful lines. This was the point in time where I rejoiced at the discovery of Frog tape, which many other bloggers love too.


There was only one problem with this pattern: I didn’t really like the gray line down the middle. And I realize as I'm writing this that, oops, I didn't take a picture of what that looked. Well, anyway, rather than trying to continue the individual stripes through that middle stripe, I decided to paint it white. After the white paint dried, I put down two more strips of painters tape and then used a brush (the roller was too wide) to apply three coats of paint. Like the herringbone stripes, I pulled the painters tape off shortly after I finished the last coat of paint.


Ta-daaaaa! Now our little gray table has a herringbone “inlay” you might say.


I’ve got to be honest with you. I can’t decide how I feel about this pattern.  Part of me wants to get rid of the stripes and add a more feminine design, something akin to my stenciled desk. Part of me sees an arrow every time I look at it.  So I didn’t put a protective coat on it yet. I want to live with it for a few days before I make a decision. If I decide to keep it, I’ll brush on a couple layers of Minwax Polycrylic in satin to give it a little sheen and protect the tabletop design.


But whatever I decide to do, this tabletop will likely stay painted. I like the way a design looks on a table that has raised edges like this.

36 comments:

  1. I love the looks of this and it definitely brightens up that corner. I have been looking for a good sealer for painted furniture so I will give the Minwax a try. I'm so happy I came across your post!

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    1. I think I learned about Minwax Polycrlic on Centsational Girl. It's great for painting projects because it doesn't yellow like a lot of polyurethanes do.

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  2. that looks amazing! and i think it fits that space perfectly, and brightens it up nicely!

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  3. I think it looks great! And I also like it in that space better than the one from before, too.

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  4. Very cool! It's perfect for that spot.

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  5. Love this table. Found you over at Chic on a shoestring. Would love it if you shared it at our very first link party
    http://www.decoratinginsanity.com/2012/02/furniture-friday-6-and-link-party.html
    xo...mONICA

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    1. Shared it! Thanks for letting me know about your link party!

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  6. Wow! That is gorgeous! I'm putting in on my FB page tonight!

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  7. Looks great Sarah! Come over to my linky party at Inspired Creations at Embracing Change to link it up! What a difference you made - love that!
    Stacey :o)
    http://staceyembracingchange.blogpsot.com

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    1. Thanks Stacey! I liked up to your party -- thanks for letting me know about it!

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  8. I am LOVING this. Great tutorial, and it looks fantastic! Thanks for sharing (saw your post over At the Picket Fence).

    Gabby
    The...Late, Young Family

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  9. love that new table's shape, and love the pattern you did on top! i totally want to copy this!

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    1. Isn't the table cute? I keep trying to find another one on CL because I like it so much!

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  10. The herringbone is fun and different than the chevron we are seeing so much of. Grey and white, always right! Thanks for linking up!

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    1. Thanks! I like to think of herringbone as the slightly more grownup version of chevron. I think I like chevron more in textiles than on furniture.

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  11. I personally really like the change -- and I'm totally digging grey lately. I just dyed my kitchen curtains from grey to brown and I love the change. I see what you mean about the arrow, but it's kind of subtle, especially when you have things on top of the table. And it adds a lot of light in that corner. Fabulous job!

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  12. Sweet as! Love the grey and love the herringbone pattern on the top :) Thanks for sharing and I'm now following along.
    Cas x

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  13. Hello. Me again. I love this table so much. it has been featured on my blog.
    http://www.decoratinginsanity.com/2012/02/weekend-features-6.html
    xo...mONICa

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    1. Wow, thanks Monica! I grabbed your button and put it in the sidebar.

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  14. I love the transformation, your patience definitely paid off. The color choice is perfect also, big change from the previous table you had in the corner:) I would love if you could share it with my readers at my cheap finds and transformation party, it is sure to make a feature! Here's the link if you're interested, and have a great weekend! http://www.thescottscrib.com/2012/01/lathrifta-strikes-gold-lathriftas-cheap.html

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  15. I love this! It's so beautiful. I'm your newest follower via Tatertots and Jello's link party. ~Megan

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  16. I really like the look and the before and after shots really show it off-I'm your newest follower-stop by for a visit!

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  17. Great transformation - really turned out awesome!!!
    Come back and link up again Thursday - I would love to have you!
    Stacey of Embracing Change

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  18. Love the table!! I would love it if you linked up at my party going on now! (It's my very first one!!)

    Jill
    www.jillifyit.com

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    1. Thanks for the invite, Jill! I just linked up this project.

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  19. Thanks for linking up to my party at Jillify It!
    I'm a new follower!

    Jill
    www.jillifyit.com

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  20. I love this table! You did a fabulous job!! I would love if you would share with my readers on Blog Stalking Thursday! http://thecraftyblogstalker.blogspot.com/2012/02/blog-stalking-thursday-30.html

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  21. What a cute table! It really lightens up that corner of your room. Thanks fr sharing at my party!

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  22. I think it looks great! Wait and see how many compliments your friends/family give you on the table and then decide if you want to change it. I think it looks very modern and chic...aka: I want one!!!
    I am your newest follower!
    Helen - www.pickedandpainted.blogspot.com

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  23. Love the herringbone design! Great choice.

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  24. This is VERY cute. You are really inspiring me to get some herringbone in my life!!

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  25. Wow, you've got a great eye and great instincts for what will work. The herringbone and Moroccan stenciling on your desk and side table are just gorgeous. Thanks for the inspiration.

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