Furniture Makeover
AAs many of you know, I rarely focus on just one project at a time. My house is usually full of half-finished tasks—I’m juggling a dozen things at once. That does mean things sometimes take longer than expected.
On the plus side, my scattershot approach occasionally pays off: multiple projects can finish all at once. I love when that happens.
BEFORE: WOOD TABLE
After surprising a few readers by painting my antique coffee table blue, I recently finished another transformation: I painted an unpainted wood dining table white. Yes, another wood table got a coat of paint. Here’s what it looked like before.
{crickets}
DISCLAIMER: This table was a simple, not-fancy pine Pottery Barn table from the 1990s. No antiques were harmed or devalued in this makeover. I love natural wood and don’t plan to paint every wooden piece—just the less-loved ones that need a lift.
Now it’s white.
As shown in the top “after” photo (the picture includes the leaves), I left the table leaves unpainted, so the finished piece is a two-tone mix of white and natural wood. Two-toned tables are trendy right now, but for me it was simply a happy decorating accident that worked out well.
The finish is not perfectly distressed or meticulously painted—and that’s fine. I primed the table with a coat of Zinsser and applied a coat of white trim paint. Done. The photos show the same table at different stages and in various arrangements as my dining room décor evolves.
The real reason these painting projects finally got finished is simple: I had a deadline last weekend. When there’s a genuine deadline, I manage to set aside time and complete things I’d been putting off.
Do you work better under a DEADLINE?
If deadlines help you finish projects, try setting small target dates for each step. Break the task into manageable parts: prep, primer, paint, and touch-ups. Even a modest timeline can turn a lingering project into a completed one and give you that satisfying “after” moment.