Bedside table Makeover

Hate me if you want, but I painted an old bedside table I found at the Restore. I got it for $13.50, thanks to my frequent shoppers discount :) otherwise it would have been $15. Either way a great deal since it was solid mahogany. Yes I could have just brought it home, cleaned it up and used it as is and some pieces I do that with. I would never paint or repurpose a real antique that belonged to someone's family. I just can't bring myself to so it. I recently got an old sled from a friend of mine and I was thinking of turning it into a pot rack to hang from my ceiling until I turned it over and saw and inscription and Christmas 1960 on it. So for now it is sitting in the corner of my living room looking lovely and waiting for Christmas to be draped in garland and lights. I respect antiques, but most Restore or garage sale finds are in bad shape so it it better to paint them or turn them into something else. That being said, I found this sweet bedside table at the Restore.

I didn't realize it at the time, but the door had a crack in it, so I don't feel terrible about painting it.

So I removed the hardware and stripped and sanded the whole thing. It had years of wax build up on it, so it was a pretty time consuming project. Once I had sanded it down, I used two of the oops paints I had on hand and painted the body red and the drawer and door off white. I was frustrated because I had brush strokes on it. I talked to my best friend who also refinishes furniture and she told me to sand it after I painted it. (WHAT?!) She said that would get rid of the brush strokes. Still being new at this I also looked online for ways to avoid brush strokes. I was too far gone to do most of them so I grabbed my sander and got started. It was looking nice. The brush strokes were disappearing, I was thrilled. Then I saw wood! Oh no!!!! Well Shabby Chic it is then, I decided. I sanded it some more and then when I was satisfied with the look it was time to finish it. I used....

   

I had to use the natural color because that is all I can find around here, but I am still on the lookout for the dark wax. I think the dark wax looks nicer when you are going for that shabby chic look. I put the wax on, let it sit for 15 minutes and then I buffed it. I felt like it needed a little more so I put on another layer of wax and again buffed it out. 

This is my finished product.

 I'm in love with it and it is great as a bedside table because all of the things I used to stack on top are now able to be stored inside. Some people don't like the two color scheme and that's fine. It ties my curtains and bedspread together nicely. 

Including the wax, that I can use on other projects, this whole thing cost me $21. You really can't beat that for as nice as it looks.

Hope you like it too! 

Tool Belt Momma