French Coffee Table Make-Over
If you’re getting sick of reading about my love for Paris & French decor, come back in a few days. I promise I’ll shut up soon. But if not, keep reading & I’ll tell you about this little table I found at Goodwill for only $15. A perfect little piece to go with my new French sofa. (After I painted it, that is.)
My first step was to lightly sand the entire table so that it would easily accept the paint. I wanted to paint it a distressed light grey, & it just so happens I have a few shades of grey in my garage left over from when we built the house, so I ended up using only paint that I already had, saving me even more money! I started with a couple coats of Sherwin William’s Nebulous White, leftover from my laundry room.
Next, I painted a coat of SW’s Silver Strand, but it wasn’t quite as grey as I wanted, so I made a “wash” with 1 part SW’s Earl Grey & 2 parts water. This is what started giving it the distressed appearance. 
After a coat of that, I added the slightest hint of a light green on the corners. Then, I sanded it here & there to let some of the original stain show through.
It turned out to be just what I needed for the piano room. This was super-easy! And because I was using a high quality paint, I didn’t use a clear coat. But, I would recommend it for most paints. And here’s another tip: Sherwin William’s sells their sample quarts for less than $4! A project like this takes only a fraction of a quart. They will mix a sample quart in any color you want, including colors from other brands. They don’t like to promote this because they say the paint is not the same quality as their high-end paints sold in the gallon (and because they want to sell you the $15 quart), but if you use a protective clear coat, it will work great. Hope this inspires you to try this!
18 Comments
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May 31, 2010 @ 1:01 pm
Just a little batter and natural looking – she turned out great and looks very pretty next to your sofa!!
May 31, 2010 @ 1:22 pm
looks gorgeous! love the finish you gave it. and i love your floors! 🙂
May 31, 2010 @ 1:58 pm
What a great find and it looks fabulous with your paint project. Gorgeous. Hugs, Marty
May 31, 2010 @ 2:34 pm
Wow, this looks awesome!! Great job!! Visiting from Making the World Cuter. 🙂
May 31, 2010 @ 3:22 pm
It turned out awesome!!!
May 31, 2010 @ 3:42 pm
It looks wonderful and so perfect with your gorgeous couch!!
May 31, 2010 @ 4:22 pm
Just lovely…and the sofa is gorgeous!
May 31, 2010 @ 8:35 pm
You did a really good job with the distressed look! Nice find at the Goodwill!
Following from DIY …
Sandy
May 31, 2010 @ 9:12 pm
Great job!!!!!!
June 1, 2010 @ 12:07 am
What a great job! It looks really good.
June 1, 2010 @ 12:51 am
ohhhh so pretty!!!! I love the transformation 🙂
~ Emily N. from "too Blessed to Stress"
June 1, 2010 @ 1:44 am
Love it…it looks beautiful. And b/c I love the Eiffel tower and have a small collection of them, I have that exact one:)
Sarah
HandbagsNPigtails.blogspot.com
June 1, 2010 @ 12:47 pm
It's gorgeous, you did a great job!
And wow your floors are stunning by the way!
June 1, 2010 @ 7:51 pm
Really cute! I love painted furniture….no matter what your style it looks great. 🙂 Lisa~
June 1, 2010 @ 9:37 pm
Very, very nice! I'm visiting from Trash to Treasure Tuesday…
T.bird
June 1, 2010 @ 11:59 pm
This came out great! I like the way it really pops on your hardwood floors.
July 12, 2010 @ 6:54 am
I love what you have done.It turned out soo great!!!Awesome pictures! Thanks for the inspiration!
November 15, 2010 @ 3:53 pm
Just gorgeous! Of course I was drooling at your floor and the little Eiffel Tower too. 🙂