Renovating

Last week I shared a list of 24 projects with you that I seriously need to finish. Or else. I’ve put these things off for far too long, and I just need to get.them.done. once and for all.

Monday I showed you my finished Project #10 (pictures for piano room), and today I’m happy to report that I’ve checked another project off the list!

Which project did I tackle next?

Why, it’s Project #23: Finish the King Size Headboard project.

I haven’t been THIS EXCITED about a project in a very long time. It took me several months, but I’m so thrilled to report that this top-secret-project I’ve been hiding up my sleeve turned out better than I could have imagined.

Are you dying to know what on earth I did to this bookshelf headboard?

I turned that bad boy into an extra-long sofa table! squeal!!!

Is it seriously fabulous or what?! I still can’t believe I actually even thought to do this with a headboard.

Let’s just take a minute and back up a little…

The headboard started like this:

I’ve had this headboard (and matching 3- and 6- drawer dressers) for 11 years. The set was my grandparents and I was the fortunate granddaughter that inherited them.

When I was 20, back before I had a clue what I was doing, I received this set and attempted to strip them down and refinish them. They were originally a light cornmeal yellow and were obviously straight from a department store circa 1950.

Here’s a great view of the original color before I attacked it with cherry stain:

I was thrilled to have the bedroom set, but honestly, I have never loved the headboard. (I do adore the dressers though.) I did a terrible job on the refinishing; the color was awful, and the pieces are covered in sanding scratches (I didn’t use a fine enough grit and it shows).

Here’s the entire headboard, not obstructed by my mattress and embarrassingly ugly bedspread.

Like I said, I have never loved this headboard. It’s too short, not substantial enough, and is a magnet for junk while we lay in bed (alarm clocks, books, ponytails from my hair, jewelry, etc.) It was my grandparents though, and I’ve got some sentimental attachment to the set, so I’ve never been able to stomach getting rid of the headboard (even though I hate it).

One day, it just hit me… What if I put the headboard behind the couch to act as a sofa table? I’ve wanted a table behind the couch for a year now, but we need one that is very narrow (check!) and very long to accommodate the long sectional (check!).

I was giddy when I drug it around back and realized it was the perfect size; not the perfect height, but the length and depth were spot-on.

I let it sit behind the couch as-is for at least 3 weeks, maybe longer. Every single person that saw it thought it looked ridiculous (which it totally did). I would explain my vision, and I kid you not, every person but Ben (love him!) thought I was crazy and that it would be hideous.

How come after 31 years of being crafty and doing projects all the time, PLUS having a popular home blog, do my friends and family still have zero faith in my vision? It’s insulting, honestly.

Finally, I’d had enough justifying to every person that came to my home, and I tackled the headboard-turned-sofa table-project. First, I measured how much shorter I wanted the table to be.

Next, I tipped the table on its side and measured how much of the leg I needed to hack off. I ended up cutting off 9″.

I used a yard stick to draw solid dark lines around the legs of the headboard.

And then I busted out my new awesome DeWalt jig saw that Ben and the kids surprised me with for Mother’s Day.

This was my first time to get to use the jig saw, and I was really excited! It was so easy to use, and I had all my cuts done in a matter of about 10 minutes.

* If you decide to use power tools on your carpet, do so at your own risk.

It made a decent sized dusty mess, but nothing my dyson couldn’t take care of. (Because, you know me, I’m way too lazy to drag the table outside where it would be easier to cut.)

I stood it up excited to see what it looked like (and nervous that I may have cut too much off). Oh-meeee-gosh, I lurve it. Lurve it, lurve it, lurve it. Except for one little thing that stuck out like a sore thumb…

Much better! Next I prepped the area by covering the carpet and couch with plastic and propping the table up on some 2×4′s so it would be easier to paint. Prep work is no fun, but it has to be done! I gave it a good once-over with a sanding block, then wiped it down with some TSP.

Then I primed the hell out of it. Literally. I think I gave it like 4 coats. Usually I use zinsser but I had some Sherwin Williams water-based primer in the garage, so I used it and it did a great job.

Yay, finally time to paint! This should be fun. It’s exciting to paint because you can start to see the final results. I chose Haystack by Martha Stewart and I couldn’t wait to get ‘er done.

Three coats later…

If I were painting a table for a baby nursery, I would have been SPOT ON! But, OMG, this yellow looked anything BUT fabulous, and I even gave myself two full days of staring at it to try to will myself to like it. Not happening.

So I hoped that maybe if I added some white accents it would magically look better…

Ya, that might be the ugliest thing I’ve seen this year… This vision of mine is getting totally de-railed very quickly. I need to redeem myself or all my friends and family will tell me “I told you so!”

Getting desperate, I painted all of it white, then I busted out my trusty Slate by Restoration Hardware… (night picture, I’m sorry)

The grey/white combo is definitely better, but those “wings” on the side just look silly… So I painted them white too.

Ahhh, finally. It finally looks dare I say it? … Good?!

Just try really hard to ignore the massive piles of crap in my living room. I tried to push them all out of the way. Kids…

And now, I will bombard you with every angle of the table that I could manage to snap a picture of.

And that, my friends, is the story of how I turned an ugly, outdated, book-shelf style headboard into the most fabulous sofa table that was ever created.

The End.

You asked. I listened!

Here are both video and picture tutorials on how to make perfect vacuum lines on your carpet!

First off, the video. I think it’s easier to explain how to make nice vacuum lines by showing you, so if you have time watch the video I recommend going this route. (plus I’m always entertaining! lol).

(click here if you can’t see the video)

Here’s a recap of how to make perfect vacuum lines on your carpet:

How did I create these pretty lines?

Step 1:

You always want to start in the far back corner of your room. You push the vacuum forward in a straight line. Only push as far as you can lunge – don’t take steps forward or backward while you are vacuuming each row. This is Row 1.

Step 2:

Pull the vacuum backward at an angle. You want to be lined up next to where you started.

Step 3:

Repeat Steps 1 & 2, pushing the vacuum forward, then pulling backward at an angle. Work your way from right to left for the first row.

Step 4:

Now it’s time to begin Row 2. Pull the vacuum backward and begin the same process with the vacuum; push forward, pull back at an angle. However, this time you are working the opposite direction; left to right.

Step 5:

Continue working from row to row, back and forth across the room, until you have finished the entire room. It may take 4, 5, or even 6 rows before you finish your room.

A few tips:

And a quick overview one more time:

1. start in far back corner
2. push forward
3. pull backward at an angle. only push and pull as far as you can lunge.
4. work you way from right to left across the room.
5. when you get to the end of the room, pull the vacuum backward to start on row 2.
6. work your way from left to right while on row 2.
7. continue working back and forth, pushing forward and pulling back at an angle, until you have worked your way out of your room.
Never step on any carpet that has already been vacuumed. Otherwise you will have a nice footprint.
To keep the carpet uniform looking, don’t take steps back and forth for each row. only push and pull as far as you can lunge.

Happy vacuuming!

I am so not joking, my friends. I am DONE with the dining table.

…aaaand a before pic to jog your memory:

I bought this table over TWO months ago. Yes, it’s taken me more than two months to strip and stain a table.

I think I’ve just set a new Allison record for the slowest project I’ve ever done.

Let’s back up though… Last time I showed you the table I had just finished staining it.

After that I had to add the Poly. I went with MinWax Polycrylic in a clear satin finish.

It said to use a good bristled brush, but I used a throw away foam brush and it worked just fine.

The legs got 3 coats and the top got 6. I learned a few things about Poly along the way; any little bubbles will dry crunchy and white. Make sure to smooth the bubbles out as you paint it on. Also, the container says to sand in between coats. I sanded once, after 3 coats using 320 grit paper per the instructions on the back of the poly. It was a disaster. It took most of the stain off and left little swirlie marks on the table. I had to buff the top down and re-stain it. Pain in my you know what! In the end, I didn’t sand at all between coats of poly. The table looks perfect in my humble opinion. So, if you use poly, sand at your own risk!

Now for the fun, part loads of “after” pictures, and a few “before and afters” for good measure.

Let me just point out though, I am no where near done with the chairs.

I will give you a full play-by-play on how to remove upholstery in another post. Don’t worry, it’s on its way.

Also, all the “after” pics of the table have the unfinished chairs in them. Now you can easily compare the original color (on the chairs) to the new color (on the table).

Oh meh goshhhhhhhhhh, I’m seriously loving this table. Like, as in, “heart palpitations just looking at it” kind of love.

I also equally love the table centerpiece, which isn’t even finished yet. It’s only half finished. So just picture it about 50x cuter than what’s in the pics.

In an honest effort to “keep it real” for you guys, can I just be frank?

This project was a huge pain in my Derriere. Stripping and staining a table is way more work than I thought it would be. Also, it’s not for a DIY novice. It was hard. Unless you are confident and patient as a saint, I would say either paint it or just buy something else.

Here’s how the top turned out:

I was originally going to paint the table. I knew staining it would be so much work, and I just wasn’t up for it. But fortunately I have some of the best friends online (you!). You guys encouraged me to stain the table so that the interlay could show through. Realizing I needed to suck it up and stain the table instead of painting it was the best decision I could have made. Thank you!

Check out how far this table has come! (And the moulding in the room too!)

Before

After

Before

After

Before & After
  

And finally, the picture I’m most proud of…

…and when we first moved in:

I’d say that’s a pretty huge improvement! I’m so glad the Barny Room is no more.

Now I get to finish the chairs. It takes me about 2 HOURS per chair to remove all the upholstery. All the layers of material, and the springs, and the nails. Don’t get me started about how many nails are in each chair! Oh, and staples. Geesh. Whoever assembled these chairs was hell bent of them surviving the Apocalypse. The only things able to survive the Rapture; roaches and my dining chairs.

In case you are just now reading about the table and want to get caught up, here are all the posts in reverse order (newest post first):

1) Stripping, cleaning, conditioning, and staining the table
2) Stripping the table top, curtain fabric reveal, and a run down on the chairs
3) Adding moulding to walls, + my overall plan for the dining room
4) I bought a dining table!

Also, here’s my House Tour: Dining Room and the play-by-play of painting over the Barney Massacre.

Thanks for following along on my journey. I’m glad I get to share the ride with you.