Faux Paint Technique + Free Table = Charming Tableau

As always, skip to the project if you are in a hurry.

This project really transformed my square white table, that used to be in the kitchen, but you already knew that didn’t you?  I do love to play musical chairs with my furniture.  And this time, it really wasn’t my fault, REALLY.

White Square Table

Below is a picture of the table in the kitchen.

White Square Table in Kitchen

This table is great for everyday use since it is very sturdy.  (Some of my beautiful antiques are nice to look at, but let’s just say, if Mr. CH used them to get up off of the floor they would snap like a twig.)  This table didn’t always look like this.  It came to me second-hand from my dear friend, Peggy.  The house at Cedar Hill was being built, and she wanted us to have a good, solid table for our kitchen.  She offered it to me, knowing that it wasn’t really my style.  In fact it was actually her daughter’s old table that had been purchased from World Market.  She wanted to be certain that we had some place to sit, so that when she came she wouldn’t end up sitting on the floor.  I told Peggy that I would be very happy to have the table and chairs.

I then sent Mr. CH to work the next day with my SUV, so that he could get the table and chairs on his way home.  Since Peggy’s daughter lived far from my house but near Mr. CH’s office, I thought he could get it after work.  As planned that day, he headed to Emily’s (Peggy’s daughter’s) house to get the table and chairs.  Emily’s husband helped Mr. CH load the chairs and table into our SUV.  Where was Emily, you ask?  At work.  You see how we avoid the heavy lifting?  After the furniture was loaded, Mr. CH called me, asking, “Have you SEEN this table?  Are you SURE you want it?”  He knows me.  He couldn’t believe that I wanted the set.  I assured him that I had indeed seen them, and that they would work just fine.  I am sure he was shaking his head the entire trip home, concerned that I would make him return it all the next day, but I wasn’t worried, I had a PLAN.

I really should have taken a BEFORE picture, but Peggy did find this picture for me to show you.  The table and chairs are there hiding behind Emily’s adorable, little puppy.

Old Table without paint

FAUX TECHNIQUE PAINT PROJECT

ITEMS USED

• LIQUID SANDER
• OLD CLOTHS
• DROP CLOTHS
• BRUSHES
• PRIMER
• RALPH LAUREN COTTONWOOD TH29 PAINT
• RALPH LAUREN FAUX TECHNIQUE GLAZE, TINTED WITH SMOKE AGO3
• WHITE PAINT

As you can see, this table and chairs originally had a very glossy finish.  I first used a liquid sander on the furniture, applying it with an old cloth.  Then while the furniture was still wet, I applied a primer using a brush.  Yes, you heard correctly; I apply the primer while the liquid sander is still wet.  I don’t know why it works, but it does.  The primer sticks even better before the liquid sander dries.

When I painted the wood paneling at my city house and the buffet in my breakfast room, I also used a liquid sander, painting while it was still wet.  I did not sand the paneling; I just used liquid sander.  The painters I spoke to thought I was nuts, but it worked, and the paint still looks great years later.  Tip; If you are painting a big surface, tint your primer the same color as your base paint to minimize how many coats of paint will be needed.

Buffet, painted with yellow paint, then covered in a dark brown glaze, and then sealed with a semi-gloss sealer.

When the primer dried, I painted the table and chairs Ralph Lauren paint (Cottonwood TH29).  When that dried, I touched up spots that were in need of more paint.  Next, I applied Ralph Lauren Faux Technique Glaze (tinted with Smoke AG03 paint).   The glaze is a lot thinner than the paint, but that is so that the paint color underneath will show through.  See the glaze effect below.

Ralph Lauren Aging Paint Technique

You want the darker paint to go on in an uneven fashion to add an aged effect.  Use long brush strokes and don’t apply this glaze too thickly.  You don’t want it to clump or drip.  For more information on this paint and technique, you can go to the Ralph Lauren Website, Ralph Lauren Aging Technique.

If you like the look, you are now finished, but I thought the look was not exactly what I wanted, so I added another layer of paint.  I wanted something a little whiter to go with the Swedish Bench in the room, so I applied a layer of white paint, using a dry brush technique.  This means that you barely dip the dry brush in the paint, and remove any excess.  Then gently brush the paint on the furniture very lightly.  You don’t want to apply so much that you can’t see the layers of paint underneath.  See a close-up of the finish below.

Close-up of paint finish after the white paint was applied.

Close-up of the top

Another close-up of finish

The white paint actually went on in a rough finish, meaning it was thick and clumpy in places.

Uneven paint finish

I liked the clumpy finish as it made the furniture even more rustic and old looking.  This is what I refer to as a happy mistake, meaning that my mistake has accidentally improved the finished product.  After painting the table and chairs, I thought they looked fantastic.  Some people even thought I bought them that way.

So why did this table end up on the back porch?  Well, as much as I loved the table, it just would not accommodate more than 4 people.  We often have a guest there as Mr. CH’s mother is a frequent visitor and also Claire many times brings a friend.  Most of the time we eat outdoors where there is plenty of room for guests.  But when the weather is too hot (the entire month of August, as far as I am concerned) we are stuck inside.

Knowing we didn’t have enough indoor seating, Peggy gave us yet another table for Cedar Hill.  I appreciated having the extra seating, but it was awkward when we had just one guest.  You can’t have four people at one table and one at the other. We would split things up so that two people would sit at the extra table while the other 3 sat at the square white table.  I tried to make it sound exciting for those “stuck” at the extra table.  I even referred to the extra table as “The SPECIAL table” so that whoever got stuck was blessed enough to eat there would feel honored, nay privileged to be allowed to dine there.  I don’t think they bought it, and so I would end up there most of the time.

I was hoping to get a table large enough so that we could seat 6 people in the kitchen when necessary.  So when Wisteria had a sale on this table, I said, “SOLD!”  I wanted a a white table to coordinate with the white Swedish bench in the room.

This table is actually a little on the grey side, but it goes very well with white.  The sides fold down, so it can be made smaller when no guests are here.  I thought we would keep one side down when we had no guests but I like the look of having booth sides up and there is plenty of room for the table with both sides extended.  The finish is a whitish gray, and I found that it didn’t need any paint, but was perfect the way it was.  It’s 60 inches wide, so there is plenty of room for 6 people and I think we could seat up to 8, without too much squishing.  You can see why I needed to get another table don’t you?  I really had no other choice.  We can’t stop having guests just because of a table.

Wisteria table in our kitchen

When the table was delivered, it was clear that there was no way the truck was going to make it across our bridge, so we had to meet them at a nearby business in their parking lot to load the table in our SUV.

Bridge to our house

We removed the seats and left the kids and dog at Cedar Hill.  I wondered if the box would fit or if Mr. CH and I would be carrying the table all the way down the county road back to the ranch.  It fit!  Can you believe it with 1/2 inch to spare?  Thanks Wisteria!!  We LOVE the table.

“Let’s make a small room on the roof and put in it a bed and a table, a chair and a lamp for him. Then he can stay there whenever he comes to us.” 2 Kings 4:10

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