Table Transformation

Back from my massive sabbatical.


Remember the table that I picked up on Craigslist a couple of years ago?  Here are a few pics to refresh your memory. 

I had it propped up on two saw horses for a couple of years. It took me several months before I even attempted to do anything with it.


 First I stripped the poly coating and stain.  Then sanded it. A Lot 




 Then it sat for even longer.  I just didn't have the desire or motivation to deal with it.







Each time I headed out to the garage to do laundry or take out the trash or hop in the car, there it was.  I wasn't quite sure what to do with it.  I had been hit with some major life changing events and doing refurb projects were the last thing on my mind. 

Then several months ago, I got a surge of energy and went to work staining, using a walnut colored stain.  Here's the problem.  The table has two leaves.  The leaves are made out of an entirely different kind of wood than the main part of the table.  It didn't even occur to me that it would be an issue... I know, minor details.  I can't be bothered with them.  So guess what happened -  You guessed it!  The stain looked entirely different on the various parts of the wood. It was ugly.   

  I was frustrated.  The table again sat untouched for a long time  as I was not sure how to proceed next.  Then about a month ago, I started toying with the idea of  getting rid of it.  It was taking up a ton of space in my garage.  So to condense things down in my garage, I took out the two leaves and slid the table together.  Instant revelation.  I looked at the table without the leaves and it didn't seem so overwhelming after all.  I contemplated doing something with it.  Two weeks later I decided to paint it white.  I also decided that the chairs that came with the set were entirely too much work, so they will get sold.  Simplify is my motto these days, although I forget it at times.

I went to work. I put a coat of primer on the table and legs using Kilz Primer.  Then came the first coat of paint - White Satin Impervo that I already had on hand. When it was ready, I sanded it lightly and applied another coat.  I put a total of 3 coats of paint.

Then it was time for some distressing. Using 60 grit sand paper, I randomly sanded the paint off in areas. This was followed by removing all fine dust and paint peelings with a tack cloth. 

Up next came a protective finish.  My choice?   MinWax Polycrylic since it is water based and makes for an easy clean up.  Also, a polyurethane tends to yellow and I wanted to keep the white table, white, which is why I chose the polycrylic.  First layer went on well.  The next morning as I was pulling the car out of the garage, I noticed that the table was insanely bright. Glossy, Glossy. The bright white was akin to someone who had used one two many teeth whitening strips.

I immediately went and checked the can of  polycrylic.  It was a can that I already had on hand.   Semi-gloss... of course.  Too bright and reflective for what I had in mind.  So I headed to the local home improvement store to be accosted  helped by Mr. Not-So-Helpful.  It took some fancy footwork, but once I maneuvered past him, I found the satin sheen polycrylic I was looking for.  Now the question.  Would it tone down the semi enough?

Second coat went on... tiny bubbles and all...and not the Don-Ho variety.

More sanding and a trip to Google to figure out the best way to apply the poly.

A foam sponge applicator was the consensus.  Second coat and the sheen was still a bit too bright.  Sand some more.

Third layer goes on. A few bubbles, a few drips around the band of the table that I noticed when it had dried.  Good enough for me.
 I can live with it.

So after much sweating and maneuvering, it made it's way into my house today.  There may or may not have been some swearing involved.

                                                                      Here it is!

 

 

 

I still need to finish two leaves, but I don't plan on hosting a dinner at my house anytime soon.

 

Now just to find some chairs to match!

I

Where She Stops, No One Knows.

My Apologies to those readers that were following my blog with great interest. You probably wondered what happened to me!

I was GUNG-HO for quite sometime in blogging all of my creativity. Then there was the recouping from major surgery, and about the time I was starting to feel a bit better, one of my best friends took her life a month ago. A tremendous blow, as you can imagine. I have been out of sorts for awhile, so creativity and blogging haven't been high on my radar. However, I am forcing myself back into channeling my creative energies, and hope to have some things to show you in the coming month.

As for the "creative" aspect of things in the past 2 months...

Halloween came and went, and my 9 year old was determined to be R2D2 for Halloween. It added a few more grey hairs to my head, but I came up with a feasible idea as to how to pull this costume off.

Using a pop-up hamper, spray paint ( of course) and a stainless steel salad bowl, she was transformed into R2D2. My 11 year old, who happens to have a Halloween birthday, decided to go as Princess Leia. That was an easy one. She has long hair, I bought some white gabardine, made a few cuts here and there, and VOILA! It was done.

I used acrylic paint on the metal salad bowl, so that when I was done, I could just scrub it off and reuse the bowl again. Easy Peasy...

Still Blooming

I am still in denial that Fall is here. Probably because September was such a blur for me and I am mourning the end of summer. Summer is my favorite season and it went by very quickly.

On the flip side, I walked around my yard and took pictures yesterday of what is still blooming. Crazy!

A lone columbine appeared this week.

Roses are still blooming.

As well as some daylilies.

A delphinium.

canna lilies.

Some of the hydrangeas have changed to a lovely shade of green, others are still pink.

Then of course the flowers that are supposed to bloom in the fall, like asters.

and mums.

I almost gave up on these mums this past Spring, because I thought they hadn't survived those few freezing days that we had last Winter.  It came back... and then some. Love the color.

Now I just need to get back outside and do some serious deadheading, weeding, and general cleaning up!

Lavendar Petals Scarf

I recently completed another quick knitting project.  This is a fun scarf that has a slot to slide the other side through. The pattern is aptly named, "Petals Scarf" by Jennifer Fleury, and you can find it on Ravelry. The pattern is suitable for beginners! I loved the pattern and will definitely be making more!

I used some yarn that I already had on hand, Plymouth Yarn, Baby Alpaca Worsted and used size 9 bamboo knitting needles. The yarn is of course super soft because it is 100% alpaca wool. The color number is 6071, and it may be a color that is discontinued, as I bought several skeins of this yarn from WEBS. Alpaca fiber is naturally very stretchy, so it is perfect for something like a scarf. This scarf took approximately 120 yards or about 60 grams of yarn to make, which  is roughly a skein, and then some.

Fall is definitely here, as I find myself knitting even more! However, the weather thinks it is still summer! I won't complain though, the wet Winter will be here before we know it! 

Keeping The Feet Warm

Not a whole lot of creativity going on here at the moment. Perhaps in a couple of weeks, I will be back to painting and refinishing furniture. In the meantime, I am lucky to get the laundry done!  I finished one of the socks I was knitting.

It's a bit too tight in areas and too long in others. It may end up getting frogged. For you knitters out there, you understand the term "Frogged."  I still really liked the pattern, "Flutter-by socks" by Shannon Robalino, which you can find on Ravelry,  I just realized after hours and hours of knitting, that I probably should have used size 2 needles and not size 1. I will eventually start all over with the same pattern, but use larger needles. Such is life. Socks are particularly hard as well. I know a few knitters that end up getting "Second Sock Syndrome." They finish one sock, and then have a hard time getting motivated about starting on the second one.  I'm there, and then some.

Just for fun, here are some pictures of some other socks that I knitted last winter.

Baby Cardi

I finished the Baby Cardigan I was working on.

The yarn.

 Early in the summer, when I was at St. Vincent de Paul's, I found a Ziploc bag that had 8 skeins of this yarn for only $1.50. I knew a good deal on wool yarn when I see it, no matter how crazy the colors were. The brand is OnLine Linie 157 Tessa Tweed and it is 100% virgin superwash wool.

This probably would have retailed for around $5.00 for a 50g skein. So I got a good deal. Now the colors, I wasn't crazy about, but I bought it anyway. I used about 3-4 skeins to make this cardi, that is supposed to fit a 6 month old baby. The pattern was easy, however the yarn kept splitting, so that was only slightly maddening. I tried multiple skeins and would repeatedly come across sections of the yarn that were split. Grrr. But for $1.50 for 8 skeins that WEREN'T acrylic, I can't complain.

Versatality

The Cape on the Corner thinks I am a versatile blogger and gave me an award! She is passing on via:
 

I think I found The Cape's blog through one of the many decor blogs that was featuring a furniture link up party. I clicked on her blog, did some reading and liked what I saw. She makes me laugh and I get her sense of humor. I also like her take on life. She asked me to list 7 interesting things about myself. (Thanks Cape)!

 

  

1. I used to be an amateur boxer.

 It was fun. I did it for 4 years, and stopped 2 years ago due to too many hand injuries. However, boxing did a number on my nose, and I suffered dearly. So now I am recouping from sinus surgery, a septoplasty and a functional open rhinoplasty. I had constant sinus headaches, infections, and severely impaired breathing that necessitated the surgery. This lead to two doctors, an ENT and a plastic surgeon, spending 6 hours working on my nose that had a septum that had split in two and pieces of cartilage that had collapsed and buckled obstructing my nasal passages.

Now I am sporting a new nose that has multiple cartilage grafts. I am looking forward to the day when things are less swollen inside and out and I can breathe fully and have less sinus issues. I am forever indebted to those two extremely skilled surgeons.  I have since sworn off contact sports.

2. My friends and family refer to me as "Dr. Google" or "Internet M.D."

 I do a ton of research on medical issues, and drugs... just because it is interesting to me. I have had family members and friends ask for my opinion on something medically related after they have been to their Dr. I find it humorous as  in the grand scheme of things, I know absolutely nothing.

However...

Someday I may go back to school and do something health field related.

3. I am a straight shooter and like to "tell it like it is."

I have learned to just be me and not worry about impressing other people.

4. Being popular is not important to me.

I would rather have a few really close friends that I can count on. When I do find a good friend, I am fiercely loyal. I have been let down by friends before, and if I feel like I am getting used or burned, or they are not genuine, I step back quite a bit and take some distance from, or terminate the friendship.

5. I am lucky to be the parent of two incredible little girls.

 

 I love being a mom to my two very different girls, one of which has developmental disabilities which has led me to be more patient. I have also learned a ton in researching her issues and how best to help her succeed in the world.

6. On my "Bucket List" is to learn how to fence someday.  

This doesn't count as a "contact sport" in my book, since the face is protected and it is less likely that you would take a fist or foot to the face. LOL

7. I love Diet Pepsi.

There is something satisfying about the fizzy bubbles running down your throat. It puts a smile on my face everyday. I particularly like fountain drinks from white trashy gas stations.

 Yes, I am addicted, and yes I realize that consuming it in large quantities is not the best thing for my health.

But hey, everybody needs a hobby.

So there you go!

I am passing on the award to:

Lenore at Lather.Write.Repeat

Tiffany at Babes and Kids

Brenda at Cozy Little House

Gail at My Repurposed Life