Hall Table

As part of our kitchen remodel my we wanted to spruce up our entryway. We spent several weeks searching online and in stores for a cute table, we were even willing to refinish something if it wasn’t quite right. Unfortunately we had absolutely no luck. Anything that came even remotely close to what we were looking for was usually $500+… Eventually we decided to give it a break and focus on other projects. In the middle of laying out our new dining room rugs my mother had an awesome idea. Why not try converting our old china cabinet into a hall table?! I have to admit I immediately shot the idea down saying it wouldn’t work. After a little pushing we decided to at least try. We were going to get rid of it anyway so if we didn’t like the end result nothing was lost.

We started by removing the top half of the cabinet,
they were designed as two separate pieces so the top lifted off no problem. Next my dad cut a piece of wood to fit the gap that held the top portion of the cabinet. He nailed this into place filled with wood putty and sanded down so we had a flat surface. It looked amazing when he was finished, you would have thought it was meant to be a table all along. We used a deglosser solution (you can buy this at any home improvement store) to take of the finish so the paint would adhere better to the wood.

While Dad was working away on those first few steps mom and I headed to Mama’s Happy in Stillwater. This place is the sh*t let me just say that now. Its like the whole store is a pinterest success explosion. The second you walk in you are instantly filled with inspiration and before you know it you have half the store on the cashiers counter and you are basically throwing your credit card at them in your excitement. The staff there is so helpful and genuinely excited to hear about your project and offer their expertise. Mama’s Happy is pretty much the only store in my area that carries Annie Sloan products. After doing a lot of research online we came into the store with a pretty good idea of what we wanted. The staff at Mama’s Happy was there to talk us through the process of using Annie Sloan paint and offer a few suggestions. We ended up leaving with a quart of the Burgundy Chalk Paint, a small jar of the Soft Clear Wax, a small jar of the Soft Dark Wax, the Medium Paint Brush and the Small Wax Brush.

When we got home we removed the doors and drawers on the table. Next we got to have a lot of fun distressing and damaging the table. Using a chain, hammer, meat mallet and a piece of wood with nails hammered through the end we took out any pent up frustrations we had on the table. Basically we beat the crap out of it until it looked distressed enough for our purposes.

Mom did a lot and I really mean a lot of research on tips and tricks using Annie Sloan Paint (she spent hours on pinterest for about a week straight watching tutorials and reading through blogs.) We started by painting a layer of the Burgundy Chalk Paint and letting it dry over night. The next day we painted a second coat and let that dry over night.

Next we wet sanded the entire piece. Then we heavy sanded the pieces we wanted to be a little more distressed.

Once everything was sanded, we applied clear wax to the entire thing and buffed it off right away. It helps to work in small sections and remember that a little goes a loooonnnngggg way. Let your furniture sit over night before moving onto your next step.

Finish off your project by applying dark wax over the whole thing and buffing it off right away until it shines. I went back and applied the wax a little heavier in the heavy sanded distressed areas. Again work in small sections remembering that a little goes a long way.

Let your furniture sit overnight before adding your hardware. We painted our drawers to match but left off the doors. We also painted the old handles with my favorite Rustoleum brand Oil Rubbed Bronze spray paint. Decorate and enjoy!