A NEWBIE, A MOM WITH MAD SKILLS, AND THE PHOTOGRAPHER - beach cottage tables

This is the first glimpse at several posts I'll be writing this week about the workshop
I had at our home on Sunday.


Two of the furniture pieces we worked on were a pair of provincial tables
that George purchased at a local community yard sale.


Here you can see a few of my wonderful ladies caught on camera by
Sonja the sweetest girl and a fabulous photographer.
She only had her IPhone to shoot this but go check out her work:



These tables were in great shape so all they needed was some TLC and a new look.


They were also perfect candidates to show the ladies
how fun and quick chalk paint and wax can update pieces. 


I wanted to show how I try to work with pieces rather than against them
so I asked the ladies to mask the tops off  with newspaper.


European Paint Finishes a great inspirational blog for me and others,
had just did a posting that morning of the perfect color combination
that would accent the pretty blondish wood surface we had on this pair of tables.


So I tinted the chalk paint to achieve a soft grayish blue
and the tables bases were sprayed with it.


The ladies got to see how quickly the paint dries and how nicely it applies with a sprayer.


Between my 6 girls I had complete newbies (as Stephanie confessed quite quickly)
some girls with a bit of experience,
and I had Lisa (I'd hire her any day of the week) a mom with mad skills.


All the distressing on these tables were done with wet sponges,
thanks to George lending us his extras from the kitchen so everyone could get in there.


Once they were done giving them a great aged look I showed them
how to apply wax and how to buff the wax after it was dry.


The surface of the side table did have some marks and staining which I sanded out
before showing them how to apply the wipe on poly to refinish.


I think the ladies did a remarkable job.

I'd love it if you would also let them know how
you think they did by leaving a comment below ...


Next time we'll have
THE INQUISITOR, HER ASSISTANT, AND THE UPHOLSTER'S WIFE
and I'll show you how this coffee table turned out.