Another new dining room table and the greatest Mother's Day gift....

ANOTHER dining room table…obviously I have a soft spot for chairs and tables. When I saw this pathetic trestle table at a barn auction a few weeks ago, I just knew she had some serious potential….

The top was in pieces and the finish was crud…but oh the potential. And it wasn’t until I got her home that I discovered her little hidden secret…

She has this super nifty fold out “leaf.”

Just too fricking cool!

In spite of the fact that I have been up to my earballs in work at the apartments, I couldn’t wait to start working on her. The first thing I did was strip all the old finish…HERE is the process I used. This is a tried and true process that makes quick work of a daunting task!

After all the old finish was stripped off I had to glue and clamp the table top back together….

I always make my repairs AFTER I strip but before paint or finish…and I always make sure I make all the necessary repairs. No sense in making it pretty if it is just going to fall apart…glue and clamps!!!

The top was solid (vs. veneers) so the pieces were a tad warped…no biggy…I clamped it as well as I could and then I sanded the joints smooth…starting with the finer grit (220) and working my way down to a rougher grit (150) and then back up to a finer grit, before applying a tung oil finish.

Tung oil finish is my “go to” finish for many reasons…it is super easy to apply, it is super durable and it is super easy to reapply when the finish gets scratched or begins to dull!

So, when all was said and done, this little table will now take her place in the dining room….at least for the time being….it is no secret I swap out tables on a regular bases….here are just a few I have featured over the years…

A Duncan Phyfe….I gave it a little makeover HERE before selling it….

An antique trestle I featured here…

An oak farmhouse table featured here…..

The most recent…an antique draw leaf table…

All these tables have one thing in common…they are relatively “compact” but can be expanded to handle Thanksgiving dinner. Basically once a year I need a large table…and these all fit the bill.

The newest little trestle table is compact, expands, and beautiful!

So get ready for a few pictures…..

I just LOVE the new light fixture from Wayfair I featured here….

I love how it can easily be expanded. No more having to find a place to store leaves or hauling them out for one dinner…just slide open the top and fold out the insert…simple (especially after a little WD40)

One huge problem….I REALLY dislike the Duncan Phyfe chairs with it…they just don’t look right…and sadly I know exactly what chairs I want for it and I have had them and sold them a few times over. The good news is I will eventually find what I want….

Until then I bought this little piano bench at the same auction. Again, pretty cruddy…

…but I stripped and oiled the top, scrubbed up the brass feeties and painted the base with my new favorite blue…the same one I used on the buffet (here)…

Meh….not really “swooning” over it, but it will serve the purpose for now…until I can find the chairs I want or another pathetic little table catches my eye. I wouldn’t take bets on which happens first!

THE GREATEST MOTHER’S DAY GIFT

This year I received the absolute best Mother’s Day gift!!! Another college graduate.

My youngest daughter, Katie, graduated from the University of Arkansas with a degree in Bio-Engineering.

She is beautiful, smart, and talented…and I could not be prouder.

She, as well as her brother Matt (Masters 2015), are fourth generation Arkansas graduates….my great grandmother graduated in 1920, my grandfather graduated in 1943, and I graduated in 1987.

Brian and I are now 5/5….five kids, five college graduates. And the fact that all five were here for Katie’s big day, which happen to be Mother’s Day weekend, made my day extra special!

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Change is a coming...again

As much as I like to think everything stays the same around here...things do change!

Change came when Brian and I combined households. One of the many additions when he took up residence was his very large and very brown leather couch....

I featured the club chair makeover **here**

BB (before Brian) I had a light and bright couch....this couch went to the den....

(My daughter now has this living room...the couch, the leather chair and the rug!)

...after I gave away the hulking "mustard" couch!

The simple yellow couch went to my daughter's so for now the big brown couch has moved to the den ....

...to make room for the NEW couch I ordered two months ago...

...and as you can see, it has still not arrived.

There was a time when I probably would have ordered off the floor because I was too impatient to wait. But wait I have...and waited and waited and waited. Fortunately, it is due to be delivered today.

The biggest problem I have right now is the "matchy matchy" of the big brown leather couch and big brown leather chair in the den...

....so the new couch may go to the den and the big brown leather couch may go back to the living room.

Who knows...all I know is I am grateful for furniture movers and Brian's strong back and endless patience!

One disadvantage (or advantage, depending on your perspective) to going to auctions and having a resell outlet is the never ending supply of relatively affordable furniture. This Duncan Phyfe table was a fixture in my dining room for 15 years....

Then I found this really nifty antique table and shared how I refinished it here....

Then I found a really nifty trestle table and shared it's little makeover here....

I held onto this table for a time only because I thought I might follow the "farmhouse fad" and try to infuse a little in my dining area. But truth is, it always seemed a tad big...and honestly, it just isn't "my style."

A few weeks ago I snagged this cute little antique draw leaf table at an auction....

Not sure I am in love with it, but it suits the need for a smaller table nested against the wall and it can be expanded once a year for Thanksgiving dinner.

So, change is coming...when the couch gets here. It has been over two months since I ordered it so I hope I still LOVE it when it is delivered. Couches are one of those things I really need to love...because they are big and they are expensive and for me they are the anchor for the room. Rugs, pillows, tables and wall decor can easily be changed out to completely change the feel of a room...couches, not so much!

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Oak trestle table makeover...

I bought a table at an auction this past weekend that may be difficult for me to sell...

Hang with me...I know it didn't look like a winner when I brought it home, but the vision was there.

The reason it may be difficult to turn loose of is because I have been contemplating giving my dining room a little "farmhouse" flare.

Again, that is not "my style." But if I can infuse a little bit of the current craze into my decor without a lot of expense and time (like I did here with my bed), I am willing to give it a shot.

For 17 years, my dining room has basically been a "walk through"...from the living area, to the kitchen, to the den....we always use the bar for meals. The table (that got a makeover here) is pushed against the wall for 364 days out of the year and only comes out for Thanksgiving dinner. With the inserts added it easily seats 6-8 with the addition of a few chairs and a bench.

But the antique trestle table fits right into my "I think I might" plan. It is the perfect size and style, just needs a little face lift.

The first draw back is it is oak. Again, NOT my favorite wood, but honestly oak is a great "farmhouse" wood to work with.

Second, I like my toes...they aren't the greatest toes, but they always seem to find anything that is out of place...vacuum cleaners, chairs, tables, an animal...whatever is NOT suppose to be there, the toes will find it. One of the reasons I am super careful moving furniture around.

The fact that there has not been a table in the middle of this room for 17 years may pose a problem for my toes.

To complete my vision, I would need the perfect chairs...not a huge deal because I see awesome chairs all the time at auctions. I may have to find a buffet for the wall...had one a few years ago and I kind of liked having a place for a little "fluff." And then there is the whole window, wall, rug, trim detail thing...hum.

Regardless of what I do in my own home, I know the table needs a little love and attention. So that was the project this week...give this little table a makeover as if it were going into my own home. Then if I decide to actually move forward with my vision for the dining room, I have the table...if not, someone else will get a beautiful antique dining table!

I easily stripped the top using this process...not a lot of finish left on this old beauty but it did have dark "water rings."

Several months ago a very wise reader commented on another table project and suggested using oxalic acid on water rings. I have never tried it and always just "embraced" the imperfections on antique pieces since nothing I tried worked well. But I did order the acid and had it on hand.

WOW!!!! Just wow. Worked like a charm. I made a paste with the acid crystals and water, dabbed it on the ring, and within 30 minutes, gone! I was a little miffed at first because it "bleached" the wood, but I scrubbed it with my 1/2 and 1/2 mixture and that disappeared as well!

I stained the top and applied three coats of tung oil finish...my favorite! I painted the base with homemade chalk paint, distressed a bit and sealed with polycrylic.

Just beautiful....for now I am going to take my daughter's advise...set it in place and mull it over. Maybe see how many times my toes find it!!!! No harm in letting it hang out for the time being (except for maybe a few toes!)

Right now my den is in disarray and I am trying to decide what I want to do. I gave my couch to my daughter so now I have no choice but to buy a new couch...part of the "den makeover" plan that started several years ago (remember, if you can't "see" it, get rid of what is there and live with a blank slate for a time) Since the reveal, the club chair has been reupholstered and moved to the living room to make room for Brian's big leather chair. The coffee table is laying on Mitchell's bed because we needed more room for Cleo and our grandpuppy, Zoey, to wrestle! There is a new rug...

The jury is still out on it...doesn't seem to be wearing well and not real comfy...hum. I like the look, just not sure I like THIS rug!

So taking on a dining room makeover just isn't on my priority list right now. I know if I am ever going to do it, I should probably hang onto this table since they cost a pretty penny new. But I also know that if I take the plunge I will have a sizable project on my hands...and my hands are pretty full right now.

Maybe it can just hang out for the time being! Never know when a bug attack!

Until next week....