Ethel Gets a Makeover

*** I entered this project in the East Coast Creative Creating With the Stars Contest***

To view my project and the other entries, go HERE!

I scored this side table (I think I'll call her Ethel) at Salvation Army for $14 a month ago and honestly, I bought her for the price and not because I had any great inspiration, or even a place to put her.

But then couple of weeks ago I saw this adorable chest at Target, and although the bones of this piece are way cuter and on-trend than the side table I have, I thought maybe I could try to recreate the color and the detail, not with woodwork, but with paint.

Target.com

So I bought a paint sample of Behr Yellow Gold for the overall color and Behr Leisure as the accent color. The paint people at Home Depot and I looked at this picture on my phone and totally guessed at the color. I think we matched it pretty well!

This table is made up of both laminate and wood, so it was important to lightly sand and then prime this piece.

I always use Zinsser oil-based Cover Stain Primer with a small foam roller. It dries SUPER fast, and it's the best primer out there for a project like this, in my opinion. 

After the primer was dry I painted two layers of Leisure (the darker color) on the drawer fronts, and two layers of Yellow Gold on the body. 

Fun fact: Did you know that unlike Behr and others, the Glidden paint samples come in eggshell finish?  So you can actually do projects with these and not have to deal with flat paint. One tester of Yellow Gold was enough to do two coats over the whole thing, so it saved me money. If you do use a sample for a project, the key to making the paint stretch is to use a paint brush instead of a roller. 

I let it cure over night and then I started on the detail. 

My plan was to create the basic form out of cardstock and then tape around it with ScotchBlue EdgeLock painters tape. Man that stuff is amazing. 

 So I eyeballed a design (I hate measuring and I trust my eye) and lightly secured it onto the drawer front and then started taping around it. 

 But after the first few pieces, I realized my plan was going to take forever with so many corners, and I wasn't getting a clean enough edge. So I wised up a little and laid the tape and then lightly cut with an x-acto knife, which worked out so much better.  

This was the final design I decided on, and I repeated it on the other two drawers. 

 I pressed firmly around all the tape, making sure it was flat and secure against the wood, and then I did two coats of the lighter color, Yellow Gold, over the fronts with a paint brush. 

I let it dry for a couple hours, and then I removed the tape, which exposed the darker color underneath. I also did a coat of polyurethane, let it dry over night and then added the original drawer pulls, which I kept as-is to save money. 

And here's the finished project. She's more like a "Lucy" now, isn't she?

Here's a side by side with the inspiration.  The best thing? I spent a total of $21.50 on this piece. Not bad, considering the inspiration piece from Target is $90! 

Love furniture makeovers? Check these out!

   

Pegboard makeover

vintage dresser

Red Bed

Look alike High Chair