Several years ago, I decided to take on the project of refurbishing my kitchen table and chairs! Whoa……I tell you what, that was quite an undertaking. However, it was TOTALLY WORTH IT to refurbish them! I still LOVE the outcome TODAY!!
Research First
I started by researching how to go about doing this project, since I have never stripped wood like this before. I wanted to make sure that it was done correctly, because I really loved my table and chairs, just not the color. As it was, I actually liked the dark cherry wood color. However, because my kitchen does not have any windows, the dark wood made the kitchen look dark. This was depressing in the winter.
SOOOO….I finally took the plunge and went all in to refurbish this project. I talked to the wonderful lady at Sherwin Williams, bought the supplies (paint, wood stain, paint brushes, mask, ect) and then had the kids help me. I chose to do this project in the summer, so that I could take the mess outside, and I am very thankful that I did it that way.
Before Project
Below are pictures that show you what the table and chairs looked like BEFORE we began the project to refurbish them. The table is solid wood and has a pull out leaf. I truly do LOVE this table. So, I was nervous that we would mess it up.
Project Begins
To begin the project, first, we took all of the chairs into the garage. Second, we unbolted the top of the table and carried it into the garage as well, along with the rest of the table. Third, we unbolted all of the chair seats and took them off of the chairs.
Finally, the sanding began!!! I bought a hand held DeWalt sander and some sand paper. Then, I took the table top outside and sat it down on our driveway. I used the sander to carefully take off every layer of stain that was on the table top. It took a bit of time, but I did a thorough job because I wanted to make sure that the refurbish project would last.
Once the table top was prepped, I wiped it down very well with a microfiber cloth and then slowly stained the table top with a blue/grey stain from Sherwin Williams. After that was complete, I let it set to dry for 24 hours and began sanding the bottom of the table.
Once the table legs were fully sanded, I wiped them down and then had Ashley help me paint them with Alabaster White paint that we purchased from Sherwin Williams. While the first coat was drying, I began sanding the chairs……And that was the end of Refurbishing Day 1.
Refurbish Day 2
The next day, I gave the table top a second coat of stain and then set it aside to set for another 24 hours. I then proceeded to paint the legs of the table with a second coat of Alabaster White. After that was finished, Ashley helped me begin to paint the chairs.
I finished sanding all of the chairs and we painted each chair with two coats of Alabaster White paint. Then, I began re-upholstering the seats of all of the chairs. I’ll explain how to re-upholster kitchen chairs in the below post.
Refurbish Day 3
The third day was a great turning point, because it was finally time to gloss the table with a clear protective coat! After applying the protective coat, I let it set to dry and finished re-upholstering the seats of all of the chairs.
Final Stages
Ashley and I then inspected all of the chairs and bolted all of the seats back onto the chairs. Once the table was dry, we took it back inside and bolted it together again.
The end result was a TRANSFORMATION!!!! I LOVED it! The white truly did brighten up my kitchen!
The only thing that I did not care for was that the color of stain that I picked out ended up looking more like a green, rather than a blue. However, this was so much better than the dark color!
Repair/Re-do
After a few years of putting up with the “green” color of the stain, I finally decided to fix it once and for all. SOOOO….Back to refurbishing!!
This time, the project went much quicker and smoother because I was ONLY changing the table top. The rest of the table and all of the chairs still looked AMAZING, even after a few years!
I stripped and sanded all of the clear coat and stain and then painted the table top with primer. Once that dried, I painted a coat of grey/blue paint from Sherwin Williams and let it set for 24 hours. The next day, I painted a second coat, and the third day, I painted a third coat. Once that was all dry, I took the table top back into the house and bolted it onto the legs.
I LOVE THE RESULT!!
It has been about three years since I have re-done the table and about five years total since the full re-furbish. I can truly say that it was totally worth it! The table and chairs are holding up so well that I have decided to refurbish my kitchen cabinets!!!!
What have you re-furbished or what would you like to re-furbish? I would love to hear your comments below!
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