Side Table Makeover

A few weeks ago I stopped at a yard sale and scored a side table for $1! Unfortunately it had various obscenities carved into the top of it, but I saw potential in this table and I wasn't going to let this opportunity pass me by.

I knew I could get them out with some sanding, I just didn't realize how much sanding it would take because they were deep. Fortunately my amazing boyfriend heard my laments and bought me an orbital sander!

The sander made those offensive carvings disappear in no time. This side table was begging to be painted white, so that's just what I did! I used Rustoleum Universal Paint and Primer in a satin finish so it's easy to wipe clean. The table looked amazing, but it needed a little something more. I found scrapbook paper that had pre punched designs and I used that as a stencil on the top. I had some green spray paint left over from some plant stands I had recently brought new life to and I knew it would be perfect for this project.

I didn't want to stencil the entire top and I didn't want to center the stencil because that's too typical. So I positioned it to go off of one corner. The spray paint got under the stencil and it wasn't as crisp as I had intended it to be. I had some leftover satin finish paint from the ceilings and some small paint brushes that I used to clean up the white areas. This gave it more of a hand painted look, which added some character. Next time I'm using a foam roller and paint.

I had originally planned to use this side table on the patio, but once I was finished I thought it looked too good to be outside. It's new home is in the guest bedroom and I'm still on the hunt for a small patio table if you find one.