As the weather gets nicer and we plan more outdoor get-togethers, we need more seating and I want to make it look nice. So I took on the task of refinishing my old rusty bistro table I bought about 10+ years ago at Marshall’s. I had it in our yard a few years ago until I noticed my daughter kept getting holes in her pants from the metal detailing in the seat. So I refinished it and found seat cushions at Pier 1.
Before:
Did I mention I didn’t know the first thing about refinishing anything? My husband said I needed to sand it first. Well OK, that’s more than I expected. I thought I’d just get some spray paint and spray the shit out of it. No? What’s so funny? Fine, I’ll go to Lowe’s and buy sandpaper.
Bloggers found via google search suggested a sandpaper sponge. My husband insisted on a wire brush, which we already have. And did he mention he knows a lot about painting because his father used to develop paints? That was news to me. OK, I get it, you know everything! But that Martha Stewart video I just watched, with the wire brush was like nails on a chalkboard, so sandpaper sponge it is.
And that was when T (my husband) told me he was washing his hands of this and I was on my own. Fine by me! So I got the sandpaper sponge, which by the way, was a #60 (i have no idea what kind of measurement this is, but the higher the number, the finer the sandpaper). I recognized this as what the blogger I found used. Then some rustoleum primer, and spray paint (enamel, in case you’re wondering, because I was standing there looking at all these spray cans and none of them said “paint”).
Of course, I didn’t buy enough and had to go back the next day for more, at which point I saw the rust converter stuff that T had originally suggested, so I got that too. Too late for the chairs, but boy was I ready to convert the crap out of some table rust. Have it known that I tried both the sandpaper sponge and the wire brush and felt the wire brush sucked. At least for this project, it was much harder to grip and get into small spaces.
I do also have to mention that it’s a good thing my mom suggested I use a tarp to cover the grass, or else I would have had whole areas of the yard painted white just in time for the party. Now I just have a few square outlines instead! And by the way, if your husband ever tells you to use the cloth side of the tarp that’s already crappy and torn up, don’t fall for it. It was such a pain in the butt. It kept ripping off in pieces, getting stuck to my feet, my hands, my knees, the furniture…Anyway, here’s the finished product:
Those are reversible cushions from Pier1 that I found online during their Memorial Day sale. Picked up in store the next day. Easy peasy.
Here is my mom’s reaction via text:
Wow…Good Job. Is that my Tara? What did you do with her? Decorating and painting furniture!
Moral of the story, I better start messing up something big time or else people will start expecting more of me!
Fortunate Femme 