kiddie table & chairs

I think that every child should have a kiddie table & chairs. I had one when I was little, and it was great. I used it for YEARS. Of course as an adult I topped out at 5'2", so I may have gotten a little more use out of it than most. But they're good to have and relatively easy to move around. Whether it's in their room, the living room so they can eat & watch TV, or in the kitchen so they have their own place to sit with their siblings/cousins, etc during meal time, in my opinion they're a must! I found this particular one at a thrift store back in the summer and it took me until Christmas to get around to it. I didn't take as many pix as I should have, especially of before, but it was Christmas Eve and I was determined she was going to have it Christmas! You could tell it was from the 80s or 90s, by the heart shaped backs, the colors, etc. It reminded me of stuff I saw in pictures of me when I was little. I started out super ambitious and was going to sand it down to the original wood....that didn't last long. Then I figured if Nicole Curtis could just sand until smooth, so could I. While mulling over make over ideas for this table, I came up with doing a chalk board top. My niece had just turned 2 and LOVES to draw & color. So my mission began.

These are the supplies I used:

 I was very pleased to find that the chalk board paint now comes in a spray can for around $6! Since her table & chairs were small I opted to purchase samples vs. a quart of paint. I got the paint & primer in one to avoid an extra step...especially since I was in a time crunch! I already had these foam brushes in my craft supply stash so I used those vs. having to dig through the garage for my husband's paint brushes...plus I just tossed them when I was done. I chose 2 paint colors for her table & chairs just to make things a little more interesting. If it was up to me I would have done something sassy like hot pink & black or bright teal, but her mother is my sister-in-law & we all know how tricky those can be, so I opted for a cute, not so girly approach of teal & purple.

Here are some before shots...again, I should have taken more before I started but you get the jest.

As you can see, I started out super ambitious with the sanding down to the wood. It didn't last long. The chair bottoms were white vinyl, so I decided to keep those. After all it saved me the extra step of recovering & digging through my fabric stash for something to match, plus they would wipe clean super easy. I just gave them a quick wipe down with some antibacterial wipes & went on to the table top.

I didn't tape off anything around the edges of the table, I just tried not to get it everywhere. I sprayed the entire table top with the chalk board paint, except the raised boarder. I did 2 or 3 coats just to make sure if it chipped, etc she'd still be in creative business. While that was drying, I moved on to the chairs.

After taking the seat bottoms out (it was just a few bolts), I began painting.

Because the hearts were attached to the chair sides in a weird way, I opted to paint the inside of those sides the same color as the hearts...that way I didn't have to worry about touching up a million and one times & potentially throwing the entire chair out my kitchen window. Again, I didn't tape, I just tried to be careful. I did 2 coats & once it was dry, it didn't leave any "brush strokes". The sponges were really a good choice for this project. The tapered tip helped me keep things in line.

After I finished the chairs, it was on to the table!

I painted the boarder around the top and had my rag handy to wipe up any oops spots on the chalkboard paint surface. (I'm still reeling over the fact that I thought of this...so neat!) I painted the legs different colors on different sides.

After I finished everything & it was all dry (the next morning) I put the chairs back together & hoped she would like it! After I tested out the chalkboard top that is... I have to say it works perfectly!

It was a success! She loved it! After my husband brought it in from the car she refused to open anymore presents because she was too busy playing with her table. We had some sidewalk chalk that my husband had gotten as a gag gift that I put in a bag with it. It was big & sturdy so it wouldn't break easily, she couldn't lose it & she could grip it well. She decided to spend the rest of Christmas night drawing on her new table :) 

It currently has a spot of honor in the living room in front of the TV.

I have to say, this is probably my proudest redo yet. All & all I had less than $30 in her table & chairs. Here's the breakdown: 

• table & chairs purchased at thrift store for $13
• Paint samples around $2.50 each
• Chalkboard spray paint around $6
• sponges (already in my stash, but if you need to purchase them, you can get them way cheap at the necessary evil, Wal-Mart or at any craft store for less than $2 for a pack of 3 or 4)
• Happy 2 year old, and being the aunt that gave the best Christmas present...PRICELESS!

   Stay Thrifty,