3 years ago I bought a table and chairs set off Craigslist for $15. It was fine, but it was definitely used. There were some stains and some gashes in the surface and it was, well… used. However, considering these KidKraft table and chair sets are over $100 new, I was very happy with my $15 set.
I knew right away I wanted to fix it up, but as usual, life got in the way.
When I started this blog it seemed like a great project and when General Finishes agreed to provide the paint for the project, I decided to give it a go. I do not receive compensation from General Finishes if you purchase, I’m just grateful for the samples they provided.
As I said, the top was in rough shape. Between the “love” shown by the previous child owner, and the “love” shown by Miss O, it was going to need some prep before painting. First up; cleaning!
Then I got to use my hand sander that I got for Mother’s Day! It made this job so much easier and, because it has a dust bag, there’s no dust flying around everywhere. I still took it outside, just in case.
General Finishes milk paints don’t require sanding as prep, so I only had to sand the uneven spots, not the whole set. I can’t even express to you what a time saver that is.
Because I wasn’t painting everything, I had to tape. This was probably the most time consuming part!
After 1 coat of Antique White Milk Paint the table looked like this. The paint went on really smoothly. You can clearly see the table color through the paint, so a few coats were needed.
2 coats in and the color is more uniform and even. The paint dries so fast that by the time I’d finished painting everything, I could go back and start the next coat right away. That was a huge benefit for me, since I was trying to do this while Miss O was sleeping.
I wanted complete coverage so I put on another coat.
The top coat went on last. The can recommends 3 coats minimum, so that’s what I did on the sides and back. On the top and seat I put 6 coats so it would stand up to whatever Miss O could throw at it.
Done! I’m thrilled with how it came out!
