George and I spent the weekend helping our daughter and son-in-law build a TV-multimedia console. Brianne and Brian found online plans that would suit their needs, but desired storage with more of a mid-century flair.
The inspiration choices were narrowed down. However, it still wasn’t quite what they had in mind. They didn’t want all the wiring and electronics exposed, but were concerned about enclosing heat-producing electronics.
George has an awesome gift: he can look at a photo (“I want it to look just like this”) and in turn, build whatever piece of furniture requested. This gift came in handy as we helped our son-in-law and daughter paint and decorate their first new home these past few weeks. The one thing our daughter requested was for her dad to build a keepsake farmhouse dining table.
The table was built from supplies left over from my craft table project, in addition to four traditional maple wood turned legs from Lowe’s and a lot of braces. 🙂
Brianne and I painted the apron and legs a white chalk paint wash. Later, she applied Minwax Red Mahogany stain and a satin Minwax clear coat to the top.
Wouldn’t this table look great paired with these half painted chairs? 😉
Have a good week! – – Joanne
I’ve been unsuccessfully looking for the “right” tables for our Family Room. Wouldn’t you know we had them under our noses the whole time! Both tables have sentimental value and fit our Family Room style perfectly.
Clearing out our in-law’s garage, we rescued an antique oak harvest table that had been used and abused as a garage workbench for many years. I fell in love with the oil stains, paint splatters, sawed down legs, and drilled out holes. I gave it a good scrubbing and a light sanding to get the grease, dirt and grit off.
Just wanting a hint of color, a blue paint mixture left over from previous projects was added to the apron and legs and then roughly sanded off. This was followed with a coat of wax and a buffing.
George scavenged our attic and came across my great grandmother Lola’s sewing cabinet. It had seen better days. After a thorough scrubbing and a light sanding, I stained the top with three coats of Minwax Red Mahogany and added three coats of Valspar’s Glass Tile paint to the cabinet. I finished up with a coat of wax and a buff.
I’m very happy with our “new” tables. Now, we just need to finish the fireplace surround, purchase an area rug, paint the trim . . . 😉
Have a good week! — Joanne
Happy New Year! We’ve been enjoying a long and lazy holiday break. I finished my last project for the year just in time for Christmas: 16 quilted table runners for family and friends.
Over the past year, George and I learned a lot of new tricks and techniques, received much appreciated advice and made a few friends while doing what we love: creating, building and crafting. I am honored to share a few of my favorite blogs with you; knowing you’ll find something to enjoy from their posts as much as I: Fox and Finch Antiques, Hello, Scarlet, and Ol’ Perly Jenkins.
I look forward to attempting new projects this new year. I did not realize how “crafty busy” we had been until I looked back over 2014. Indulge me as I share a few with you:
Well, I have three, actually 😉
By far, the easiest project!
Though, not a 2014 project, this was the most viewed one for the year.
Anyone see a pattern here? I guess we like creating with wood. 🙂 I’d love to know your favorite 2014 post or project.
Here’s to a fantabulous New Year to you and yours! – – Joanne
The second set of built-ins are in! Yay! To help control and hide toys, games and other “stuff” we ordered two Barker cabinet sets. Located in Oregon, Barker builds customizable wood cabinets with high quality hardware at reasonable prices. We ordered two-door sink base cabinets.
George cut and routed tops for each, which I stained a dark red mahogany, then added three coats of polyurethane.
In order to fit the built-ins snug against the fireplace brick, George had to cut both mantel ends off.
Talk about trepidation! But, as usual, he did a fantastic job!
With Thanksgiving and a business trip looming, George put together the cabinets and built the upper shelves. While he was out of town, I painted the cabinets, shelves and trim with two coats Glidden Gripper Primer & Sealer (love this primer) and three coats Behr Premium Ultra White, sanding between coats.
A fireplace surround and TV mount are our next projects – but after the holidays. 😉 We found many DIY ideas online, but really liked the simplicity of Cameras & Chaos‘ wall mount plans. George got an early start on the wood “wainscot-like” TV cable channels.
Family is coming to our home for Thanksgiving, and I wanted this room available for overflow. We screwed the last screw, pulled off painter’s tape and stowed the tools, paints and hardware this past Sunday. We moved the furniture back in and filled the shelves. Just to see how far we’ve come, we started with this . . .
. . . And have updated to this . . .
Whew! Just in time for turkey!
Have a great Thanksgiving! – – Joanne
Family Room: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7
Finally! Our bedroom revamp is a reality! I’m still looking for door hooks and one chest needs a few replacement knobs. But, basically we are d.o.n.e! 🙂 Thanks for stopping by to take a look.
Joanne Inspired 