table & spindle chairs

So, my life has more tables & chairs in it today :)  This lovely set is a perfect marriage of chairs who needed almost no work at all, and a table who was almost the death of me.  I guess it all comes out in the wash.

I said goodbye to a wonderful table & chairs tonight, but was so happy to see them go to one of my new favorite clients.  Hi Rebecca!  It makes the parting easier if you love the person who is 'adopting' the piece, don't you think?

Onto the table.  And, no, the stereo isn't finished yet.  Sorry!  My car battery died & it really put a wrench in my day.  You know how people always say that things happen at the worst times?  Because they almost always do?  Well, I'll tell you... I could have been stranded at Costco, or at the Goodwill, with a dead battery.  Instead, do you know where it died?  In my driveway.  And my dad was there.  He jumped it for me, and followed me to the dealership to drop it off.  And my kids, who were waiting for me in the carpool line at school?  My mom walked over & picked them up.  Easy peasy.  By the time we got the kids home, the car was ready & my dad dropped us off to pick it up.  I am so very grateful that I didn't have any children out & about with me when my battery died.  So grateful that if the battery had to die, it did so the way that it did.  Happiness!

Onto the table.  This table is old.  It needed a lot- and I mean a lot- of work.  Here is the before...

There was no getting around using stripper on this piece.  The layers of paint & grime were just too thick.

Ewwww.  I have a migraine just looking at this picture.

The stuff came off surprisingly easily.  But I did have to go through the whole process twice.  Strip, wait, scrape, steel wool... and repeat.

The pretty wood underneath is all the encouragement you need to keep going.

This is my tub-o-toxic-sludge.  Just ridiculously gross.

Second coat of stripper.

Now ready for sanding!  Did I mention this was a lot of work?

I painted the bottom, because the dark stain just wasn't doing these gorgeous legs justice.

See what I mean?  You could hardly see these beauties before.

Walnut stain.  I took the brass feet off & painted them in ORB.  Somehow didn't get a picture of this step, but you can see them in the 'after' pictures.  They look great.

The chairs were in such great shape, in terms of the wood, that I left them as-is.  My dad helped me use a paintbrush to get wood glue in all the nooks & crannies and then we used all sorts of clamps & such to hold the pieces tight while they dried.  There were lots of loose joints.

My dad owns at least 6 different types of clamps.  Who knew?

This photo is awful ~ can't figure out what the dusty dots are.  Sorry!

I love the finished pieces!  This table is so versatile, because you can use it as a console/buffet with the leaves dropped... or as a small table with the center leaf in, and the outer leaves dropped... or as a huge table with the outer leaves up & the center leaf in (last picture shown).  It would seat 8 no problem, and probably even 10.  And the chairs are so yummy.  Isn't the fabric gorgeous?  (Thank you, Budget Upholstery!)

Hopefully, I'll have a stereo cabinet for you tomorrow :)  In the meantime, because I don't want anyone to miss it, here are the details about the giveaway going on NOW!


My friend Becky has a new blog called Kings Down Road & a new Etsy store (also called Kings Down Road), both celebrating her love of all things vintage.  She has so generously offered to give the lucky winner $50 credit at her etsy store!!  Thank you, Becky!

In addition, I'm adding something to the package... a $50 visa card.  So, the lucky winner will get $50 in awesome vintage goodies AND $50 to play with (my mother-in-law calls it "mad money" and I love that).


What do you have to do to win?  There are several ways to get yourself entered into the giveaway (sorry for the terrible grammar, Betsy B!)...

*Become a follower of the blog!  If you're a follower, you automatically get one entry.  Thats one chance out of 209 at this moment.

*For an EXTRA entry, go to Becky's etsy shop & let me know what your favorite piece is by leaving me a comment here.  Make sure to check out the incredible Gucci salt & pepper shakers :)

*For a THIRD entry, go to Becky's blog and leave her a comment that you've come visiting from A Few Good Pieces.

Phew!  I'll leave the Giveaway up until Friday of this week, October 15, at midnight.  And I'll try to remind you as we go through the week!


Thanks, y'all!!
Kathie


Linking to:
Domestically Speaking's Power of Paint Party
Primitive & Proper's Piece of Work Wednesday