rusty red revamp

our lovely coffee table joined our family as an outdoor piece of furniture, 

but we really didn't buy the furniture because of the table.

we just liked everything else.
 i looked at it everyday for weeks, trying to envision its place in our living room...

::pros::
great overall size
space to place baskets that can hold my random stuff magazines
character in its legs and wooden slats

::cons::
too tall
needs to be refinished 

so, after a few lonely months in the backyard, it was ready for a new home.

it receives much more daily love and attention in its new spot.

 let me show you how we got to this point...

{1}

the height of the table was a little too tall for the family room, so we sawed off its legs.

poor guy.

{2}

time to sand!

make sure to sand off all the previous stain, and to create a smooth surface

{3}

brush off the excess dust.

wipe it clean with a damp rag.

maybe twice, depending on how much dust you made.

{4}

stain it.

we chose minwax english chestnut,

which we also used to stain our kitchen table here.

i was planning on painting the bottom half rather than staining it.

to prevent wiping up drips that might fall through the cracks I spread out newspaper

on the bottom level.

i actually took the picture of newspaper after staining one coat.

{5}

paint it 

no, i didn't prime it which i was very glad about after just painting one coat of red.

geez, those slats were a pain to paint

can't find my painting pic, but here is a good shot of the legs

 

{7}

decorate it. 

 love it.

go here for some great pointers on how to decorate your coffee table. 

this was my first piece of furniture to redo, and it really boosted my confidence.

start on something rather simple, with a few easy steps.

then you'll feel like conquering the world, or something like this guy