Wouldn’t you rather have something pretty?

There is a Savers store just around the corner from our local Deseret Industries (both are like a Goodwill store). I don’t check it quite as often as DI, but I try to stop in fairly regularly to look for furniture. They don’t have good stuff as often as DI does, but what furniture they do get is usually a great price!

One day a few weeks ago, I walked in the front door to see this table staring back at me:

Oh, I swear the heavens opened and angels sang! Look at those gorgeous legs!

Sure the top was a little worn…but that just meant it had been well loved!

And there were two chairs to boot!

Their legs weren’t half-bad either!

The only problem was a sticker marring the top of the table:

SOLD. Hold until 11 a.m.

I was crestfallen. Sadly I walked away, hoping that the person who purchased these lovely pieces would truly appreciate them.

I continued my rounds, stopping in at DI, then on to Wal-Mart. But I couldn’t get the little table out of my head. When I finished my errands at 10:50 a.m., I decided to stop back by Savers—just in case.

I walked in the door, and the little table looked at me hopefully (or so I imagined). It was still there! I walked away a few feet to keep an eye on it.

A store employee walked by the table and glanced at that tag. He called out, “What’s the story with this table? It’s almost 11:00! If that lady doesn’t come back soon…”

I saw my opening, and leaped in… “I’ll BUY IT!” I said with ill-concealed glee.

Then the wait began. 10:57. 10:59. 11:01! RING ME UP!

The little table…and the chairs…came home with ME!

And we were very happy!

Lest I sound like a true ogre, an effort was made to locate the original purchaser. As far as the employees could tell, she had left the store.

I found a remnant of a beautiful green bird print that was perfect for recovering the seats, and it set the tone for the rest of the makeover…green it would be! I took the fabric in with me to Home Depot and purchased a sample of Behr Ultra in a shade close to the birds. However, when I got it home I decided it was going to be a little too in-your-face green, so I lightened it with some white paint.

On the left you can see the unglazed chair; on the right is with glaze. It mellowed the color just enough, and brought out the interesting details.

And here’s a newly recovered chair seat. I love this fabric!

I sanded down the table top and re-stained it in my favorite Minwax Antique Walnut.

There’s a 14-inch butterfly leaf tucked away inside.

One of the things I love about this table is how narrow it is: only 31 inches. It would be perfect in small quarters.

I still love these beautiful double legs!

If I could, do you know what I would use this table for? A craft room. What a great place to spread out your projects! (I coated the top with 3 layers of Varathane just in case!) A seamstress could extend the table and cut out an entire dress. A scrapbooker could assemble a whole vacation’s worth of memories!

After all…wouldn’t you rather have something pretty to work on? Who needs that old folding table, anyway??

…And when the work was over

…maybe it could just be a nice place to enjoy a glass of lemonade with a friend.

This project has been featured at Beyond the Picket Fence and the DIY Home Sweet Home Project.

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Linking up to these great parties and Saved by Suzy.