Table Transformation: It ain’t about the money
Here’s a peek at what kept me busy the past few days! Arnaud and I bought this table at a thrift store when we first moved in our new place in Cincinnati last February. The apartment wasn’t furnished, so we had to buy everything we needed quite in a rush since we were moving there from Belgium and obviously were not able to bring furniture with us. The table was really cheap, was the perfect size, and most of all, we didn’t have much time to look after our dream table. We brought this one home, despite its not-so-appealing brownish color and its blah metallic legs. But no worries, I knew I could make something we’d love out of it. I was so excited when I finally started transforming it that I forgot to take the before picture to show you its former look -but I promise you’re not missing out 😉
One day, Arnaud and I finally got to work. We spray painted the table white, and its legs gold (just because I am so obsessed with anything gold). One colorful Sharpie pens box and way too much time spent on Pinterest later, I had a clear idea of what I was going to do. I started by drawing some mexican furniture inspired patterns with a pencil, and then colored everything with my Sharpie pens. Next, I cut a pattern in golden laminate tape and applied it on the edge of the table to make it more fancy. The last step was to spray the whole thing with varnish to protect the colorful parts. And voila!
I know our taste is quite unconventional and that most of you probably wouldn’t even like having this table in your home, but it simply shows that it’s not hard nor it is expensive to own one-of-a-kind furniture that you really like and that suits your needs. Thrift store finds, Washi tape, paint, fabric, laminate, pens, colorful wallpaper, stickers, a little bit of inspiration (Pinterest is your friend)… You don’t need much to be happy!
Our uncommon lifestyle (we lived 2 years in Flagstaff, AZ, 3 years in Belgium, and we’ve been in Cincinnati for a year now, all this in the last 6 years) made that we already had to move quite a lot and start from scratch in a whole new country, city and/or apartment, leaving all our belongings behind. It’s not always easy to leave a place you love, but in the same time it brings along a lot of excitement and inspiration! It also allowed us to learn a lot along the way, notably not to be too attached to material goods, to be better spenders, to become thrift store experts (more eco- and budget-friendly, and a good way to find one-of-a-kind goods), and the ability to quickly create a new universe that feels like home.
I know that our “new old” table will put a smile on our face everytime we’ll see it, and that simply is priceless 🙂
