Metal-Top Coffee Table with Less Than Perfect Life of Bliss

I am so thrilled to show you my new made-over coffee table for my screened porch! And my sister will be thrilled because every time she's been to visit this summer, she's been telling me she needs something to put her feet up on. Well, here ya go, sister!

I've had this project in mind for a while, but, since my decorating style involves mainly redesigning my thrift store finds, I've had to be patient while I searched for the perfect table. And here it is:

What? You don't love the early-80's stain & the unidentifiable faux stone tile top? I did. Because I love a dramatic transformation.

So, the first part of my plan was to replace the tiles with metal inserts. We had a big piece of sheet metal in our basement leftover from when the house was built last year. My handsome assistant did this part while I stood by and told him what to doadmired his work. Whatever you do, if you decide to work with this sheet metal, wear work gloves, because this stuff is very sharp! Using tin snips, he cut a piece of the metal about an inch larger all around than the board he had cut for the insert. Then, using a hammer, he hammered the sheet metal, "wrapping" it around the board.

Next, I did the sanding to prep the table for paint. I used my palm sander for the flat areas, & I came up with this method for sanding the curved nooks & crannies: I wrapped a piece of sandpaper around a scrub brush & it worked great! I'll be doing that again.

Then, I reached for my handy Krylon in Ivory Satin. (This project took about 2 1/2 cans. )

And then, just a little gray glaze for some definition here and there.

And here it is, so very happy on my screened porch!

I just love the details!

Not bad for $7.50 plus paint. And I would've never had this kind of fun going to Ethan Allen!

To see more from Julie, visit her site Less Than Perfect Life of Bliss

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