In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. ~ Proverbs 3:6

Monday, June 13, 2011

Dining Room Table and Chairs Completed ~ Finally!


It's finally finished!!!!!!!

It seems like it has taken forever to get this dining room table completed!  We originally bought it in March, and it has been a long time coming to get it to this point!  This table was inspired by one that I saw at Ikea for $300 and $80 for each chair.  Well, I can promise you that I did not spend that!  Here's how I did it.......

As usual, I prayed to find an affordable dining set like the one I saw at Ikea.  I also needed a way to get it into my house, since we do not have a truck or a van.  So when I saw this large table with two leafs......

.....and these chairs on Craigslist for $75, I inquired about them.  After we inquired, we discovered that the people selling the table and chairs lived three houses down!  Pretty crazy, huh?  It's like it was just meant to be!  God is so faithful to us!  If they didn't live so close, we wouldn't have scored this dining set for such a great price!
Now there were two problems with this dining set....
 
Number 1 -
One of the eight chairs was broken and could not be fixed.  That meant that I needed to find three more matching chairs or a different set of four chairs to mix and match with  the others.

Number 2 -
The table and chairs looked like Easter eggs vomited all over my dining room and they had to be changed ~ immediately! I couldn't stand looking at them!

 Problem two was an easy fix with Annie Sloan's CHALK PAINT!  Chalk paint saved me from sanding and priming this dining set.  It took two coats of paint to cover everything, but it dried really fast.  I first read about chalk paint in the blogosphere, and I knew it was going to make my life easier.  It's not cheap, but it's worth it.  I ordered two cans of graphite paint and one can of the soft wax for this project.  You can read more about chalk paint here.
The table was really easy to paint.  It only took me an hour to apply both coats.


After the paint dried, I took a rag and applied the wax.  This wax was really easy to work with, and it dried really fast.  It also didn't have a strong scent that other waxes tend to have.


By April, the table was finished and decorated.  You can read more about that here, here and here.

Two months later, I completed the set of eight chairs after finding these three hideous things at a rummage sale.  They are the exact chairs to the set, and you guessed it, I only needed three chairs to complete my set!  You can read more about that and other garage  sale finds here.
To transform the chairs I had to first unscrew all eight seats from the chairs.

Then I began painting the chair.  The chalk paint appears greyish-blue when it is wet, but it dries much darker.  
 Painting these bad boys took forever, because the chairs had several detailed grooves that were difficult to coat.  It took me about an hour to paint each chair. 
Once the paint was dry, I took a rag and applied the Annie Sloan's soft wax.
While the chairs were drying, I worked on the seat cushions.
I took off the old fabric and staples and was left with the foam and board.
I tore two yards of my new fabric into eight pieces....
.....and began stapling my fabric to the seat cushions.....
......until it looked like this.
Once everything was dry, I screwed the cushions back to the chairs and marveled over the transformation!  I just love how they turned out!  It's a big difference from the Easter egg chairs I saw on Craigslist and the hideous things I found at the rummage sale.  But the truth is, I was overjoyed to find those things, because in my mind this is how I envisioned them!  I always saw their potential, so it was easy to look past the ugliness that they once were:)
Last but not least, let's break down the cost of this completed project:

Craigslist table and chairs:  $75
Rummage sale chairs: $20 
Annie Sloan's chalk paint and wax: $100
Two yards of home decor fabric from JoAnn's half off: $30
Ikea dishes: $40
Ikea placemats: $25
One yard of fabric for napkins: $12
Center pieces and runner -$10








I will be linking up to:
and all of the parties on my party page

95 comments:

  1. WOW - what a great project you took on and it came out fabulous. Love the fabric you chose and you can't beat the amount of money you put into this - well done, be proud!

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  2. Now that's a makeover! It looks gorgeous! And too funny that they lived so close by. When does that ever happen?! Coming over from Coastal Charm and your newest follower!

    Jeanine

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  3. You did a fantastic job! I love your 'new" dining room furniture.

    Dee

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  4. Your dining table and chairs look great! It's wonderful how everything worked out with getting the chairs and table! Great job.

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  5. Looks awesome! Gotta love a Craigslist find! your time and energy definitely paid off!
    Stacey of Embracing Change

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  6. You have a beautiful transformation! Thanks for sharing!

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  7. What a gorgeous set! I love grey paint and think this room is so elegant :)

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  8. I love everything about this! I'm impressed. :)

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  9. Your dining set is fabulous. You did a great job transforming your finds into something really wonderful. I can't wait to paint something with chalk paint. Gotta get me some of that stuff!

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  10. I'm impressed! I would never have seen that potential in them, and I have a pretty good imagination. :)

    I love the black color. It's so elegant.

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  11. Wow, so many things I love about this post. I got goosebumps when I read that the listing was 3 doors down! God is so good.

    I was surprised when you said you used chalkboard paint. Not as harsh as black, but richer than grey. It looks absolutely beautiful. Your place settings are lovely.

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  12. I am so excited for you because all of this looks amazing!

    Thanks for linking to "Meet Me On Monday"

    Take care,
    Lisa

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  13. So glad I saw this at the Sew Woodsy and Night Owl Crafting parties! I've been working on a table for my son't first house with the Graphite also. So it was great to see how good yours looks! I am finally close to finishing!

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  14. Great Job! I love how they turned out. I love a black dining table. I went the easy way out and bought mine at IKEA.
    http://suburbsmama.blogspot.com/

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  15. You did such a wonderful job on this! Thank you for sharing. :)

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  16. Beautiful transformation! I've never used chalk paint but am going to try it on my next furniture painting project. I'm a new follower. I hope you'll check out my blog at http://artsyvava.blogspot.com.

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  17. Aren't you just so happy to have it all complete?! Beautiful! How funny is that, they lived down the street!!

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  18. Amazing transformation Rachel! The table and chairs look incredible and the fabric choice was perfect. I totally cracked up about the "Easter Egg Vomit"! :-) Thanks so much for sharing this at Inspiration Friday~
    Vanessa

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  19. This really looks amazing! I can't believe you used Chalkboard Paint. I am very impressed.

    Thanks for sharing!

    Visiting from Amanda's Weekend Reading Party.

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  20. oh man, that is FABULOUS! love the gray color you chose, and that fabric, too!

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  21. I'm your newest follower from the Princess Party! You have inspired me! I actually had a dream last night about how I wanted to finish my dining room and now I know about chalk paint. Fabulous!

    I'd love for you to follow me back on www.jillejam.com if you get the chance ;D Have a great weekend!

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  22. I think that whole story is a wonderful testimony...the set three doors down, finding three more of the exact chairs. God cares about us, even the little things!
    Your makeover is great, love that fabric!

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  23. BTW, I'm visiting from Serenity Now.

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  24. Wow, what a great transformation. You must be really excited to have this gorgeous dining room set now. ~ Sarah

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  25. These turned out stunning! Yay for chalk paint and a fabulous vision :) Great job!

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  26. Those are fabulous! Looks like a lot of work, but it definitely paid off in the end!!! CONGRATULATIONS!

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  27. Wow, you did a great job! I love the way you completely transformed the chairs and table! I featured this on my Friday 5! Thanks for sharing!
    www.modernwivelyhood.blogspot.com

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  28. The table and chairs look fabulous! Love the graphite chalk paint. I painted a tv cabinet with graphite and was surprised how much I like it. It's a nice soft charcoal color.

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  29. Hi! I'm visiting from TT&J. Wow, that is a fabulous transformation! Your dining room I'd gorgeous, but even more than that, I love hat you prayed to find what you wanted and it all worked out. Faith equals wonders, even for the little things. Enjoy the great payofffrom all of your hard work!

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  30. Beautiful job on this set! Lucky score....

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  31. The table looks great. I'm thinking of doing this exact thing to my table, using the graphite color. Did you find the color shined up a bit when you buffed out the wax, or does it stay pretty much shine-free?

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  32. Everything turned out beautifully! Don't you just love the chalk paint?! YOu did a FAB job.

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  33. Great redo! Looks like it was well worth all the time you spent!

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  34. only 3 doors away? that's pretty cool! Thanks for linking this to Wicked Awesome Wednesday.

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  35. beyond gorgeous. what an inspiration! i love seeing projects like this. looks so much more beautiful than anything you'd see in the shops, and for a fraction of a store price. well done, you! x

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  36. I cant even begin to explain how awesome I think this is!
    You did an amazing job on it!

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  37. What a beautiful transformation and miraculous gift from God. Doesn't it just make your heart sing with praise when He does those sweet and thoughtful things for you? Newest follower.
    Cindy

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  38. Over from MM and loving your finds. Your table looks great. The Lord has been good to me also in finding things I would have never afforded to buy retail. I think my thrift store finds make my house prettier than I could have imagined.

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  39. Wow, what a wonderful transformation! I love that fabric you chose too. Great job!

    Stopping over from the Serenity Now link party. :)

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  40. Three doors down?! lol Meant to be! Great makeover.
    Dropping by from Met Monday. I hope you'll come see the safari nursery.

    Allison
    Atticmag

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  41. Absolutely gorgeous~ Love how this turned out!! Well done! Thanks for sharing it at Feathered Nest Friday! :)

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  42. You did an amazing job on those treasures...Chalk paint. That's something I have not tried. But after reading of your success I just might have to give it a try. Hmmm....what can I paint?
    Jane (artfully graced)

    ps Found you through Boogieboard Cottage

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  43. This was so awesome! I'm pretty sure I was already following you, but I am now for sure:)

    http://marleeindebt.blogspot.com/

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  44. Great job! it looks lovely. Love the colour and the fabric of the chairs. Glad you didn't spend so much and still got a wonderful dining set.

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  45. Rachel, this is truly an amazing transformation! I laughed about your analogy of the Easter eggs. lol
    God is so good, isn't he. He knew just what you needed and you did the leg work to find it all. Congrats on a gorgeous dining room. I'd love to paint something with chalk paint but haven't had the opportunity/need just yet. I guess it must not chip since priming isn't necessary. That's awesome!
    You did a wonderful job...loved this post!

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  46. Stunning transformation! You are so very creative! Loved your space. Hope to see you on my blog:)

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  47. OMG! This is amazing.

    Thank you for linking to Sew Woodsy last week! Keep on linking great projects!

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  48. Looks lovely! God is so good! I like the fabric on the chairs! You did a great job! I can't wait to get some Chalk Paint! I am your newest follower. Hope you can visit me sometime.

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  49. This is awesome!! I am inspired and you are right, God is so faithful to us!

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  50. I am truly amazed! Great project!
    It will be featured at tomorrow's linky party! :)
    Thank you so much for linking to {nifty thrifty things} last week!
    I hope to see you again tomorrow!
    xoxo,
    Vanessa

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  51. Wow, transformation for sure!!! This set is so beautiful. What a great job. Patience sure did pay of for you ;-)
    Thanks for linking this up with my Show and Share party.

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  52. Hi, Rachel! I'm admiring all your creative posts here. Can you please share them at the Creative Bloggers' Party & Hop? Hope to see you there at the party :)

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  53. Rachel...this is gorgeous! Both of your projects had the most "clicks" last week on Thrifty Thursday! I'll be featuring this on my blog and your medicine cabinet on my FB page!

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  54. Oops! Sorry, Rachel, I thought that the medicine cabinet redo was yours....just realized it was someone else's! Still featuring your dining room set at Thrifty Thursday this week! :)

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  55. saw this at thrifty decorating ~ looks amazing ~ great job!

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  56. This was a FABULOUS project and I wanted to let you know that I featured it in this week's Saturday Spotlight ~ http://www.sasinteriors.net/2011/07/saturday-spotlight-18/. I'd love for you to check it out and grab the "I've been featured" button! Wonderful job!!

    ~Jenna, SAS Interiors

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  57. This is an awesome project! Maybe one day we'll get to join you for dinner! I promise I would cover Kaleb's chair in plastic just in case.

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  58. Love the end result. Looks fantastic.

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  59. Beautiful! I'll be on the lookout for something similar to complete! Right now we just have a little table with two matching chairs, one random, and a computer chair! lol

    Brie @ BreezyPinkDaisies

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  60. Hey There! I am in the middle of painting my dining room table and chairs with the Granite ASCP. How many coats of wax did you use on your table top? Did you just apply the wax with a cloth, or brushed it on and buffed it off? Thanks!!!

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  61. Just found this on Pinterest - great job, great post!

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  62. Love Love Love this!! I have just bought some graphite annie sloan paint to do my dresser but when I did my tester piece it looked like a different colour.

    Once you waxed - did you leave this to dry and then once dried buffed it to a polish? its looks quite matt still in your photos and I would love to achieve the same look on my dresser... any advise welcome please!

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  63. Dining Room Furniture needs to be exclusive for your house. The dining room is an area where whole family sits together and share daily activities with good food.
    Thanks!

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  64. The graphite looks lovely!! It looks so much darker on her colour charts, did you water down the colour at all? Thanks

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  65. I love how this dining room set turned out.

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