No. 318: Set of French Provincial End Tables

I felt like I won the lottery when I spotted this set of French Provincial end tables for $20 at a local thrift store. I find end tables all the time, but usually not as a set.

Even better is there wasn't anything wrong with the pieces. Nothing to repair. Heck, there wasn't even any dust to wipe off! But I wanted to paint the set to give them a lighter and brighter finish. The leather tops were a little dark for my taste. The paint I chose works beautifully over leather.

Nevertheless, I still followed my standard cleaning process: clean with soap and water prior to bringing inside my home. Followed by a more thorough cleaning with a deglosser prior to painting. The link to the deglosser is the brand All-in-One which is the one I actually purchased. Surprisingly (in a really good way) a little bit of this product goes a long way. I bought mine almost 6 months ago and I still have about half a jar remaining. (This photo is from the first project I used it on.)

AFTER:

I painted the bases of the end tables in the color Bliss (Jolie Matte Finish Paint). The matte paint is the same formula as the Annie Sloan brand (so I've been told), so I didn't use a primer prior to painting. I sealed the paint with clear wax.

The color Bliss, just as Duck Egg Blue, sometimes looks green and othertimes blue. The light and surrounding colors will reflect the color differently. The photo below shows just how much the color can change due to the amount of light. The table on the right is directly in front of a window. I pulled the table on the left forward so it's no longer in the direct light, and I think you can see the color variation. 

I painted the tops and drawer pulls in Pure White. My first choice would be an antique white, but I had the pure white on hand, so I used that instead. I think the color combination worked out very well.

The paint adhered beautifully over the leather tops (but be sure to clean thoroughly prior to painting). If using a different brand of paint then I recommend using an adhesion primer prior to painting.

Even the inside of the drawers were in great shape. The brand of furniture is Harmony.

The tables needed a good three coats of Pure White for the tops, but I ended up putting a quick light coat on top of that for even better coverage. The white paints don't have a lot of pigment, so extra coats might be required for full coverage.

I only used two coats on the drawer pulls, and two coats of Bliss on the bases of the side tables.

Technically these are end tables, but I envision them being used as nightstands.

Thank you for stopping by The Black Sheep Shoppe today! I hope you enjoyed the project.