30 before Thirty

{refinish our dining room table} √

When I moved out to Spokane into an apartment with Joe, his sister gave us their dining room table & chairs. Which was perfect, because all I had prior was a little Target bistro table with two high chairs, perfect for one when I lived on my own and sometimes a little too small for two! The table Kelli gave us is such a solid piece of furniture and I love that it has two extra leaves for when we have company over. It's a great puzzle table and makeshift desk for when Joe needs to spread his work out. I love decorating it with vintage tablecloths and have always loved to set the table, even if it is just for two. I'm not sure how many years this table belonged to Kelli and her family, but really it was in great shape, solid wood! The only wear and tear was from wiping with Clorox wipes over time, which caused the varnish to wear off and caused the surface to be slightly tacky. I desperately wanted to sand it down and bring it back to its beautiful state. The original color (table top, bottom, and four chairs) almost had an orange tint to it, which I was eager to change. I thought about painting the chairs a fun color, but opted for black. I figured it was the safe route and once I move into a house and become more settled, I can always change them if I want. I painted the base black as well and although it's hard to tell in the bottom picture, I stained the tabletop a slightly darker color then the original.

Since I hadn't worked on it here, Joe hadn't seen any part of the transformation. The funny part was when I finally brought it home (after many many weekends of working on it) he told me that it looked the same! BAH!!! I of course started to cry. I laugh now, but if you only knew how many hours I put into that darn table and sanding all those grooves in the chairs. I bawled. And then to top it off when I ran my hand over the tabletop I could feel tiny bubbles that I missed with the sponge from when I put the clear coat on. The only solution was to sand them out and put another clear coat on. At this point THAT WAS NOT AN OPTION. What I did next, well, Joe probably thought I was a mad woman! I took a coarse piece of sandpaper and started "distressing" the table (in a very dramatic way I might add), while still crying of course. Even though you couldn't see the bubbles, you sure could feel them, and I knew they were there and I wanted them GONE! I sanded out the bubbles... and the edges... and random areas where I sanded down to the wood taking the stain off. I don't think Joe knew what to do! To be honest he might have been slightly scared. HeHe. Looking back at it, it makes me laugh and I'm glad I took sandpaper to it because now it has little imperfections, giving it that "worn" look. :)

 

 

 

visit a state I've never been to

run a 1/2 marathon in under 2 hours

cut hair (short or straight across bangs) 3/4/11
get Joe to organize his mail
take a cooking class

open up an etsy shop

get married ;)

refinish our dining room table fall 2011

camp out in Yellowstone for a week

go fishing for a day

go skiing or snowboarding
make it to the coast 5/26/11

find the perfect pair of black boots

purchase a digital SLR 2/26/11

read a book

run a marathon

learn how to swim tread water

get Joe to try cream cheese

host a girls night

make a scrapbook for myself

learn how to sew... and sew something

take an exercise class with a friend

learn how to knit

s k y d i v e

put together a book of inspiration

make the perfect pot of chili

volunteer

create a piece of jewelry
find the perfect letter E
throw myself a kickin' 30th birthday party