Monday, February 24, 2014

DIY Tabletop Faux Finish

While browsing Pinterest a few weeks ago I came across a DIY paper bag flooring technique. We have hardwood floors and they don't need refinishing. However I thought it would make a great finish for a tabletop. So I started hunting for the prefect table to try this technique on. I found this perfect old round school table at one of my favorite stores: Empty the Nest.

I brought it home and got started with the project. First I ran to Home Depot and got my supplies:
1 Quart of Stain ( any color you wish )
1 Quart Clear Polyurethane ( I went with water based )
1 Roll of Brown Builders Paper
1 Gallon of Elmers Glue* (you don't need this much for 1 table, but I plan to do more)
*Couldn't find the Gallon of Elmers Glue at HD. Went to Joann's Craft store and found it there.


 That's a lot of glue!
 Step 1: Mix your glue with water. I went with 1 Part glue to 2 parts water. Since it was a relatively small project I went with 1cup glue : 2 cups water. I mixed it in a shallow square plastic bowl.
 Step 2: Tear up pieces of paper and crumple them. I tried to keep them all about the same size.
 Step 3: Dip each piece of paper in the glue mixture, let the excess run off and flatten it down on your surface. I wore a pair of gloves and it worked great.
 Step 4: Overlap the pieces since they do shrink up a bit after they dry. I let the table dry over night.
 Step 5: Time to Stain!  I used a lambs wool stain applicator and poured some stain in the same kind of bowl I used for the glue. I just spread out the stain and let it sit for a few minutes. I then wiped it off using an old towel.
 Step 6: Let it dry overnight. It still felt slightly tacky in the morning but I was ready to Poly!
 Step 6: Apply the Polyurethane in thin coats. I used a paint brush to apply it. I waited a few hours between coats and applied 5 coats over two days.

It turned out so great! It's nice and shiny and it looks like leather. I can't wait to do another table.


Thanks for checking out my post! And thanks to Ashley at Domestic Imperfection for the idea.
Have a great day :)

1 comment:

  1. Your table turned out great Jenni! I've been wanting to do this to a piece of furniture....or anything that is significantly smaller than a floor, haha. Pinning!

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