How to Give Your Old Table a New Look With Stencils

Here I am another week gone by that I am not working on the bedroom…

Here I am another week gone by that I am not working on the bedroom furniture.  Instead this week I am going to share a quick makeover that I had wanted to do on this little side table.  Please ignore the mess in the photo.  Tatou, our puppy thinks the living room is his playground. 

I tried to sell this table at the garage sale we had last month but no luck.  So instead of donating it I decided to give this old table a new look with stencils. 
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Table before, How to Give your Old Table a New Look with Stencils, the boondocksblog.com
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Here you can see a bit better what it looks like.  We had tried to sell it when we had a garage sale about a month ago but we couldn’t get rid of it – even at $15. If it had looked like this I might have kept it as is but since I couldn’t sell it I decided to add it to the living room but first give it a makeover. 

​I had thought of making it look very farmhouse-y but then decided a look somewhere in between was better. 

The plan was to paint it and then use that stencil that I had originally bought for the bedroom dresser, which I have since reconsidered and decided not to stencil.  So why should such a pretty stencil go to waste?
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What I Used:

Table at garage sale, How to Give your Old Table a New Look with Stencils, the boondocksblog.com

The How To:

It had a laminate top so I wiped it down with a vinegar and water mixture to make sure it was nice and clean.  

I then just painted it using the chalky type paint.  Three coats was all it took and about half an hour. I didn’t even bother sanding it down cause I can be lazy that way.

I then measured the table and centered the stencil, then taped it in place with masking tape.  The table is not exactly square. 
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Positioning stencil on table which has been painted white, How to Give your Old Table a New Look with Stencils, the boondocksblog.com
For the blue color I mixed in a dark blue I had with the white chalky finish paint.  You of course can be smarter and just buy the color you like. I’m trying to use whatever I have.

​Now I have done stenciling before with mixed results but I wanted to try out  this brush that my friends have been raving about.  You see it below, it is round and spongy.  Instead of painting you have to pounce on the stencil, but first pounce on a sheet of paper to remove any excess paint.
Mixing the paint color and using the round sponge brush, How to Give your Old Table a New Look with Stencils, the boondocksblog.com

Here is what it looks like when you pounce on the stencil area instead of using a regular brush. 

I bought this stencil set at Michael’s.  It is by ArtMinds and while I have seen it used by other bloggers I have not seen it at Amazon so if you want to get it I would suggest going to visit Michael’s or you can click here. (no affiliate link I just really like this stencil)
Applying the paint on the stencil, How to Give your Old Table a New Look with Stencils, the boondocksblog.com
For the sides I used this border stencil which also comes with the set. And I also pounced on the border on the bottom. 
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Adding details to the sides of the table, How to Give your Old Table a New Look with Stencils, the boondocksblog.com
Shop Decor Steals
Once I was done with the actual painting I needed to decide how I would seal in all of this goodness. I found a box top from resume paper and painted it with the chalky finish paint. 
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chalky finish painted box top, How to Give your Old Table a New Look with Stencils, the boondocksblog.com
I then tried out three different waxes that I had in my stash.  

This turned out to be a very easy way for me to get an idea of what they would look like on the table. 

Needless to say  the black was way too dark.  I think it would look great in another piece but not the farmhouse-y look I was going for here. 

 Maybe if I had added a clear wax underneath it would have looked better?  That will be an experiment for another time. 

The brown was in between and give a bit of color to the white. 
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Adding the decorative waxes to see the results. How to Give your Old Table a New Look with Stencils, the boondocksblog.com
I ended up using the farmhouse white, because I wanted a soft look for the table.  I just put some wax on this brush and then spread it on.  I give it a few minutes and then rub it with some nice clean white cotton rags. 
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Using the white decorative wax to finish the table top, How to Give your Old Table a New Look with Stencils, the boondocksblog.com
It softens the blue just a bit and makes it look worn and distressed. 
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Close up of stenciled top, How to Give your Old Table a New Look with Stencils, the boondocksblog.com
LNCHOME
The legs got a different treatment, although it is very had to tell with the photo. I dabbled the brush in the brown wax and then added white wax to the mixture.  It gives the legs just a hint of color. 
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side view of the table and legs, How to Give your Old Table a New Look with Stencils, the boondocksblog.com
But the real star is the top of the table. 
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Table top with blue stencil, #Farmhousetable #stencilmakeover #floralstencil #upcycledfurniture How to Give your Old Table a New Look with Stencils, the boondocksblog.com
detail of corner of table top, #Farmhousetable #stencilmakeover #floralstencil #upcycledfurniture How to Give your Old Table a New Look with Stencils, the boondocksblog.com
It looks farmhouse fresh from where I’m sitting.  Is this my style?  Who knows?  Does it clash with the TV Cabinet in the living room?  

I’m still at that stage where I am finding my new style and mixing and matching styles as I go along. Are you like that also?
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front of table with the details on the sides, #Farmhousetable #stencilmakeover #floralstencil #upcycledfurniture How to Give your Old Table a New Look with Stencils, the boondocksblog.com
For now,it will stay like this, but in the future, I may want to add a little more stenciling to the top.  Like a burst of flowers!
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stenciled table top, #Farmhousetable #stencilmakeover #floralstencil #upcycledfurniture How to Give your Old Table a New Look with Stencils, the boondocksblog.com
stenciled table top, #Farmhousetable #stencilmakeover #floralstencil #upcycledfurniture How to Give your Old Table a New Look with Stencils, the boondocksblog.com
I always try to upcyle before getting rid of anything.  That would have been the last resort. With just a little paint and the stencil I was able to give this old table of mine a totally new look. So easy and such a different look for the table. 

What do you say, is it farmhousey or is it cottage-y? 
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Giving a new look to your old table is so easy with stencils, #Farmhousetable #stencilmakeover #floralstencil #upcycledfurniture How to Give your Old Table a New Look with Stencils, the boondocksblog.com
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58 Comments

  3. Love the table. I’m a mix of cottagey/shabby chic, and mass clutter! I’ve had one successful stencilling project so far and want to try more. Your system looks easy!

  5. Oooh, Mary! I like the light blue stenciling on your “new” table!!! Really pretty and I like how you shared the test runs in the photograph… I’m so visual that I need that to really decide if I want to jump into something or not. Happily pinning and sharing to my FB page.
    Glad your table got a new lease on life,
    Hugs,
    Barb 🙂

  7. This is gorgeous – such a pretty, fresh look. I acquired a little sewing table recently, and I think doing something like this would look amazing.

  8. Hi Mary,
    I love how your table came out! I’ve spent the past few days cutting stencils to use to stencil on flour sack towels with fabric paint so it caught my eye. Now I have another use for them . . .furniture! Really enjoyed this post!
    Cheryl

  12. So pretty, Mary! I’m not good with stencils, the paint always leaks beneath them. A brand recently offered me free stencil for my blog, but since I don’t DIY anymore I told them you might like it. Hope that’s OK. 🙂

  13. It always amazes me what a little paint can do! We’d love for you to come link up at Wall to Wall DIY Wednesday over at R&R at home!

  14. Mary,
    I love how this table turned out and the tips. I have stenciled one piece of furniture and really liked it. Stop by Thursday Favorite Things since you are one of my features.
    Hugs,
    Bev

  18. Mary, you know how much I love furniture transformations. This is a simple but yet so chic makeover. I am not a stencil person but I think that stenciled details go this old table to another level! Congrats my friend 🙂

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