Farmhouse Table redo

***My blog has moved over to WordPress.com!  Follow the link http://www.sewsweetcottage.com/2012/03/farmhouse-table-redo/and move on over with me!!***

Six years ago we inherited a dining room table with 4 chairs.  I couldn’t have been more pleased with it.  It had beautiful chairs with some French looking details and turned legs on the table.  And the color of it wasn’t bad in our previous home.  But after we started using the table I realized how much I didn’t like it!  The top of the table was far from kid-friendly and made of soft wood.  Every time anyone tried to write on the table we had to find a book to put underneath or it would leave a permanent mark on the table!  It also had some grooves in the top as part of the design and we were constantly finding “treasures” from the kids stuck in them—like playdoh or food remnants.  Very unpleasant!  Especially when you don’t notice it until you are sitting at the table with guests and you see a big wad of green playdoh lodged in the table right next to their plate! 

So here’s what my table looked like originally…

The color of it was not my favorite either, and was too similar to the color of my hardwood floors.  What I really wanted was a big farmhouse table that would sit 8-10 people.  Since the legs of this table were so pretty, I figured we could just take the top of the table off and replace it with a farmhouse style, planked top.  So I put my good husband to work on ripping that thing apart!

I wanted a rustic look and something that could tolerate writing and playdoh.  So we bought seven 1 x 6 boards (nothing fancy) from Home Depot.  We painted the four chairs and the bottom of the table black and then chose a walnut colored stain for the top.  My husband sanded the boards and then put them together with three horizontal braces of scrap wood.  He used the braces underneath the table top to attach the old bottom frame with the legs.  Then he stained the top and put several layers of polyurethane on it to protect it from the “elements” ;).

Here is how it looks now…

I love this table!  Every time I walk by the dining room I smile:)

And here’s how she looks all dressed up…

In my mind, we were always making this table just for my sweet Polish Pottery Hen.  She looks so happy there! I picked up the table runner at World Market to match my teal painted walls above the board and batten.

We have had more meals in our dining room since the table has been redone than we had since we lived here.  Have I mentioned I love this table??  Thanks hubby for getting this one done in record time!

I am linking to the following parties!