How to Restore and Upcycle Furniture

What to Do with Your Old Furniture

In 1992 we bought a house dating from 1906 which had to be completely renovated. We realized a dream of fifteen years, that of buying an old house to completely renovate in the Laurentides region.

Leaving our modern house in Montérégie to live the dream of our life three hours away was quite an adventure that was beginning for us and our children. Our new home needed a lot of love and we prioritized what was urgent, and so life went by over the years.

The veranda having been really neglected by the previous owners, it was then inconceivable to renovate it, so we demolished it in 1995. We immediately built the new one given that, even located at the back of the house, it is the main entrance to our house.

A Maple Wood Table

To finish the interior of the new veranda, we salvaged wood from the barn that we had demolished shortly after our arrival in 1992. We did not invest in decoration, knowing that this piece would often have been useful for store materials during renovations of other rooms in the house.

Open to the kitchen, I constantly saw this veranda which was not decorated to my taste and which I ended up finding dark over the years with its barn wood. I knew that this would be the last room in the house to get a makeover and I was really looking forward to this day.

Over time, we collected a maple wood table given to us by my brother and we also collected a few chairs, always thinking of the day when this veranda would become a used room.

It was 26 years later that I saw my dream…my big dream came true shape!!!

Bring the Enchanting Setting Indoors

Knowing that a large bench seven feet long would run along one of the walls, the round table given by my brother was no longer suitable in my opinion, I now wanted a large rectangular table. After discussing and thinking carefully, we finally decided to keep the round table which can be extended if necessary using two panels.

Now that we had decided to keep the table, the chairs amassed over the years no longer suited more really in my new concept. So I started looking for used chairs on Marketplace. A couple of days later, and for a pittance I had found the ideal chairs for my project

With the magnificent view we have of the mountains, I wanted to bring this enchanting decor indoors.

Nature, the name of one of Colorantic’s magnificent new colours, completely seduced me and this magnificent colour was my element of inspiration for this metamorphosis.

It all started with colouring the room and upgrading the table and new chairs.

Products Used

• Colorantic Cleaner and Varnish Remover
• Colorantic Oil Grip Primer
• Colorantic Chalk Paint: Cotton Ball (table)
• Colorantic Chalk Paint: Nature (chairs)
• Colorantic Foam Roller
• Small Microfibre Roller
• 55mm Colorantic Oval Natural Silk Brush
• Colorantic Oval Purple #6 Synthetic Bristles Brush
• Colorantic Snow White Small Brush
• Colorantic Top Coat Matte Varnish
• Colorantic Two-Grit Sanding Block
• Colorantic Tangerine Scented Granular Hand and Brush Soap
• Blue Multi-Purpose Paper Towels

Preparing the Furniture

I sprayed the cleaner and varnish remover on the table and chairs, I spread it on all surfaces using a paper towel and left it to act for 30 minutes.

After rinsing twice, I removed all residue. To scratch the surfaces, I used a sanding block.

Since the old varnish was oil-based, I applied the oil-based Grip-All primer using the microfibre roller as well as the 55 mm and oval #6 brushes. This operation allows you to make the transition from an old oil-based finish to a new water-based finish.

Now is the time to apply the colour.

Painting

I applied the colour, Cotton Ball, on the top of the table using the microfibre roller and I used the #6 oval brush for the legs.

I applied the colour Nature, to the chairs using the 55mm and oval #6 brushes.

I repeated these operations a second time.

Protection

Since this is furniture that will be used for meals, this is the varnish that I chose to protect the paint.

I used the foam roller and the Snow White brush for this operation.

The whiteness of the room to which I added magnificent vibrant shades already makes it a very pleasant place for relaxation.

This is only the beginning of the metamorphosis and seeing the current result, we are excited to continue our project.

For more inspiration, join the group: Trucs et Décos en tout genre