How to Make a Kitchen Table Shabby Chic

Coined by designer Rachel Ashwell in 1989, the term shabby chic refers to a decorating style that focuses on well-worn, comfortable furnishings and accessories. Defined by pastel colors, floral prints and vintage thrift store objects, shabby chic is a feminine style. Painted furniture is especially common in shabby chic rooms, but if you can’t find the perfect distressed and worn painted piece, it’s easy to transform your existing furniture into shabby chic style. Country, cottage and farmhouse style pieces work best for this type of project, as the soft lines and simple styling evoke the shabby chic style more than modern pieces.

Sandpaper
Cloth
Paint brushes
Dark paint
Crackle or weathering medium
Paint in white or a pastel shade
Wire brush
Glaze

Instructions

- 1
  Prepare the table for painting by roughing the surface and legs with sandpaper. Remove the dust and debris with a soft cloth.
- 2
  Paint the table with a dark shade of paint, such as chocolate brown. This is the color that will show through when you distress the table; if you want the bare wood or old paint to show through, skip this step.
- 3
  Add a layer of crackle or weathering medium to the table using a brush. Available in craft and hobby stores, crackle medium is a clear, paint-like substance that dries to a subtly cracked, weathered looking appearance. Allow to dry.
- 4
  Paint over the crackle medium with a coat of white or pastel blue, green or yellow paint, according to your decor. For an authentic aged appearance, use an antique white or cream paint. Allow the paint to dry.
- 5
  Distress the parts of the table that would normally wear with age, such as the edges, corners and around the table legs, using sandpaper or a metal brush. Go slowly and distress small areas at a time, until you are happy with the look.

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Tables