The French Menu Table and Chairs

This table was not a natural beauty. Far from it; her damp, cracked top took months to dry out and several ruthless applications of bleach to reach an appropriate level of cleanliness. Her wood clearly had seen better days. She was an excellent candidate for a make over, and I knew exactly what I wanted to do. First, I choose paint and colour; Annie Sloan Old White for the base and chairs, Duck Egg Blue for contrast.

This is one heavy table, and I stood it on its head and tackled the base first. A couple coats of Old White and some time to dry, then clear wax, followed by dark, strategically added to all of those lovely character lines the chalk paint enhances so well.

With new pretty paint on her four sturdy feet, it was time to stand her up and tackle that poor sad table top.

The top was sanded smoothish, the worst of the pock marks filled with wood and then treated to a rich layer of Briwax in a Teak finish. Briwax is a great product to use if you want to keep character, but restore a surface to a usable state. It is definitely not low VOC but with some good ventilation, it will certainly get the job done, and creates a surface that in addition to looking good, is very easy to maintain.

Around here, you can get it at Bloomfield Antiques in Bloomfield, New Brunswick.The table top is smooth, but textured. It’s an old timely look I really love. We so often try and replicate this with new furniture, but when you get the real thing, it adds weight and character to a newer space in a way nothing else really can. The Fixer Upper Crowd will know what I mean. Can you say Shiplap?!

What it was missing, however was table leaves. Who knows what happened to them, so off I went to see if I could find some replacements. As luck would have it, most large antique warehouse have a good “bits and pieces” section and sure enough I found just the thing. Now because these table leaves are not original to the table, they do not fit the line of the table, they just pop in the top. So, I decided to take advantage of that deficiency and turn it into an asset. I added a large stencil to the top of the now painted leaves and The French Menu Table came to life.

They are such fun to look at, that I decided to add sawtooth hangers to the back of each one so that in addition to adding additional space to the the table, they could continue to work as decorative art in the dining room or kitchen, rather than be tucked in some far off and forgotten space just the time you really need them. How handy is that! The leaves can be used as a double, just one or not at all. The choice fits the circumstance.

The chairs were also refurbished, stripped done to their wooden underclothes as it were, and given a nice new comfy cushion and cover. This lovely upholstery fabric was a find in a gorgeous shop in Destin, Florida and seemed to suit the character of the table perfectly. More waxing and finally these pieces are ready for a new home. The table and four chair can be purchased together or separately at Oromocto Galleria in Oromocto, New Brunswick. Check out their Facebook Page for details. Time for a new project!