From a slopping drippy mess to an elegant Shabby Chic Furniture Makeover.

A client handed me two of these shapely but badly painted bedside tables for a Shabby Chic furniture makeover, asking me to fix them for her. She wanted them distressed but not too rough and shabby. I am known for “gentle” Shabby Chic furniture makeovers; sensitive not to sand through too much and selecting the areas for a certain look.

Shabby Chic is a term used to describe old, heavily painted and distressed furniture. The surface representative of years of built up paint and history. It is a nostalgic look, appealing to most decorators in lighter colours and whites.

While these bedsides could already be described as genuine Shabby Chic, they were needing a complete makeover and repair. This is how I went about it.

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The bedside tables had a lovely shape and nice carved legs suitable for a mature bedroom.

I assume previously used for a child’s room as they sported the imprint of big teddy bear stickers. The stickers had been removed but left the imprint you see here, painted over by someone.

There were thick drips and a mixture of paint used so it was a bit of a chore. It had to be done though.

As you can see it was a very slopping job overall including the bottom!

I removed the handles and filled the holes as I had a more feminine looked for them. I also had to fill a few random dents in the old girls. Some character is nice but I don’t like too much. It feels neglectful and messy if I leave them.

On a still day, I took them out onto the veranda for a big sanding session, along with some other projects needing the same.

I like to work in batches if I can and get the mess all dealt with at once. Less cleaning up means saved time in the long run.

I also had to do some fine-tuning on the cupboard doors as they didn’t close properly at all. I planned them until they closed well, allowing room for the paint layers too.

The drawers were jammed closed too so I had to knock them loose and refit them as well. Once sanded I gave them a good clean and set to work with paint.

For this Shabby Chic furniture makeover I used several coats of home-made white chalk paint and Rustoleum Horizon Blue inside.

These were a perfect combination for the dainty girls. I distressed them and sealed them before adding the new hardware ensuring everything opens and closed well – yes all good!

The crystal knobs added that tough more delicacy to the finish. My client isn’t a gold girl. She like the grey pallet and so the silver and clear knobs worked perfectly.

I forgot to take a photo of the bottom side but I always finish these neatly.

In my mind, there is nothing worth than a smiling client loading their furniture into their car or trailer and flipping it over to see a messy bum!

I joke on my Facebook page now and then, how we all like a nice bottom! There is nothing worse than a messy one -yuk!

The bedsides were finished to be simple but elegant and functional. It was a privilege to rescued them and know that they now service a family, once again creating history.
I wonder how many have ended up in land fill when they could have had a Shabby Chic furniture makeover and a new story to tell.

In any case, this pair will.

Naturally these are accounted for but I have some furniture available on my Furniture Store should you be looking to re-love some furniture with history.

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