TRANSFORMED, from broken to beautiful
Yippee! It’s time for another break from all my writing and all your reading and get down to something fun. Today I’m sharing a cute table we found a few years back when we happened upon a junky little store in the Pacific Northwest. I loved her from the start. Every wobbly and cracked part of her.
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It can be difficult to put two stubborn people together and make a marriage work (strong willed would sound so much nicer than stubborn but let’s be real). Especially when you both thought the one you were marrying was nothing but wonderful and accommodating and perfect in every way. Okay, maybe you never thought he was perfect, but “purtin’ near,” as my dad would always say.
Everything is great in the beginning, until the day comes when you realize your spouse has some flaws, and you try to fix those flaws with all your might, but fail. Why? Because,
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It was almost amazing. So close. I’d cleaned up hubby’s treasured old radio cabinet, painted it the perfect color, added gold leaf highlights (because what isn’t amazing about gold leaf?), Rub ‘n Buf’d the hardware, replaced the yucky fabric that covered the speaker with fancy brass grating, and waxed and polished this sweet piece to perfection.
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There she was was, one among many in a jam packed antique mall. She’d been there a long, long time but today they’d put a new price on her in hopes of moving her out quickly to make room for better pieces. Many people came and walked around this petite lady, checking out her classic lines, only to walk away when they saw the raw signs of wear and the peeling veneer . . .
. . . until the one came, the one who was much like her. The one who chose her and took her home to give her a new life.
Many long days and nights were spent on her restoration, and in the process the lines began to blur between the life of the restorer and the one being restored as comparisons were made of their similarities. Peeling veneers were repaired, putty used to fill the larger cracks, and experiments with different colored paints were tried to see what she would become. No, this one was not meant to be a bold colored statement piece. Nor was she meant to be a sophisticated lacquered lady. This one’s past, it was determined, would be allowed to shine through the layers of paint that would eventually bring her to this soft and muted color. 
This petite one was solidly built by her original creator and as she is restored she becomes even stronger.
When the transformation is complete she looks different than before but her original character still shines through.
Her freshly cleaned and painted interior is carefully filled with treasures from generations past.
These treasures remind her of the values instilled within her by family members when she was young.
They also remind her of lessons learned from friends and acquaintances who intersected path along the way.
Of course she can’t help but recall lessons she learned through her own mistakes!
If you move in real close you’ll see this lady’s imperfections quite clearly . . .
. . . and the wear that came from living life long and full.
Life wounded this one deeply at times . . .
. . . but the pain that caused the visible scars is long past and nothing more than distant memory.
Mostly now she recalls the joys of her life. She has been blessed with much, MUCH joy!
See the layers of color representing childhood, young adulthood, motherhood, career, and now a sweet time of less responsibility but a passion to continue living life to the fullest! And always with the expectancy of, “What’s next?”
Though she was once closed and private, she doesn’t mind throwing her doors wide open now to share with others the pathway to becoming beautiful. Though it is at times frightening to her, and sometimes others don’t like what they see in her or what she has to share, she has been called to this purpose of giving back to others what she has so freely been given.
This one, she is different than those around her, and though she once detested her differences she is now at peace with who she is. The once shy girl has come out of her shell of insecurity. She laughs freely now and loves to make others laugh along with her. She believes that others can find the same freedom to be who they were created to be and loves to offer to let them borrow her hope until they can find their own. She is often heard to say,
Wait for the miracle! Click To Tweet
In reality, we are all different. Unique creations made to love and be loved by Father God. Fighting your way through life all alone can be hard. Sometimes it takes another person coming alongside to help point us in the direction God originally intended for us to go. God tells us that His way is easy and His burden is light. Won’t you place your life into the Master’s hands and let Him do the work of bringing you into complete restoration?
Take it from a little painted hutch,
There is no joy greater than to finally become what God originally intended us to be. Click To Tweet
I’d love to pray for those of you who are struggling in any way. Simply leave your prayer request in the comment section. I moderate all of my comments so if you’d like your prayer to be private please let me know.
Blessings to you dear ones,
TheDIYShowoff, LifeOnLakeshoreDrive, NiftyThriftyThings, SilverPenniesSundays, SundaysAtHome
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“I’m your favorite kid, right mom?”
I smile in amusement.
“Come on, admit it. You know I’m your favorite.”
The question my youngest daughter used to love to pressure me to answer . . . and maybe . . . even as an adult . . . still does from time-to-time.
Don’t we all want to be someone’s favorite? I know I do!
Only a mom can understand how there can be more than one favorite . . . or God.
Today I’m sharing the Drop Leaf Table Turned Potting Bench that I painted a couple of summers ago but never got around to sharing here with you. Of all of the furniture pieces I’ve painted I’d have to say that this shabby little potting bench is one of my favorites!
No, I don’t have a full “before” picture (my bad) but you all know what a drop leaf table looks like anyway, right? This was a fairly large one so I knew it would have plenty of work space as a potting bench. But enough talk already, let’s get started with the tutorial. If you want to skip the tutorial you can scroll right to the end for all the pretty pictures of my sweet potting bench!
I began by unscrewing the hinges from one of the leaves while leaving the other side of the hinge connected to the table. Then I used my saw to remove the brace that would no longer be needed to hold the leaf in the “up” position.
Next I reattached the hinges to the TOP of the table so the leaf would stand in a vertical position. This is front of the table . . .
. . . and this is the back (where the hinges used to be attached).
With a piece of scrap wood and some store bought legs I added a little shelf to my table, attaching it with screws.
Next was the addition of this old enamelware piece that I thought would make a great dry sink for potting.
After tracing the hole size I would need I drilled a few big holes to get my jigsaw started and went to work cutting. For any of you fine crafters of wood, you will notice that I am NOT! I like the construction part to be done quickly so I can get on with the painting. So the hole looks a bit ugly here but it will be okay once I put the dry sink in!
I worked on this project out on my deck overlooking the lake (this is the house where we used to live in Washington State) and found inspiration from the many colors of summer. I began with my base color . . .
. . . layered on a second color . . .
. . . and then a third!
. . . all to begin the process of sanding it back so the layers of color and bare wood would show through!
That’s Cozy lounging while I’m hard at work.
On to the stripes which I painted from samples of these lovely lakeside colors!
Taping, painting, drying, taping, painting, drying, . . . etc.
More sanding to distress my piece heavily and I was ready for the addition of lettering. A tutorial for transferring typography can be found right HERE.
Once all the painting was complete I chose to deepen my colors using an Early American colored wood stain . . .
. . . and after the recommended drying time I applied three coats of spar varnish so my potting bench would stand up to Pacific Northwest weather.
As you can see I added tool hangers using faucet valves. These were around $3-4 each from the hardware store but I’ve since found some antique valves which I have stashed for the next potting bench.
When I look at pictures of this little potting bench it makes me feel happy as it brings back fond memories of summer on the lake. I took this potting bench to the Queen Bee French Flea market where I ended up selling it to one of my very dearest friends!
By the way, the Queen Bee French Flea is coming up again this August.
Mark your calendars if you live in the area because IT. Is. Going. To. Be. Fantastic!
I hope my potting bench brought a smile to your face and reminded those of you still feelin’ the cold that Spring is right around the corner! Love you guys and I hope you know that you are ALL my favorites!
Blessings,
