french gray

One of my absolute favorite things about refinishing furniture is transforming something older, perhaps a little unloved, into something beautiful and timeless.  While the prep work is never fun, it’s worth the time, effort and elbow grease, to give an old, ugly piece new life.  This oak dining table was no exception.  When I first picked it up, it looked like this:

But after some sanding, two light coats of primer, a coat of black paint, some French Gray paint, some light distressing and some subtle drybrushing, it now looks like this:

I custom-mixed my own paint that I had leftover from previous projects until I had the perfect shade of French gray.  After two light coats, I lightly sanded and distressed the edges, then dry-brushed some Wickham Gray by Benjamin Moore overtop.  I intentionally went super fine on the layers to highlight the grain and the curves of the wood, ultimately going for a slightly weathered look:

Do you have an old piece of furniture that is lacking in the style department?  Paint is the quickest, easiest and inexpensive way to transform your furniture into something beautiful.  The best part?  If you mess up, you can always sand it down and start over!