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A Thoughtful Place

A Thoughtful Place is a Tennessee based lifestyle blog about design, fashion, gatherings and the occasional from the heart post.

Wayfair DIY Challenge

October 30, 2012 by Courtney 29 Comments

I was recently asked to take part in the Wayfair DIY Challenge. Wayfair has anything you could ever dream of for the home.  Of three different items, I chose the Furinno Espresso Living Coffee Table and was asked to transform it with my own style. We have a bonus room that serves many purposes. It is part playroom and part family hangout space. We have never had a coffee table in the room but now that our kiddos are getting older, the time has come! I ended up creating a reversible coffee table. One side boasts stripes for when we entertain and watch movies and the other side sports a checker board for chess & checkers. And get cozy as this post is anything but short! reversible table a thoughtful place ……………………… the before …………………………. the after reversible table a thoughtful place   …………………….. the DIY how-to The first step was buying trim and a piece of plywood from the hardware store. I measured the top of the table and had the 1/4 inch plywood cut to those exact dimensions. IMG_9713 I tend to stay away from power tools so I used this trusty box to cut the trim. That’s about all I can handle! IMG_9712 Whitecap Gray {Pantone} was the perfect taupe color to paint the trim. I wanted the trim. Two coats did the trick. I painted the large piece of wood white on both sides {two coats} so that I would have a fresh white basecoat from which to work. IMG_9718 I have an abnormal fear of nailguns so my husband nailed the trim to the sides of the table for me. I made sure the trim was raised higher than the table {just the amount of the wood piece so that everything would be flush once together}. IMG_9826   IMG_9830   To create the stripes, I  measured out even spaces and taped them off. I gave the stripes two coats of paint using the Pantone color { Whitecap Gray }. I really like this paint for projects. After the second coat of paint, I peeled the tape off immediately to ensure clean lines. IMG_9803   I wanted to keep some of the table in the dark espresso finish as it matches the  Expedits we have in the room. But to add some character to the shelf, I had a piece of acrylic cut to the exact proportions. I then used leftover fabric I had to place under the acrylic. IMG_0028   To eliminate raw edges, I measured 1/2 inch larger on each side and then ironed over the hem and used iron on fuse tape. That stuff is so amazing for projects like this. photo (85) photo (84)   I like the print that pops through and love that we can set anything down there and it won’t hurt the table. reversible table a thoughtful place and another look at the before version of the table IMG_9831   And I chose stripes so they would mimic the wall treatment I have behind the couch. I chose to keep the baskets as they were since the khaki color ties in so nicely with the room.   reversible table a thoughtful place reversible table a thoughtful place reversible table a thoughtful place reversible table a thoughtful placeIMG_0049   When it is time to flip over the table you simply push your finger through a hole I drilled in the top of the table. By doing so, it pops the striped top up and you can flip it over to reveal the game table side. holearrow   …………………………… ta- da! reversible table a thoughtful place I gave both sides of the table three coats of poly-acrylic. The drying time in between coats on that is two hours so it was a long {but easy} process. I figure it will payoff as it is easy to wipe down and will protect the paint job. reversible table a thoughtful place   To make the checkerboard, I was pretty old school about it. I marked off an area that was 16 inches by 16 inches. This allows for a board with 64 squares { 8 x 8 } all measuring two inches. There is painter’s tape that is exactly 2” that I didn’t stumble upon in my garage until it was too late. That would have made the process a piece of cake. So after drawing the grid, you tape off half the squares to paint them. I peeled the tape off as soon as I gave it a second coat. Simple craft paint is all that I used. IMG_9805 I picked up a stencil from a local craft store to add detail to each side of the board. I taped it down and used two coats of yellow craft paint. Each coat was very light so as not to bleed under the stencil.   IMG_9806   Once the squares were done, I taped off a very tiny line around the entire checkerboard to define the space. This allowed me to keep half of the squares white. I painted the trim around the board in yellow. reversible table a thoughtful place reversible table a thoughtful placereversible table a thoughtful place reversible table a thoughtful placereversible table a thoughtful place   And here is one last look of it with the striped side of the table showing. The kids are learning to play chess from their daddy. I have no clue how to play so I am sure these pieces are not where they are supposed to be! I will learn some day {in my free time!}. reversible table a thoughtful place   I am thankful to Wayfair for asking me to participate in this DIY challenge because we are now enjoying our new coffee/game table!  You can follow Wayfair on Pinterest and Facebook to see more of their products! …………………….. {I was compensated by Wayfair in the form of a gift card from Giftcards.com to purchase the supplies for this project. All opinions are 100% my own. }

Filed Under: before and after, bonus room, decorating, Do it yourself, furniture, Living Room, Uncategorized

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Comments

  1. Chic Coastal Living says

    October 30, 2012 at 9:53 am

    WOW! That's a pretty awesome DIY project!! Love it!

    Reply
  2. modern jane says

    October 30, 2012 at 9:58 am

    Wow! You definitely rose to the challenge! It looks so much better and how fun to flip it around and have a game to play! Good job!

    Reply
  3. Leanne Leeper says

    October 30, 2012 at 11:55 am

    Very creative! Where do you get these ideas?!

    Reply
  4. Lisa @ Before Meets After says

    October 30, 2012 at 12:44 pm

    This looks amazing! I love how you were able to make the table multi-functional! I had fun participating in the challenge as well! I can't wait to see all the other projects.

    Reply
  5. Chris @ Berry Freckles says

    October 30, 2012 at 1:16 pm

    Amazing! I love the paint job and the reversibility…works so perfectly in your playroom!

    Reply
  6. carrie says

    October 30, 2012 at 1:31 pm

    That is such a fun project! So you mind giving us the budget breakdown? I'd love to know if this was feasible for me to do.

    Reply
  7. Jennifer {The Chronicles of Home} says

    October 30, 2012 at 1:35 pm

    The entire thing looks so great but I'm especially loving the game side. Great idea!

    Reply
  8. Danielle Oakey Interiors says

    October 30, 2012 at 2:40 pm

    Wow, what an awesome project! You killed it and I love how it doubles as a game table!

    Reply
  9. Carmel @ Our Fifth House says

    October 30, 2012 at 2:51 pm

    This is seriously amazing girl!

    Reply
  10. Domesticable says

    October 30, 2012 at 3:12 pm

    Way to go. This looks amazing! Who knew there was a board game under there.

    Lura
    x

    Reply
  11. Anna says

    October 30, 2012 at 3:27 pm

    Amazing!

    Anna

    Reply
  12. Katherine Martin says

    October 30, 2012 at 3:28 pm

    Love the versatility of the table! Good job!

    Reply
  13. Michaela says

    October 30, 2012 at 3:48 pm

    Are you serious, C?! You always hit it out of the park. This is great. Stylish, fun and of course I love that you did it yourself (but it sure doesn't look like a "craft project"!)

    Reply
  14. René says

    October 30, 2012 at 4:02 pm

    You did such a great job with this! Fingers crossed that I finish mine today – YIKES!

    Reply
  15. Allison says

    October 30, 2012 at 4:31 pm

    Fabulous and fun Courtney! Great table. I love that your kids are learning to play chess, too. I could never sit still long enough to learn when I was young. I still need to learn how to play!

    Reply
  16. Maria Morley says

    October 30, 2012 at 5:03 pm

    What a great idea! I seriously don't think I ever would have thought to have the table be double-sided for different purposes. Way to go!! 🙂

    Reply
  17. iheartorganizing says

    October 30, 2012 at 6:34 pm

    Now THAT is an incredible idea! I love the versatility and that it is a chic table by day, game table by night! Genius my friend! And of course, it is styled beautifully!

    xo!
    Jen

    Reply
  18. Courtney @it'sPrettyCheap says

    October 30, 2012 at 8:21 pm

    i love this idea of making the coffee table a game table! i might just have to do something like this…thanks for the idea! 🙂

    Reply
  19. Ashley@AttemptsAtDomestication says

    October 31, 2012 at 12:07 am

    I absolutely love the table! That is so cute and clever! Great job! 🙂

    Reply
  20. Kathy says

    October 31, 2012 at 3:57 am

    Amazing! I love it. Quick question.. how does the table flip to the other side? I don't see the hole you drilled on top (on the finished table).

    Reply
  21. natasha {schue love} says

    October 31, 2012 at 3:40 pm

    Oh my goodness…you're SO creative!! The coffee table looks 1000x better now!! And much more functional too!

    Reply
  22. {Hi Sugarplum!} says

    October 31, 2012 at 5:15 pm

    Daaaaang girl, that is a lot of work! great job, and so fun to have a game table top!!! I'm impressed you even own a nail gun, I think I need one. for John to use. 😉

    Reply
  23. Megan says

    November 1, 2012 at 1:53 am

    Wow! That came out fantastic! I especially love that it's a game board too- totally genius! It looks 100 times better than the original.

    Reply
  24. Tammigirl says

    November 1, 2012 at 4:59 pm

    You did a great job on that little table! You've inspired me to do something with the big, heavy, old table we have in the basement living area.

    Reply
  25. Michelle @ Ten June says

    November 2, 2012 at 10:08 pm

    LOVE what you did with the game board. Smart cookie! It looks a million times better than the original.

    Reply
  26. Cristin {Simplified Bee} says

    November 6, 2012 at 6:57 pm

    Such a clever idea! Just pinned it 🙂

    xo
    cristin

    Reply
  27. Chris says

    November 7, 2012 at 1:16 pm

    I am just catching up on blog reading, and I have so much to say! First of all, you look stunning in your Chicago pictures! Perfect outfits! 🙂 Secondly, I l-o-v-e this table!! What a fun idea! You took the challenge to a whole other level, and it looks incredible! Good job!

    Reply
  28. Vivek Sharma says

    December 14, 2012 at 10:00 am

    Way fair diy challenge is shown on the post here. Read to know more

    Bean Bags

    Reply
  29. The Domesticated Wolf says

    January 20, 2013 at 5:14 pm

    I am a bit delayed on this…but WOW!! So beautiful!! Great job.

    Reply

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