Maria's table and decorations - before

Maria's table and decorations - after

Our new guest nester, Maria Romvari, transformed this corner of her house for her Hungarian blog A Hoover-gáton is túl, and she’s sharing her tutorial with us! Maria used ordinary thrift store items—side table, vase, and mismatched frames—totaling $10.67 to create this stunning vignette. Another $17.75 spent on paint, primer, and a brush bring the total to less than $30. Add some of her own photos and candle holders, and she was ready to start the transformation. Maria loves the clean, fresh look of white (a girl after my own heart!), but her husband wasn’t keen on the idea (he said white reminds him of hospitals), so he suggested staining the tabletop. It all came together beautifully, don’t you think?

Side table

Supplies and tools

  • latex paint (Maria used Olympic Dogwood Blossom [D20-1])
  • primer
  • wood stain (Maria used gunstock colored stain)
  • satin polyurethane
  • newspaper or drop cloth
  • fine sandpaper
  • paint brush
  • screwdriver
  • mineral spirits (needed to clean polyurethane off paint bush)

Disassemble the table

1. Disassemble the table. Lightly sand the base and legs.

Apply primer to the base and legs

2. Cover your work surface, then apply two coats of primer to the base and legs. Maria’s husband shared this tip that made painting the legs easier: Hammer a nail into the bottom of each leg so you can hold and spin the legs without touching the fresh paint. Great idea! Let the primer dry, then apply one to two coats of paint. Let dry between coats. When finished, let dry overnight.

Tabletop - before

3. Sand the tabletop smooth. Again, protect your work surface, then apply two to three coats of stain. Let dry and lightly sand between coats.

DIY varnished tabletop

4. Apply two to three coats of polyurethane. Let dry and lightly sand between coats. Let dry overnight, then reassemble the table.

Frames

DIY Frames - after

Supplies

  • latex paint (Maria used Olympic Dogwood Blossom [D20-1])
  • primer
  • newspaper or drop cloth

Paint picture frames

1. Disassemble the picture frames. Protect your work surface, then apply two coats of primer. Let dry after each coat. Apply one to two coats of paint. Let dry between coats. Reassemble the frames, add mats and art or photos as desired. Don’t forget to clean the glass!

Vase

Painted vase - after

Supplies and tools

  • spray paint (Maria used a vanilla white shade from Michaels)
  • masking tape
  • newspaper

Masking the vase

1. Slice masking tape into various widths (or purchase tape in various widths) and tape around the vase in your desired pattern. Protect your work surface with newspaper, then spray with spray paint. Let dry.

Candle holders

Candle Holders - after

Supplies and tools

  • frosted glass spray paint
  • newspaper
  • votives/tealights

Clean candle holders

1. Clean and dry your glass candle holders. Cover your work surface with newspaper, then spray with frosted spray paint. Let dry.

Thanks, Maria! You can find her original post here.

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