New Idea for a Coffee Table

Barbara Watford
by Barbara Watford
How do you take an ordinary estate sale coffee table and make it into an up-to-date gotta have coffee table? All it takes is a little vision, spray paint, and some material, and ta-dah...a one of a kind gotta have coffee table!
We bought a Queen Anne coffee table at an estate sale for $25. It was in good shape...a few scratches here and there, but overall it was very solid.
Since we were purchasing this coffee table for my daughter who is a senior in college, I started thinking...my husband gets worried when I say, "I've been thinking." How about we do something a little different? How about we paint it and recover it? I've never done it before, but figured, how hard can it be? So I researched ideas on how to upholster coffee tables, and got to work.
First, I sprayed the coffee table with Rust-oleum primer because I didn't want to sand it. Then, I sprayed it with Rust-oleum grey gloss paint. I loved it! The table had so much detail, and the color just made the detailing pop!
I had to figure out how to cover the top. Since we don't have a fabric store that is closer than 45 miles, I had to improvise. I went to my local department store and found seat cushions 1' thick (set of 4), and I purchased 2 packages. My table was 36"x36", so I knew I would have to cut a few seat cushions to ensure I covered the top of the table.
I used this wonderful spray adhesive...a little goes a long way!
As you can see I covered then entire top of the table making sure I didn't leave any gaps. It has to be a solid surface across the top because it was going to be a coffee table. On the side of the table there were some decorative curves, but I had to fill those in to have a square area to cover. So, I cut a 4" piece of foam and glued it in the curve of the table.
I covered the top of the table with quilting batting.
I pulled it tight and stapled everything under the "lip" of the table.
Now, it was time for the fabric. Be sure you iron your fabric first...get all of the creases and wrinkles out! Pull tight and staple. I started in the middle on one side, and then did the same on the opposite side. I save the corners for last. I cut off any excess material on the corner, tucked the sides in, folded and stapled...like wrapping a present!
There you have it...an up-to-date upholstered coffee table that looks modern! My daughter loved it (she picked out the material), and it will look great in her new apartment!
Frequently asked questions
Have a question about this project?
  1 question
  • Mary Mary on Jun 19, 2016
    Great job! Old piece of furniture got a new life!
Comments
Join the conversation
2 of 5 comments
Next