Faux Plank Table..embrace the Imperfections

by Shabby Paints

Embracing ImperfectionsFaux Plank Table
I thought I’d share a little faux tip I did recently. I’m sure I’m not the only junker that runs across things that seem beyond repair. But with a little redneck ingenuity and paint someones trash can become a family treasure.
This was about embracing imperfections. I spotted this on the side of the road a year ago and it now has some history that involves my dad, the cops, and a big fat lie.. You can read that story here (http://shab2fab.com/stained-top-painted-legs/) if your curious about my families need to prank Any who me and the hubs worked hard on getting it back together as best we could. Screwing the boards together and adding boards underneath to have something to screw to and then pull as tight as humanly possible. Getting both sides to match up and be perfectly level after time in the rain was never going to happen for us. I had originally did an onyx stain and poly and it was fine but it amplified the imperfections and I didn’t love it.
I “accidentally” went crazy with a razor blade cutting vinyl and it didn’t help the already tattered table. So I decided it needed to look nice since it is in the middle of my kitchen while my dining room acts as my office.
One side of the top is tighter than the other so when I paint it you can see the gaps which is fine but it wasn't consistent and I really didn’t have the time to fill and repair.
I had 3 hours before my son was going to be home and I wanted to have a place to sit and eat dinner like normal people. I painted right over the onyx stain and poly with White Ice Chalked Paint, two coats, once dry I mimicked the gaps across the table with sandpaper. The key is to start light not try and be perfect but random..like it had spent years aging beach side in the salt air.
This can make any boring piece of furniture look more fun. I added some black reVAX for age and a coat of sheer VAX for protection..using a damp foam sponge. I really like it, doesn’t work in my kitchen but will look great in my studio Paint Safe!