Sea Glass Table Makeover

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In all my trips to the beach, I’ve never found a piece of sea glass.

But I have searched and I will continue to do so..

…because I love the idea of beach glass. I love that something once considered trash, like an old jar or bottle, can transform into something beautiful.

I love that something so fragile can survive the constant churning of the ocean’s waves, the harshness of the salt water and the turning of the tides In fact, it seems the more treacherous the journey, the more beautiful and interesting the resulting sea glass.

It could be a metaphor for life.

Or at the very least, a metaphor for the life of an old, unwanted piece of furniture.

Like this seen-better-days yard sale side table. Scratched, wobbly and stained an uninspiring dark brown, I still saw potential in those turned legs and that curvy shape.

After tightening up the legs and cleaning the table, I covered it with a basecoat of DecoArt Americana Chalky Finish Paint in Escape. (Here’s my affiliate link.)

Escape is such a bright and beachy color — it reminds me of a trip to the beach. It was the perfect color for this table since I was trying to mimic the gorgeous blues and aquas often found in sea glass.

I followed up with a thin, watered-down, streaky coat of white (Everlasting by DecoArt Americana Chalky Finish Paint). My goal was not full coverage; instead, I wanted the blue to show through.

To further that effect, I sanded lightly with a sanding block, revealing more of the blue. Next, I sealed the table with clear creme wax, then brushed on a light coat of dark creme wax, which I quickly wiped away and buffed.

I love the effect, especially all the different colors you see.

If I had a sea glass collection (and not just some pieces I bought at Pottery Barn!), my favorite part would be finding different colors and imagining what they’d been before the ocean transformed them.

I hope people who buy my furniture ponder similar things and imagine the journey the piece took before winding up in their home. I know I do when I bring antique and vintage furniture into my home.

If you like the little sea glass table, you might be interested in how I transformed an almost identical pair of side tables last fall. As always, there’s a story to that makeover.

Stenciled Demilune Tables