Conference Table Makeover

Tommie's office space at new job recently changed and one of his tasks was to help makeover the room, which, of course, turned into me also helping with the room makeover. Luckily, Tommie and I both like us some HGTV real-life action.

The new office space, which was the old computer lab inside a Durham private school, is shared by four staff members. Among other new items, Tommie chose these L-shape desks from Office Depot for each corner of the room.

The group also wanted a conference table in the middle of the room where they could converge. With a small budget in mind, Tommie and his boss found this dated dinging room table at the Habitat for Humanity Store in Durham for $75, along with the black chairs you will see in the "after" photos for $3 a pop.

The table had some knicks and other eye-sores but it had sturdy bones and plenty of space. So, the boys bought the table and told me to fix it, woman. Not really, they asked me politely what I could do with it and I made something up like I usually do.

Since the organization is a young, education-based non-profit, we went for a bold change, incorporating the group's colors (blue and white) with part of their logo (the "U").

Like most DIY projects I start, I had no idea what I was doing. After giving the wood and laminate surface a little sanding down, we coated it with Zinsser Cover Stain Primer which I read worked on laminate.

Then we applied a really good Valspar semi-gloss white paint to the base and the legs, even painting over the rusted brass "details." The top got a few coats of Olympia's premium semi-gloss, low VOC paint in Brilliant Blue. 

The logo was created by first tracing the outline of a trash can lid to get an even circle, then putting tiny pieces of painter's tape around it. I also used painter's tape to create the "U" inside the circle.

After applying three layers over consecutive weeks, the finished product got a couple light coats of Briwax clear finishing wax to make it seal and shine.

The U isn't perfectly even, and the surface of the table shows some bumps and imperfections, but we'll just call those "marks of character" and enjoy the end result as it is--bright, fresh, and vibrant.