One In & One Out

table

spongebob squarepants end table

This last weekend I finally had time to bring in my SpongeBob end table from out on the deck where I had lacquered it.   I had sprayed it down and let it sit for several days since the can of lacquer said not to use it for 4 days and it was going to be sunny all week.   I never used a paint sprayer and it turned out to be quite the learning experience.  The spraying was fine, however, the wind liked to blow up the tarp I had put down on the deck.  Even with it being weighted down it got loose and stuck to the legs of the table.  Ugh!  So the backside is not as great, but who cares – it’s the backside after all.

finn and jake coffee table

I brought SpongeBob in and took the coffee table out.  Again, I lugged out the sprayer and got to lacquering the table.    Then, I ran out around the second or third coat, and I didn’t feel the coverage was great.  The wind was blowing a lot of the spray away and this table is going to get plenty of use, so I wanted to make sure it was coated well.

This time, I got the same brand of lacquer but in aerosol form.   Easier right?   Nope.  When I came back the aerosol coats were all spotty (the picture was taken before this point).  Some parts glossy some parts satin.   It was supposed to be semi-gloss, so if by semi-gloss they meant some parts glossy and some parts satin then I guess they were right.   So I gave it another coat … how many coats was this going to take???   When I returned it was still spotty.

It’s staying out there and not coming in until it understands why it’s bad!

… or until I decide what to do about it.    I think I may just go get some gloss lacquer and go over the top where it’s spotty.   I think gloss should hide it pretty well, but I haven’t decided yet.  I may just go get some Plexiglas and cover the top so I don’t have to worry about it getting dinged and scratched from usage.

Besides that, I still have to make the themed coasters and stuff to go on it.  It never ends.

Fun while it lasted

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For the past week or two, I’ve taken over the living room and started repainting all the tables.  They’re 14-year-old Ikea tables and have been dinged around pretty good from moving and general life.  After starting I realized I forgot how slow house paint dries and how horrible it covers anything but walls.   3 or 4 layers of each color on each table with 4 hours of drying time between layers while trying to do it all at night after work means I basically get one layer on a night and spend the rest of the night guarding it against animals while it dries…. so many many days of painting each table.

So far I’ve done the coffee table and an end table but with the weather lately, I haven’t even got a coat of lacquer on them.  I still have another end table to start and I am reconsidering doing the dining room table even after all the convincing I had to do to be allowed to do it.   If you know me, you probably have followed my progress on filling my house with artwork and how my house is slowly turning into a giant cartoon gallery.   So having a 30+-year-old dining room table really stands out amidst the paintings, stained glass, pottery, painted tables, etc.

Unfortunately, this weekend a guest is staying, so I had to clean up the living room and make it presentable.  Well, as presentable as possible considering I have covered all the freshly painted tables like a granny’s house so no one can screw them up until the final clear coats are on them.

The photo of the coffee table above was taken while it was still being painted. There is now a SpongeBob table and I have yet to decide what the other end table will be.  Nothing around this house really matches and there is no theme. I think I’d rather pick characters from other shows to keep the randomness happening.  Any ideas?

I’ll post pictures of them as I get closer to finishing all of them.