Thrift Store Buffet Makeover

Don't you love when you find a great deal? There is no better place than thrift store shopping to find one; diamonds in the rough. I found a small buffet at a Good Will for $12 and was thrilled. Some people might think-' yum, no. I'm not buying that.' But, think of all the potential!

Here's the before shot:

Here's how I transformed the buffet table:
1. Lightly sand all surfaces.
2. Wipe it down. If the piece is especially smelly our musty smelling- bring it outside on a nice day and air it out. Then, douse a cloth with a vinegar and water mix and wipe it all down. I found vinegar to be a great way to help get rid of odors and clean surfaces.
3. Take off the hardware. You can also replace the knobs really easily if you need to. I spray painted the knobs gold and reused them. I spray painted them with this Krylon gold plate spray:

I wasn't sure if I could get those basket weave door-fronts off, but with a bit of prying they popped right out.

4. Prime it. For this table I used Zinzer oil based primer. This is the stinky stuff, but I found it's a great primer for adhering to laminate. Sometimes I use spray-paint primer - especially if it's difficult to get into the crevices and hard-to-reach nooks and crannies.
5. Paint. I chose Valspar's Peacock Blue in a Satin finish. I added a few tablespoons of Floetrol to the paint. Floetrol helps your painting go on smoother so you don't see brushstrokes (its essentially a thinning agent). This is especially important when using a true gloss finish. I did two coats of the paint. The Floetrol comes in this orange container (you can see it in this picture to the right).
6. Almost done... Once it's all dried you should protect your new beauty with either wax or Polyurathane. I did one coat of Poly in Satin for the table. Once its on and dried the Poly helps protect against scratches and the occasional 4-year-old.

Yes- sometimes I paint while my children watch a movie. (This is a picture of our old home in the basement.)

The lamps were also a thrift store find as well for $10 each. I spray painted them a cheery yellow. More about spray painting coming soon. Have you ever bought a piece of furniture with potential? I would love to hear what you did with it!