Fake French Country Furniture, The Coffee Table (Part 3 of 3)

I've been working hard on refinishing three of my existing pieces of furniture to look like expensive French Country.  Last time, I shared with you my cute little Sewing Table that is now a fantastic French Country Side Table and a plain old Side Board that's now a Wow Table!  If you missed it, please check out Part 1, The Side Table and Part 2, The Side Board! 


I discovered that I could forego those expensive Refinishing Waxes & Chalk Paint and use basic Flat White Paint along with Brown Shoe Polish & Clear Polyurethane to get the look I wanted for much less!  (Full Tutorial)  


Here's the final piece of furniture that had to be refinished, our Coffee Table:

We "inherited" it when my parents retired 13+ years ago and I will say that it is quite a nice table (I think they purchased it at Macy's waaay back).  Trouble is, this photo doesn't really show just how worn & dry the top wood was getting after years of daily Windexing that glass!  


Here is is after sanding, staining, painting, the shoe polish technique & sealing (full tutorial):

Quite a dramatic difference.  I like how the exact same hardware seems to match this piece much better now that it's been refinished.

Previously, the top display drawer had a black velvet inside which was getting pretty grody, so I replaced it with a piece of Painter's Drop Cloth that I picked up in Lowes for only $8.00!  If you are ever looking for a sturdy, neutral piece of fabric, consider picking up a drop cloth - for $8.00 I got a 9' x 12' piece like this one!  

Credit - Lowes

The drop cloth has a few seams, which I loved, so I made sure to make them visible in the drawer.  I simply glued it down with a little Fabric Tack.

And here's the finished piece which is really adding some brighness to my Living Room!

The Fake-It Yourself Breakdown:

Fake French Country Refinished Coffee Table, Side Board & End Table ($12.50 White Flat Paint, $1.00 Shoe Polish, $10.77 Polyurethane, $0.00 Rag, $8.00 Drop Cloth Fabric) 

Total Fake-It Cost: $32.27 for All Three Projects

Compare to Designer Refinishing Materials such as Annie Sloan's ($27.00 Chalk Paint, $12.65 Dark Wax, $31.76 Lacquer) 

Total Fake-It Savings: $47.14


Compare to purchasing Brand New Designer French Country Furniture ($3,000 minimum for all 3 pieces)


Total Fake-It Savings:  $2967.73
Linking Up at Tip Junkie, Today's Creative Blog, The Frugal Girls, Funky Junk Interiors and these other Great Parties!