The site company has been actively engaged in the restoration of tables and wooden products for more than 10 years. In our practice, we are guided by the extensive knowledge and honed skills of our carpentry and woodworking craftsmen. It will not be difficult for them to carry out full repairs in the workshop and correct minor cosmetic defects of furniture on site.
At your service:
- Restoration of the kitchen table. Key damage to kitchen counters involves contact with hot cookware. Burns can be easily eliminated both on solid wood and on products made of MDF and fiberboard.
- Restoration of the desk. Desk and office desks must be maintained in good condition, as this is a workplace. In desks, we are ready to replace the guides and drawers themselves, install new handles, magnetic locks and stops.
- Restoration of a coffee table. Coffee tables often suffer from the fact that they are lower than usual. Therefore, you cannot notice them and, if you trip over them, you can damage them. We carry out complete replacement of glass, artificial stone and wood countertops.
- Restoration of polished tables. Furniture with a mirror-polished surface requires careful care. Dust quickly settles on it, leaving traces of grease and wear. Our painters will help restore the original shine.
- Restoration of the round table. Compact round tables with one or more legs help save space in small kitchens, cafes, and are used as card tables. Radius tabletops are more expensive to manufacture, so restoration of a table of this shape is also justified financially.
- Restoration of the dining table. A family dinner or a holiday with friends cannot be imagined at a broken or scratched dining table. The restorers of our workshop are ready to completely renew the varnish and paint on the tabletop, restore loose legs and make individual parts anew.
- Restoration of an antique table. For homes with a rich history and private collections, periodic restoration of the table is something that goes without saying. Experienced restorers familiar with traditional furniture design and wood processing techniques will help preserve the original appearance of furniture.
People like to be surrounded by beautiful things at home. Over time, the interior of the premises loses its luster and goes out of fashion. Sometimes it is so difficult to get rid of a favorite item, because it has witnessed many pleasant events of the past, and not everyone can afford the purchase of new furniture. But you can solve the problem by restoring the old thing. In this case, you won’t have to throw it away, it will look fresh and creative in the room, and much less money will be spent on renovation than on buying modern furniture.
Recently, people prefer to restore old things with their own hands. This process is creative, interesting and not at all difficult. Housewives especially love to experiment with interior items such as coffee tables, because they can then be shown to guests with pleasure. There are many ways to restore these things. How to update a coffee table at home to turn it into a small masterpiece?
Furniture restoration
People embellish old interior items in different ways; they are updated by varnishing, painting, using decoupage techniques, covering them with leather, fabric, oilcloth, and tiling.
Thanks to certain techniques (craquelure, brushing), the tables are artificially aged, and things whose age does not exceed 10-15 years look like products half a century or a century ago, giving the premises a spirit of antiquity. Many restoration enthusiasts like to combine several techniques together, for example, they combine the decoupage technique with craquelure. By using these methods to restore a coffee table, the owners will receive an interesting thing that will fit into the design of the room in a new way.
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Updating the table using decoupage technique
Since we are talking about restoring a coffee table, the most original and beautiful solution would not be covering it with fabric or simply varnishing it, but updating it using the fashionable decoupage technique. Its essence lies in the fact that applications or entire paintings from special napkins, wallpaper, geographical maps and sheet music are glued onto the surface of the tabletop, and then the products are coated with varnish. To complete this work, you need to take care of the materials and tools needed for it in advance. In addition to the above-mentioned paper and napkins, these will be:
- screwdriver;
- sandpaper of 2 types (fine and coarse);
- primer;
- white acrylic paint;
- watercolor;
- acrylic outline;
- PVA glue;
- a can of furniture varnish;
- regular or curly scissors;
- flat brush (flat brush);
- watercolor brush.
Before updating, it would be better to disassemble the coffee table by separating the tabletop from the frame and unscrewing the legs. This must be done in order to remove old varnish or paint even from the most inaccessible places. Next, all parts of the table should be thoroughly sanded, first with coarse-grained and then fine-grained sandpaper; the front side of the tabletop is sanded especially carefully. After this, the piece of furniture is bolted back together. The next stage of work is to prime the coffee table using a flute and paint it with white acrylic paint. It is advisable to apply at least 2 layers of acrylic to all surfaces of the item, drying each layer well for 5 hours. Otherwise, the paint underneath the varnish may become stained or crack.
Preparing the surface for decoupage: 1. Selection of a pattern; 2. Leveling the surface; 3. Application of primer.
Then the aerosol varnish easily lays on the surface of the tabletop. After it dries, they begin the creative process itself - cutting out decorative elements from napkins. It is better to do this with special scissors. To cut a pattern from wallpaper or trim the edges of a geographical map, regular scissors will do.
When the applications are ready, they should be moistened with water. In accordance with the plan, the wet wipe elements are laid out on the surface of the tabletop, greased with PVA glue, and smoothed using a flat brush. But it’s better to soak a thick card or wallpaper pattern in water for a few minutes. In this case, the surface of the table in the areas for applications is lubricated with a mixture of PVA glue and water (ratio 1:1). When the glue has dried, you can paint on some parts of the appliqués with watercolors. To make the images look three-dimensional, use an acrylic outline. Finally, the entire surface of the table is covered alternately with two layers of acrylic varnish.
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Tabletop using craquelure technique
Along with decoupage, you can age it using a special craquelure varnish, which forms cracks on the tabletop and, thus, makes it “more ancient.” To work you will need:
Decoration process using craquelure technique: 1. Applying color to cracks; 2. Application of craquelure varnish; 3. Applying the main color.
- acrylic paint of two colors (brown and white);
- furniture varnish;
- tassels.
All stages: grinding and priming the surface, preparing applications, gluing them and final varnishing will be carried out as in the method described above. But in the middle of the work process, changes will occur. You will need to apply several coats of dark paint to the primed countertop and let it dry. The surface will need to be coated with craquelure varnish. You should not wait for it to dry completely; the varnish should remain sticky and only slightly harden. Then the tabletop is painted with white acrylic and dried. Within an hour, the product will begin to become covered with cracks, and dark paint will be visible through them. When the acrylic is completely dry, you will need to glue the appliqués onto the surface of the table and finally cover it with furniture varnish.
It is not uncommon for a favorite piece of furniture to lose its original appearance, and there is simply no financial means to buy a new one. In such cases, furniture restoration can help. Let's take a closer look at how to restore a table at home, what is important to take into account and what steps should not be skipped.
Methods
There are quite a lot of methods for restoring furniture, ranging from light “cosmetic” decor to a complete overhaul of the product. Restoring an old table with your own hands is not so difficult if it does not have any serious damage. In this case, it will be enough to sand and paint the old piece of furniture to make it shine in a completely new light.
Repairing glass tables at home can be more labor intensive, and also a very costly process. If the glass surface breaks, it may be necessary not only to repair it, but also to purchase a new one, since not every glass deformation can be eliminated by gluing and grinding.
The greatest scope for creativity opens up when restoring a wooden table. After all, various painting and patterning techniques, including the “decoupage” technique, are perfectly applied to furniture made from solid wood. It is worth noting that painting and various decorative techniques are most applicable to small tables. This can be used to decorate, for example, a small desk or a compact coffee table. But for the restoration of an oak folding model, additional resources may be needed. Since the table has a large continuous surface, finishing its parts with materials such as MDF and chipboard is quite acceptable. Securely secured and carefully processed, they will not only give the table a new life, but also give it a completely different appearance.
A plastic table can be restored using the same painting, but this can only be done if the piece of furniture does not have serious cracks. Plastic is a rather capricious material, and when exposed to high temperatures, the glued seam may fail, which will lead to a new breakdown.
Computer tables made from chipboard and laminated chipboard are often peeled off, which is why their appearance becomes sloppy and careless. To repair such models, special adhesive tapes and films that imitate a wooden surface are suitable.
The kitchen table-book must be reconstructed as carefully as possible, using exclusively environmentally friendly and hypoallergenic materials. Since the countertop quite often comes into contact with food, care must be taken to ensure that the materials used to finish its surface are not toxic or harmful to health. The same goes for the children's table.
Restoration of a polished dining table can be done by grinding the surface and applying a new layer of decorative varnish to it. This way the surface of the furniture attribute will again acquire a glossy shine.
Sometimes it may be necessary to increase the height of, for example, a dressing table if its legs break. In this case, special extensions or new legs of the required size are constructed from wood material. To update any model, you can use classic hand painting. This technique is also suitable for sliding tables that do not have any critical surface damage.
Materials and tools
The restoration process may require various materials and tools.
Let's take a closer look at their list and purpose:
- To restore tables with a wooden surface, you will definitely need a sanding machine or coarse sandpaper. Using these tools, you can make the surface smooth, removing all roughness;
- To give the surface a fresher look and a different color, you will need completely ordinary paint. It’s quite easy to find out which variety you can paint a table with, since the scope of application is almost always described on the packaging of any manufacturer;
- It is best to apply various patterns and ornaments with acrylic paint, since it is very durable and will stay on the surface of the furniture for a long time.
To repair any individual parts of the table, you may need various construction tools:
- For example, using a hammer, screws and simple nails, you can firmly secure the table legs;
- To attach panels made of plastic and MDF, you will need to acquire a special glue, which is also called liquid nails and is often used in repairs;
- To work with wooden parts, you need to have a small saw or jigsaw with you, with which you can cut the necessary part from a piece of solid wood.
We must not lose sight of various small details that greatly simplify the restoration process. So it’s better to have a large ruler or tape measure, a bright marker or pencil, construction tape, brushes to remove dust and sawdust, protective equipment and a damp cloth.
Upgrade process step by step
Repairing a piece of furniture at home entirely, in the form in which it is, is an almost impossible task, since many details require an individual approach. For example, it is better to remove the tabletop while finishing the remaining parts in order to protect it from causing even greater damage.
Do-it-yourself restoration of even the smallest table can become a very labor-intensive process if you approach the matter incorrectly, skipping important details and steps. It is for the timely completion of each stage of work that it is necessary to draw up an action plan.
Damage Inspection
Before starting restoration, it is necessary to carefully examine the front of the upcoming work. Very often there are products with serious damage, which cannot be dealt with only through cosmetic finishing. For example, if a table leg has fallen off, painting will not fix it.
The first step is to disassemble the table, if the model allows it, and carefully examine the surface of each part for serious damage. If there are none, you can proceed with further actions depending on the planned restoration work.
If the surface of the parts has fairly deep cuts, severe chips or serious damage, it will be necessary to take measures to eliminate them. If the damage cannot be easily repaired, you may have to resort to replacing some part of the furniture attribute.
Only after a thorough inspection and identification of all the “weak points” of a piece of furniture can you draw up a further action plan and proceed directly to the process of restoration work itself. Maintaining consistency is very important in this matter.
Grinding
In any repair process, after determining the “front of work,” the stage of cleaning and smoothing the surface follows. Restoring tables is no exception and, regardless of their types, polishing individual parts is an essential part of the entire process.
If you do not have a special device at hand for grinding the surface, you will need to use sandpaper. To remove the remains of the old surface, you will need a type with a coarse-grained surface.
If it is possible to use a belt machine for sanding surfaces, you should opt for it, as it will help speed up the process. But you should know that the machine is only suitable for processing spacious, flat surfaces, and small parts will still have to be processed manually.
If the coating has been completely removed and you just need to make the surface smooth, you should use fine-grained paper. This way, roughness will be smoothed out without damaging the surface. Under no circumstances should you sand the surface across the fibers, as they are quite damaged and scratches of varying depths are formed. Processing is carried out exclusively along the location of the fibers. It is also worth using a respirator or a special mask to avoid dust and small wood particles from entering the respiratory tract.
putty
As previously mentioned, if there is severe damage and deep scratches, it will be necessary to get rid of them. The simplest and most affordable method is putty. In addition, even the largest holes can be sealed with putty, so replacing the part may no longer be necessary.
It is necessary to use only special putty for wood, since the usual composition for other repair work is not suitable and will not adhere to the wooden surface.
If the surface of the product has only shallow cracks, you can use stain and then apply several layers of protective varnish. In this way, the fibrous structure of the wood elements will be preserved and beautifully designed.
After applying the putty and before applying the final coating, the surface must be thoroughly primed and sanded again. The primer will help degrease parts of the furniture attribute, and repeated sanding will smooth out the remaining unevenness.
Painting
The final and very important stage, which requires special attention, is the process of painting the surface. It is important not only to choose the right paint, but also to carefully apply it without various formations, lumps, irregularities and protect the freshly painted surface from small particles of wool, dust and hairs.
Dark shades are best applied in several thin layers. This way the paint will adhere better and the color will be more saturated.
To create the effect of antiquity and scuffs, the painted surface of the table will need to be sanded in certain places.
You should carefully select shades and apply the paint very carefully, since if you are dissatisfied with your work, it will be quite difficult to repaint the table; you will have to do all the labor-intensive work again, starting from the stage of grinding the surface.
To make the surface shine beautifully, you should treat the surface with a layer of varnish, and after it dries, with a protective layer. Most often, to protect the surface of furniture, various polishing compounds are used, as well as wax mixtures, which, when rubbed into the surface of the table, will give it a glossy shine and protect it from dirt and large accumulations of dust.
You can see how to update an old table in the following video.
Finishing and decoration
After painting or during the painting process, if desired, you can further decorate the surface of the table, giving it a lighter, more relaxed and informal look. Let's look at the most common and beautiful ways to decorate restored tables.
Do you have a favorite, convenient and comfortable kitchen table, but its appearance has not pleased you for a long time? Don't despair, but give him a second life. Restoring a kitchen table is an excellent solution to refresh the interior of your kitchen without parting with your favorite piece of furniture. Here are some tips on how to update your kitchen counter and save a lot of money.
Of course, if your table is hopelessly broken and cannot be repaired, all your efforts may not be justified. But most often, a correctly selected restoration method helps bring your favorite furniture back to life, changing it beyond recognition.
This is one of the most proven and easily accessible technologies that allows you to restore some furniture elements to their beautiful appearance and presentability. To update an old kitchen table you will need the following materials and tools:
- grinding machine with different attachments;
- mask, goggles and gloves;
- putty;
- putty knife;
- primer for wooden surfaces;
- brush for primer, varnish and paint;
- alkyd enamel paint of the required color;
- varnish or wax.
Now let's move on to the main stages of work.
Inspection of the table and identification of significant defects
At this stage, inspect the integrity of the table legs and fasteners, check whether the tabletop has defects or damage. If you find that the table is loose, try tightening the connecting bolts. If such an action does not lead to significant changes, you will have to completely disassemble the table, sand down the irregularities and gaps, grooves and joints, apply glue for greater reliability and fix the glued parts with self-tapping screws.
If the table legs are completely out of order and repair is impossible, you can completely replace them with more modern ones, for example, metal or carved, wooden - it all depends on the interior design of your kitchen and the chosen style. Broken fasteners must also be replaced. Keep in mind that remodeling a table is not only about changing the appearance, but also about ensuring the reliability of the structure. Don't forget about this.
Removing old coating
Next you have to remove the old coating - varnish or paint. Put on your mask and safety glasses and use your sander to start sanding. You can use coarse and medium-grain sandpaper, but then you need to prepare yourself for long and labor-intensive work - removing paint or varnish in this way is neither easy nor quick. It is better to perform this work outdoors or in a well-ventilated area. If you still decide to sand the table in the kitchen, open the windows completely and cover the floor and all the furniture around you with cloth or paper.
Treatment of cracks and chips
After sanding, you need to clean the old kitchen table from dust and inspect the countertop for defects. All chips and cracks must be filled with putty, and after the putty has dried, the entire surface must be sanded again. The fact is that even the most minor defects will be clearly visible after painting. After much effort, the resulting cleaned kitchen table surface will be ideal for creations and new designs.
Priming the table surface
After sanding the table top and other table elements, you need to degrease everything, and after drying, apply a primer mixture. This step should never be skipped, otherwise the paintwork will be uneven and short-lived. The primer mixture is applied in two layers, each layer must dry thoroughly before applying the next. After the second layer has dried, which will take about 24 hours, you need to sand the already primed surfaces again.
Painting the kitchen table
This is perhaps the most enjoyable stage of work in restoring a kitchen table with your own hands, without dirt and dust. Each stroke of the brush takes you one step closer to the desired result. The paint must be applied in two layers, and the dark color in three. The last, finishing layer must be given 3-4 days to dry completely.
Application of protective coating
The final stage of work is the uniform application of protective varnish in 2-3 thin layers. After each layer has dried (about 4 hours) and before applying the next, you should lightly sand the surface with fine-grit sandpaper. Instead of varnish, you can use wax as a protective coating - it will make the countertop matte or it can be rubbed until shiny. The first layer of wax is rubbed into the wood using a soft cotton cloth, and after drying, the second layer is applied with light circular movements. This can be repeated several more times within one day. This completes the kitchen table renovation. Leave the product for one week and only after this time will it be ready for full use.
Restoring a tabletop using decorative tiles
Next we will look at how to restore a kitchen table with your own hands using ceramic tiles or mosaics. Decorative tiles are one of the most popular materials used for covering the surfaces of kitchen units. The choice of many people is obvious - in addition to having a variety of textures and colors, tiles are distinguished by their reliability and durability. In addition, it is very convenient to maintain, easy to clean and resistant to high temperatures.
In order to restore a kitchen table using ceramic tiles, you need to select a tile or mosaic that matches the style of your kitchen, purchase a special tile adhesive, grout for the joints and an edge profile.
Surface preparation follows the same principle as for painting. After completing the preparatory work, glue is applied to the surface of the countertop using a notched trowel, which will allow the tile to be firmly and securely fixed.
Tile elements must be laid out in a pre-thought-out composition. The distance between the tiles is adjusted using special plastic crosses. When all the tiles are laid out and pressed tightly to the table surface, and the glue is completely dry, you need to prepare the grout mixture and fill the seams between the tiles with it.
In order for the look of the restored table to be complete, you should also decorate the sides of the tabletop. For this purpose, special edge profiles are used, which are matched to the tone or style of the selected tile. Thus, by completing this repair, which is easily accessible to every home craftsman, your furniture will come to life again and give your kitchen design originality and freshness.
Decoupage kitchen table top
Let's consider another popular way to update furniture - decoupage. This modern decorative technique allows you to quickly and, most importantly, on a budget transform the table, making it a bright accent of your kitchen.
To restore a table using decoupage, in addition to the materials and tools needed to clean the table from old surfaces, sand it and prime it, you will need decoupage napkins, a container of water, glue, plastic film, matte or semi-matte varnish.
Repairing a countertop using decoupage begins after it has been primed and sanded or after it has been coated with paint or varnish. First, using a pencil, you need to make markings, marking the locations of the images. Next, place the cut out paper image face down in a container of water. After 30 seconds, the image is removed and placed on plastic film, according to the same principle - face down, and all excess paper surfaces are removed.
The prepared picture is smeared with glue and attached to the prepared tabletop. In this case, using a file you need to carefully smooth out the picture and only then remove it. If desired, the surface of the pictures can be decorated with paints, and finally the resulting image should be coated with acrylic varnish and allowed to dry thoroughly. This completes the renovation of the kitchen surface. After three days, your new exclusive table will be ready for full use.
Remember when I told you how I dreamed of a round table? And how long did you think and search? And then the “old underframe” almost found me on its own. Beautiful, about the middle of the last century.
And now, a month later, the table is ready, it has taken its rightful place :) and makes us happy :)
And today I will show you how the restoration process went.
Let's prepare the tools. I have a small sanding machine, plus separate sheets of sandpaper of different sizes for manual work. All kinds of brushes, napkins, etc. :).
Let me remind you how I got the under-table. It was purchased at an auction “hammer”.
First, I sanded off all the old coating - it was old varnish and it (surprisingly) responded well to sanding.
I processed large surfaces with a machine, and all round parts, depressions, and small parts by hand.
First with coarse sandpaper, then finer sandpaper. and then very small.
The work took about three evenings :). As a result, I got this beauty.
After the entire underframe was sanded, I carefully vacuumed it, wiped it with a damp cloth, dried it well and once again checked the smoothness and uniformity of the entire surface. Having made sure that it was ready for finishing, I started working :).
Prepared the coating and brush. In my choice of coating this time I settled on “JOHNSTONE`S Satin Woodstain Protective Semi-Matte Coating”.
Before starting work, I filtered the composition through nylon into a clean disposable bowl. To clean the brush, I prepared a solvent in a separate jar. I also kept a cloth soaked in solvent on hand so that if I made a mistake, I could quickly correct it.
She laid a large sheet of covering material on the floor. She turned the table upside down. And she began to carefully apply the “paint.”
There is no need to rush during the coloring process. You can't put too much paint on your brush. Paint or varnish should not flow over the product, otherwise there will be smudges, which will then dry out and ruin the product.
It is necessary to coat at least 2 times with a time interval of 1 day (or follow the instructions of the manufacturer of the paint and varnish material).
So, the underframe is ready, now let's move on to the tabletop.
We purchased a round pine tabletop, 100 cm in diameter. I also sanded it well. But due to the fact that pine is a soft material, it takes some effort to achieve smoothness. After each fumigation, I wiped the tabletop with a damp cloth, thereby raising the pile of soft fibers. And she was satisfied only after the villi stopped rising.
Using a level, we installed the tabletop on the underframe and secured it with dowels and special wood glue.
After it “stuck” I applied the first coat of paint.
The next day, when the coating had absorbed and dried, I sanded the tabletop again with the finest sandpaper. And applied another layer of paint. Another day later, I wet the countertop with water and sanded it “wet on wet” again.
This is how I ended up with 4 layers until the surface began to satisfy me completely. It turned out perfectly smooth and even.