Furniture Redo: Cast-off table to bed-side table

I was at my sister Linda's home the other night and she asked if I wanted this little table. I had "given it's all" for her in her home, and it was on it's way out.

Now, I am trying to be really good about not acquiring things that I won't use, so I studied it (while mentally going from room to room in my house) and decided I was sure that I could find a new home for the little fella. I actually had been wanting to try spray painting a piece of furniture, and this would be the perfect small piece to practice on.

Linda and my mom say that originally it was a plant stand, and that my grandma had one like that with a pretty plant sitting on the top shelf, cascading over the sides. I didn't really need a plant stand, but I did need a little bedside table in our guest room. There isn't a lot of space between the bed and the wall, so I needed something on a smaller scale to fit there. This little guy is perfect for the job, but I wanted to try to work some magic with spray paint.

First, I sprayed the table with one coat of Kilz Spray. It covers really well and creates a good surface for the next layers of paint to adhere to.

And since that guest room is gray and white (along with blues and greens), I decided to give it a squirt with gray spray paint. I gave it three good, solid coats and let it dry til it was good and cured. As always, with spray paint, the key is to spray in lighter coats so that it doesn't drip and also so that it will dry. One of the very best things about spray painting a piece of furniture, is that it is so, so quick, and there isn't any clean-up of brushes and painting gear. One of the worst things is that there aren't thousands of color choices when you're spray painting, so when you choose gray, for instance, there might be a light gray and a dark gray choice, and that is it.

And here is the little table, in it's new life holding a lamp and guest's drinks at night. A perfect fit for the space by the bed! Thanks, Linda dear!

Before

After