Damaged Table Becomes Art Furniture, the Decayed Elegance Way!

We all know that a picture can be deceiving, right?  In the following picture, this table looks great when, in truth, this table was not in very good condition.  The top was riddled with several deep scratches and a fairly pronounced water mark and one of the legs was very loose so I knew that at the very least I would have to refinish it.

Because I was unsure if the water mark would come out and because, well I just wanted to, I decided to do a painting treatment.  What did the table have going for it?  It was a great size and would make a great side table for a large chair.  Also, it had a nice round top that would make an excellent canvas for the florals that I love to paint.

Anytime that I am painting a piece with a smooth surface or a surface that I am unsure of, I always start with a coat of Heritage MultiSurface Sealer.  This product will allow subsequent coats of paint to stick to the smoothest of surfaces, even glass.

Next, I applied two coats of a green-blue color to the table allowing sufficient drying time in between.

I was not too concerned with the underpainting as I knew that I would be doing a slip slap technique which would change the final color.  A slip slap technique is a “wet in wet” technique where the artist lays down a coat of the original basecoat color and while this is wet applies other colors in a random “slip slap” fashion to create a mottled final color.  In this case I slip slapped some blues, greens and yellows to provide an interesting and varied basecolor.

Notice the other colors mixing with the basecoat to provide a soft final presentation with lots of color movement.

Next, I freehanded a floral composition, bird and butterfly to give the table a French country flair.  Normally I contain the painting area to the front or sides of a table so that you can put a lamp or other accessories on the top without covering up any of the painting, but I decided to break my own rule and treat this entire table top as a canvas.  I also decided to frame the painting with some very loose French style scrolls.  The results are casual, elegant and dramatic.  I always like the work that we feature on the blog (or I wouldn’t feature it) but I especially like how this table turned out.

So with some imagination, some artistic skill and some well spent time, we can take this ordinary, damaged table from average to artistic.  I hope you like it.  Thank for visiting.

Until next time,

Paul

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