Driftwood Table and Chairs

Driftwood gray table and chair makeover: how it happened. I already had these two clunky 70s chairs given to me, found on the roadside by my picker cousin. They’ve been on hand since last summer waiting for me to do something with them. One visit to my local Habitat for Humanity Restore produced a matching table. To me it is a match meant to be and I love it when that happens.

The manager at Westside Furniture wanted driftwood. I really like painting to order! I’ve never produced a driftwood look before and was excited for the challenge.

These are the steps I took for the driftwood look without any do-overs either!

• Tested for bleed through. Yay! No primer was needed on the table but I did shellac chairs and table legs. When I want to distress a dark wood piece, I use shellac rather than oil based primer.
• Started with light gray paint base coat of latex paint – I don’t use chalk paint when I know I’m going to glaze. The glazing is much easier that way.
• Black glaze heavy over entire table surface. I found a trick for that.
• Dry brush chocolate brown
• Dry brush – light handedly – white

Glazing Large Areas

It is tough to glaze end table tops, I wasn’t sure how to glaze this large area. Good thing I had practice with the Farm Red Side Tables. It was on those pieces I developed a trick, after making 3 or 4 unsatisfactory glazing attempts: SPRITZ FIRST WITH WATER then brush on glaze generously. Work it around evenly then wipe with a cloth – not a terry rag. Cut up bed sheets worked for me.

The legs and chair back are chalk painted white and WET DISTRESSED with a damp 3M pad. I like how I can control the distressing that way and it comes out a little softer too.

You like it? Check out the Sale page for availability.