The little table

So there's this great little table I bought from my picker. It's a super dark wood. It's actually beautiful even though it has some scars. But I wanted to dress it up a bit.

You can't really see the blemishes in this picture but trust me, they're there.

See them now?

Since its summer we wanted to play up some beachy colors. So I went with blues and tans. I had read up on acrylic paints and decided that would be the medium I would use. 

I taped off a square about an inch and a half inside of the outside edge using painters tape. 

I decided to paint four different colored squares.

Gosh! Why can't I ever remember the "during" photos??? I promise to do better!

Sheesh! Well anyway, I just painted my different colors in each square. It took a few coats to fully cover each area. Once each layer was dry I stepped back to look at my handy work and felt that it just looked too "harsh" or stark might be a better word? 

You know...that feeling you get when a piece just needs something. So I mixed some dark brown acrylic and water for a wash. I went over each square and just kind of dabbed it on with a paper towel until I was satisfied with the results. 

And here it is, finished:

It's such a pretty little table! I've had people come over and when I'm showing off some of my work I always say, "and I painted this". They say, "what, this?" and point to my table. I'm like yeah! Then the usual response is, "I thought that was tile!" And that, of course, makes me feel like a queen!