Mint Table

Hubs and I have a table in the basement that, for some unknown reason, I thought was super attractive in 2007.  It weighs a TON (The Beast), so I thought it would be the perfect item to buy in Thunder Bay and then immediately move 1600km across the province.  It was our dining table in our first apartment together.  Awww.  The size was awesome and made for fun, no-elbows-in-your-ribs dinner parties.  But I'm the first to admit it's uuuuugly.  Why did no one stop me?



As we planned our move from Kingston to Ottawa, I bought another table just weeks before the move (why is this my thing?): our sweet mid-century teak number in the dining room. 

The Beast then took up residence in our just-cram-crap-in-there kitchen:

Once in Ottawa, we found another little round retro teak table for the kitchen and the big, burly beast of a table was - with much groaning and back spraining - moved downstairs.  It's solid wood!

Although it never miraculously became more attractive, it is a fabulous work table because it's huge and can support a lot of weight.

When I first bought it, I wanted to paint it white but when the primer went on it looked horrible, like a big slab of dated melamine.  I panicked.  I rushed out to buy chemical paint stripper and, at midnight, in my parent's backyard, with giant work lamps set up so it looked bright as day (but creepier - you're welcome neighbours), my Dad, Grandpa and I stripped it.  My Grandpa found it way more amusing than he should have.  Oh, did I mention we did this right before moving?  A few days before a big move is always a good time for a table re-finish.  Once we stripped the primer, we sanded and clear varnished The Beast.

Now I'd like to paint it again.  Hear that?  That's my Grandpa, laughing at me.  Or is he crying?  Nope.  Laughing.  He'll say I'm a dummy and I'll end up elbows deep in chemical stripper in the middle of the night again.  But I have got too. much. wood in this house!  Too much!!  The floors, the kitchen, the teak tables.  Down in the pit of despair, we need a little colour, a little fun, a little mint.

In fact, we need more touches of colour, period.  So my mid-century metal table in the guest room is also going mint!  It needs a good refinish to deal with some rust anyway and after getting my Mummu's (my Grandma) stamp of approval - it was her wedding present after all - I'm trying mint.  We both reckon it's a vintagey colour so it suits this retro little table just fine.  If I hate it, all I need is a can of Rustoleum matte black!

I rounded up a few gorgeous mint and turquoise tables to give me some steam on these makeovers!

Just a note: if you search "mint table" on Pinterest, sometimes the images found are very literal . . .

Les Petite Merveilles

Flickr; Kotipalapeli; Etsy

508

Urban Outfitters; via Creamy Life; Etsy

Decor and the Dog

Drool.  I'm convinced.  I even bought some (hopefully pretty) mint spray paint.  It's hard to track down a good mint spray paint - so many err on the side of sage.  Nobody jinx it, but look: here's the week's weather forecast!  Sunday and Monday (marked by an accurate representation of how I feel) are primed for spray painting (haha) because even the expected low isn't too cold.  Thursday and Friday, with their chilly lows, could mess with my paint and Saturday is just bad painting mo-jo because rain=humidity.  But Sunday I'm going to spend a little time getting reacquainted with my old pal, spray paint.  She's a fair weather friend ;) 

P.S. Last day to win something beautiful from ILIOS jewellery!  My mint + brass earrings are still making me just as smiley as Sunday and Monday's weather prediction and if you love mint you could win a pair of mint + brass earrings too!