"You may not like him Minister but, you can't deny...Dumbledore's got style"

Last early summer at Joann Fabrics, they were featuring a North African/ Indian decorating scheme replete with exotic furnishings, and, as I recall, a fair amount of paisley. At the time, I knew I was moving into a small apartment, and had been doing some homework about what sort of furniture pieces people felt worked best for small spaces. The repeat offender? Objects that pulled double duty and or were not "heavy" in the dual  sense of physical weight, but also visually - small spaces needed objects that allowed light to pass through them. I knew I would need a coffee table, and after reading other's blogs about small space dwelling, I also knew that unless said table could be moved quickly and easily, and was adaptable, I would hate it. 

While a LACK table from IKEA would have fit the bill, I'm just not that minimalist. 

And then these kids went on sale for $10 a pop. 

I did a little more homework, and armed with a can of spray-on primer and a can of Rustoleum #7929830 Lagoon, I got to work refinishing the Mallard and Avocado green side tables. The primer step is absolutely worth it, even though the dark table color was so close to the new, and the light would have been easily camouflaged. 

Why I love these pieces

At 16" tall and 11" square, they fit EVERYWHERE. When I have people over, no one is tripping over them, they're easy to move, and they carry the pop of color that I wanted to put on the walls, but would have turned this tiny space into a cave. They also have a hint of flair. I only wish I had two more, so that I could pull them together into a square. However, I would be equally as happy finding a tray that would nest over the tops

habitat, pt.II

2

The cart was before the horse on this one - I love furniture. Old furniture. I appreciate Ikea's modern sensibilities and streamlines but the part of me that screams to recycle and reuse says buy old. And yeah. Old can mean a lot of things; many people equate old with things like decrepit. Pshaw.

I found this on Craig's List for a whopping $25. The pain was peeling and cracking, the drop leaves were gone, the wheel on the gate leg is missing, and it looks like the top was used for a chop block. Ouch. But it was $25 and smallish. I needed a smallish table for my smallish apartment. I went out to look at it and about died. This thing is solid. SOLID. The legs and the apron weren't bolted together, they're joined, and you'd think it had been glued up yesterday. Worth the $25? Yes. Despite the peeling paint. Bonus, what I didn't know was that this table takes leaves - up to 5 leaves, in point of fact. And I picked up two for an additional $20.

what spray on stripper looks like after sitting five minutes. gross.

Frightening. But that's oak under there, not poplar. Solid. Stripping is serious business, and I've known more than a few people to get partway through a stripping job and then quit because it was more than they could handle. I didn't get all the paint off before I had to move the table, but I got most of it. The legs pose a challenge. Do I have delusions of grandeur about this project? Yep. I'm using it as my desk right now, but I imagine clearing it off and having a few friends over for dinner. Putting the leaves in it when I move on and have a bigger kitchen, or - gasp! - a dining room. Finding more leaves to accommodate my own family. Cleaning off dried bits of cereal left there by the kids. Yep. Delusions of grandeur.