DIY Thrift store Farmhouse End Table Makeover

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Creating a beautiful farmhouse style side table is simple and thrifty. With sanding paper, a thrifted table, and stain, you can easily elevate your home decor.

I have been using a folding table as my couch side table for over a year now. My husband and I have been keeping an eye out for small coffee tables and side tables at furniture stores.

But none of them have been appealing, or, if they are, not worth the $300 price tag…each.

After over a year of searching, I finally decided to stop by a local thrift shop. And I found a horribly messy side table that I thought would make a perfect farmhouse style side table to put in the living room.

It was just the right size.

While I am working on my end table project, you can make whatever you want with the same tools and techniques.

This is just a basic makeover, a simple sanding, and some paint. But, with some basic tools, you can really transform a table and add new life and functionality to your furniture pieces.

And, because I am all for increasing skills, this is a great way to start working on your woodworking skills as well!

Supplies List:

Furniture pieces to remodel

Orbital sander

80, 120, and 220 grit sandpaper

Stain or paint (if you want it)

Clear Coat

First things first.

Choosing Furniture.

Pick the right furniture pieces to take down and DIY. When you are looking for a furniture piece to upcycle, consider the material, stability, and shape of the piece.

You want to make sure that you are picking a material that you can sand down or otherwise find a way to make the paint stick!

Some furniture pieces are made of particle board and finished with a plastic veneer in order to create a smooth look. These pieces need to be painted with a primer before being painted.

If you do not prime the surface, the paint will peel off! You don’t want to put in all the work of renewing a new coffee table only to have your paint flake onto the floor a couple of days later. What a mess!

When thrifting your furniture pieces, check the stability and the construction quality. We have all had those chairs or tables that are uneven and rock back and forth. Or the shelf that is haphazardly hanging on by a splinter.

If you do pick a piece like this, make sure you have a plan to stabilize the piece. Sometimes all it takes is a little extra sanding, a quick chop with the circular saw, or a few new wooden boards.

Simple fixes. However, you need to have a plan for how to tackle these challenges before they halt your progress and dampen your spirits as they stare you in the face!

Helpful tip: Keep in mind how you are going to sand into those teeny tiny little spaces. I did not account for this in my thrifting!

Basic Tools:

You can easily get this project done with the most basic tools like a hand sander. But, you are going to be using a ton of elbow grease!

I recommend getting an orbital sander. They are less than $100 dollars and can be used for so many different projects. If you are a lover of DIY like me, it’s probably worth it!

My husband and I just got one and I can feel the inspiration hit me everywhere I go!

Whether or not you get (or borrow) an orbital sander, you will need sandpaper. I recommend 80 grit to get the dirt, grime, and large dents out of your wood. Then move to 120 and then 220 grit sandpaper to get a really nice and smooth finish. It is a lot of time and work, but so worth it!

Paints, Stains, and Finishes.

Once you get your wood, all smoothed up; you are probably going to want to either stain or paint it.

If you love the natural look of the wood, just throw a protective oil coat on top and call it good.

However, I love the look of stained wood. I love the natural grain and think it adds to the beauty of a room while also being able to shift into the color scheme you have going on in the room.

Lastly, a clear coat. I cannot recommend this enough!

After all the work you are putting into this table, you do not want to have it dinged and scratched every five seconds.

Also, sometimes you can tell items are not professional because they were not protected enough. They show wear and tear a lot sooner than professional items. Just some food for thought.

Now, onto my experience upcycling this side table!

The Side Table!

So, this is the table I chose.

At first, I thought this table just had some weird texture to the top. Some sort of reverse popcorn ceiling thing going on. But no…that is all dirt.

Yuck.

So, I promptly got out the orbital sander I convinced my husband to get for this project and got started sanding the table top. I have to say I was quite surprised that the dirt and paint came off very quickly!

I had just finished sanding the wood boards for my other project. Sanding that sucker took forever!

It was a pleasant surprise when the table top took almost no time at all. The sides of the table, though, posed some challenges.

With the orbital sander being—orbital—shaped and the sides of the table being square shaped, that left me with a nice corner that I got to hand sand.

That was not my favorite part. The side panels took more time to sand than the table top.

I have to say, though, it was not as terrible a project as it could have been. It ended up being a great way to catch up on some of my favorite podcasts. I would highly recommend this project to anyone who needs to catch up on their audio entertainment!

Table Mistakes

Because the orbital sander is not a great way to get into tight corners, and 80 grit sandpaper is really good at taking away material, I actually lost some of the decorative shaping on the legs of the table.

When I had first (accidentally) done this, I almost gave up.

I had already put at least an hour into the project at this point in time.

But, after playing with the shape a little more (and giving myself a pep talk), I thought it gave the perfect handmade element that I was looking for.

It reminded me that someone once told me there are no mistakes in art, simply opportunities for inspiration. I think this is a perfect example of that!

I kept reshaping the legs until I thought it looked perfect. Then I repeated that shape on all three other legs!

Finishing a table

At this point, if you notice any deformities or nicks in your table, this would be a perfect time to use wood filler and a putty knife to fill those up.

Luckily, I didn’t mess up too much with the sander and the table was in pretty good condition considering the dirt that was caked on it!

Overall, I sanded with 80, 120, and 220 grit sandpaper. That table top was smooth as a baby’s bottom. And it better have been. I spent close to three hours just on the sanding part of the project.

While I was listening to my podcasts, I was definitely wondering how anyone has time to upcycle furniture for a living. It is so time consuming!

Now, there are a few different options once you get to the raw wood situation. You can paint it, apply a stain, or oil it just as it is.

If you want more of a modern farmhouse coffee table or side table, using white paint is very popular.

In my many hours of Pinteresting, I have noticed that most farmhouse decor pins have white furniture!

I have also seen where people also use chalk paint on their furniture as well. My Aunt actually used to do this in her kitchen. She would chalk paint the cupboards a different color every couple years!

Even though one of the stables of modern farmhouse decor is white furniture, I didn’t feel that a white table would be a good idea for my home. My home is currently run by two young puppies. It would not stay white for long.

So, I went with a beautiful grey stain.

However, when I went to stain the wooden table top, it didn’t really “stain.” It acted more like paint.

After mentioning this to my husband, he said it could just be the type of wood or that it was more of a butcher block type top. Either way, it still turned out lovely.

The final step was to clear coat the entire table to protect it from the wear and tear it is sure to be exposed to.

Finally, a lovely side table!

After all this work, I have this beautiful end table to upgrade and liven up my living room! And let me tell you how much of a difference it makes to the room.

It feels more like home. More permanent. Seeing the result of this project has definitely inspired me to work on decorating more of my house!