Since getting our household goods back in mid September, we've been unpacking and organizing, turning this house into a home. But as my fellow military friends know every house is different, so furniture you have had may not fit or closets you had in the previous house may not exist. The latter is very much the case for us. You see, it's not exactly common in Germany to have built in closets. A lot of homeowners are now adding them to their newly built houses but there are plenty of houses where you need to buy armoires, or what the Americans here now refer to as a "shrunk" (they actually mean the German word Schrank, which basically means armoire or wardrobe). Anywho. We got some basic wall lockers from the military for our master but after FMO came to pick up the loaning furniture we had to get some furniture for this place.
We went to one of my all time favorite stores - Ikea! Oh how I have missed you! The kids got some armoires and we bought some shoe storage to go underneath the stairs in the basement. On our next trip there we also got a entertainment center for the playroom but you'll get all the deets at an upcoming house tour ;)
The only thing we couldn't decide on was dining room set. See, I'm frugal and after seeing how some of our furniture was treated by the movers, there was no way I'd spend $600 or more on a table that might possibly get damaged during the next move. Especially since the one my heart was longing for sold out on www.home24.de (insert major sad face here). I wanted a farmhouse table, something bright but rustic. Then I remembered my good friend Pinterest and all the lovely plans I had pinned for redoing and building furniture. Joseph called me crazy, no really, those were his exact words!
He's the type that buys furniture new, hopefully having to assemble as little as possible. So I think part of him was nervous about the work I just volunteered him to and the other part questioned the sanity of his 4 months pregnant wife. And there you have our announcement! We're due towards the end of April and are just as surprised as you are because it certainly wasn't planned! See how I did that? Smooth, huh? No? However, he should have kind of expected this. I have a pattern. When I was pregnant with Nia I built a faux fireplace that now cozies up my friend Stephanie's home, when pregnant with Isaiah I refurbished a toddler bed for Nia, painted the nursery and sewed Nia's bedding set. So why break the tradition this time?
I took the plans from Jamielyn over at iheartnaptime, who got the original plans from Ana White, the queen of all things diy! You can find the post here. I changed things a bit though. I didn't drill pocket holes, instead I used l-shaped steel brackets. I got all my supplies from OBI, a German store like Home Depot. I ordered the curved legs and the table top, I went with a table top instead of single planks this time. Everything was bought in one trip, the stain in colonial brown, the paint in a greyish white, spax screws, the brackets, sandpaper, paint brushes, clear coat and of course masks! Gotta keep that baby safe. By the way, the stain and paint we used didn't have strong fumes anyway, since this isn't my first rodeo I knew which ones to get.
My dad came for the weekend and he was actualy pretty excited to help me with my project. Four hands are simply better than two. Together we assembled the base of the table with the nifty brackets, spax screws and my beloved DeWALT drill. SPAX screws make your life so much easier since there's no pre-drilling required with the pine wood I used. After we assembled the base, I sanded it with 180 grit sand paper and painted it with OBI 2in1 paint (primer and paint in one). It only took two coats to achieve the look I wanted. While the base dried I sanded the table top. The next day my dad left so the rest was all on me. I stained the bottom of the table top but only the parts you can see. It's a water based stain so it dries rather quickly. Once dry I attached the top to the base and stained the top. I used an old T-shirt to wipe off the extra stain in between, giving it a smoother and more even look. After 4 coats I was happy with the color. Once the stain was dry, I put on the clear coat.
It was an easy 2 day project. The cost of the table was about 160 Euro, half of what it would've cost at the store in this size. I still have enough stain and paint for the chairs and probably even other projects so I could've spent even less. The only thing that required Joseph's help was carrying it into the dining room from the garage. Here it is still without chairs:
As you can see the table top has a more rough and rustic look which is exactly what I wanted. The table at the store looked too polished for my liking. I think it gives it more character. For the chairs we went to, you guessed it, Ikea. We bought inexpensive wooden chairs for 19.99 Euro a piece, unfinished so I can stain and paint them to match the table. This will have to wait until the spring though, in the meantime we're using the chair covers we already had.
The centerpiece is the greenhouse from Ikea with some led candles and fall décor in it. I still need a few items for it. I'm also thinking about getting two wicker chairs for the short sides of the table and put the three covered chairs on each long side. My dream wicker chairs are $100/each though so I might need to settle for a cheaper version. I also haven't decided on a rug yet but I know I want one to go underneath the table. It was a fun project but I have to admit I missed my dear friend Ally from Home by Ally. When we were stationed together in Minot, we'd go thrifting together, sew together and she was there for Isaiah's birth. You should go check out her page! She's super talented with both furniture and photography and if you're in Florida and are looking to buy a home, she's your gal as she's also a licensed real estate agent there. If you're lucky you can go snag one of her redone pieces at Vintage Living Marketplace. She would've been my perfect partner in crime for this, especially now that Joseph asked what I'm building next.
And just because the pregnancy announcement wouldn't be complete without a picture of baby, here you go:
Love y'all!
Mimi
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