Refinshed Kitchen Table

My little family of four became a little family of 5 one year ago. We had a small bistro sized table in our kitchen that we could barely squeeze all four of us into. Most of the time, the kids and I would eat in the kitchen for breakfast and lunch. Then, when my hubby came home, we would use the dining room table for dinner. But, I was sick of the mess created by eating in the dining room everyday, so I wanted a bigger kitchen table. I knew I had about a year until the baby would be eating with us at every meal to find something bigger for the kitchen. A new table and chairs set wasn't really in the budget, so I started scouring local garage sales and craigslist. I wanted a farmhouse style oval pedestal table. In August, I found this gem for a steal! The table and all 4 chairs for just $50. It was so cheap because the owner had tried to refinish it by painting it black but had botched the paint job. That may have been a deterrent for other potential buyers, but not for me. I scooped it up and planned on refinishing it right away. But life happened, and I didn't get started on it until November. I spent almost every naptime and several nights working on it. Hence the lack of projects posted in November! I was only working on this! I had to get it done by Thanksgiving when I had family coming into town. First I sanded and stripped off the black paint and the varnish and stain underneath the paint.

This step took forever. Turn out, chemical stripper really doesn't work when it is freezing outside!
Originally, I planned on being really creative with my finishes. I was going to use a blue or green tinted stain. I think it would have looked nice, but I decided to go with something more neutral in case I ever decide to change my color scheme. It simply took way too long to remove the old stain and I don't want to have to refinish this table again any time soon. I ended up painting the pedestal and legs in the same white as the trim on my walls. Then, I used a natural stain on the table top before applying multiple coats of polyurethane. I love the result. Classic and fresh looking. I was also able to find a bench online that has a similar natural stain on top and white base. Perfect. Now I have a table that will grow with the family!