Creative Mum Upcycles Dining Furniture For £50 Rather Than Buying New For £££
- Victoria Tullett, 42, wanted to buy a new dining furniture set
- However, instead of spending hundreds on a new table and chairs, she upcycled what she had already
- The transformation cost under £50 using Frenchic paint
If your dining table and chairs have seen better days, you may have been tempted to splurge on a new set to brighten up your home.
However, one mum has come up with a genius way to gain brand new dining furniture for under £50.
Victoria Tullett, 42, a recruitment officer and mum of two from Brighton, wanted to help her parents, who wanted to get a new dining table and chairs.
Instead of splurging on a new set, Victoria transformed the existing dining table and chairs for under £50 using Frenchic paint.
Victoria told money-saving community LatestDeals.co.uk: "I began following the Frenchic fan page. My parents had mentioned that they wanted to get a new table and chairs and I just thought 'why not try to transform them instead?’.
"There was nothing wrong with the actual set, in terms of stability and build, just that the colours didn't work with our new scheme.
"I started by sugar soaking everything and then very lightly sanded it, as if you were wiping it clean, and then dusted all the dust off.
"I used very thin coats of paint, and although I had nothing to lose, I have to admit after the initial coat it is an 'oh my gosh, what have I done moment’!
"I waited the two hours in between coats and set about on the second coat. By the third and final coat, the magic had taken place and it had been totally transformed.
"In terms of tips, I would say preparation is key. Take your time, use thin coats and wait the two hours between coats if not longer.
"If the first coat looks dreadful, you are doing it right! I cannot stress enough how much you need to do thin coats only.
"I found the chairs to be a bit tacky afterwards, so used a paintbrush and coated them in talcum powder, which did the trick.
"I have since painted my lounge furniture too, and made a whole seating area in my garden out of pallets and Frenchic paint.
"I plan on doing my kitchen next. I have a fair few cupboards, so I need to do it in stages. I am just working out colours before I begin.
"What I love about this paint is how you can take something drab and change it into something you love and on a budget.
"I purchased the paint from my local stockists in Hove, but it can also be purchased online via the Frenchic website.
"For the table and chairs, I used Dazzle Me and Swanky Pants each costing £17.95 each, although I did not use the full tin of each, and a very small amount of Finishing Coat for the tabletop which cost £12.95.”
Victoria is delighted with the final outcome of the project, and says it was a good anxiety reliever during the stresses of the lockdown.
"I do suffer from anxiety and depression and lockdown hit me quite hard,” she adds.
"I find painting is my happy place. The sense of achievement at the end is worth the hard work, although this was not a difficult project.
"The paint went on so easily, and it was really enjoyable. It was all completed in three days!
"Initially we had looked at lots of different tables of a similar design and they were all coming in in the hundreds of pounds.
"For under £50, we were able to create a modern dining area that matches perfectly with the kitchen and for a fraction of the price."
Tom Church, co-founder of LatestDeals.co.uk, comments: “If you’re changing the style of your dining room, you might have been tempted to splurge on some new furniture.
“With such a huge range online, there is so much to pick from and it’s incredibly tempting - but expensive.
“Victoria’s solution is a much more budget-conscious and eco-friendly way forward: use bargain materials to update what you already have and create bespoke pieces to match your home for under £50!"
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