PB Project Table Knock Off

Since I always seem to have some kind of "project" in the works, having a dedicated work space is a real luxury. It makes life so much easier to have all my materials and supplies close at hand and a comfortable surface to work on. And if it can be aesthetically pleasing--so much the better! 

We had a room in our house that we weren't using for anything but a repository for unwanted junk that we hadn't gotten around to getting rid of. A total waste of space. I decided it would be the perfect spot for the project room I wanted. There were just a couple of obstacles. First, I'd have to get rid of all the junk in the room and then I would have to furnish it to meet my needs.  I needed plenty of storage for supplies and a work table for projects. Storage space was a no-brainer--Ikea Expedit to the rescue. I purchased two white units that fit perfectly into the space for $70 each. Off to a good start. 

Then I found this Whitney Project Table at Pottery Barn. It was just the look I wanted. Perfect, right? Right, except for the $999 price tag. So much for that idea.

At the same time I was looking for the new furniture to outfit my project room, I was trying to get rid of the old crappy stuff that was in there taking up space. Case in point: this desk: 

We no longer needed it and I wasn't keen on the dated rustic/Mexican/Tuscany-ish vibe it had going. I couldn't picture using it anywhere in our house. So I posted it on Craig's List for $40 and (surprisingly enough) there were no takers. More frustration!

Then suddenly it hit me--my two problems had one solution. I could turn the old icky desk into the project table of my dreams. Skeptical? Well take a look:

Not bad, huh? And instead of spending a thousand bucks, it was practically free. Keep reading for the how-to's.

I wanted to emulate the PB table as much as possible, so I decided to paint everything but the table surface and then try to figure out how to get the surface to look like the inspiration. The painting part was beyond easy. I had some left over white paint, so I just removed the hardware and slapped on two coats.

The table surface was pretty bad. First it was not in great shape. It was made out of soft pine and had plenty of dents and scrapes. Plus it was a weird yellowy color. 

I decided it would be hopeless to try to create a smooth, perfect surface, so I opted to go with a rougher, reclaimed wood look. On a whim, I picked up some Watco Danish Oil in dark walnut for $8. I used an old rag to wipe it on. After letting it soak in for a while, I wiped off the excess. It looked so much better!

Next I needed to deal with the hardware. I really hated the original drawer pull and I wanted something more like my inspiration. The only problem was I needed to cover the holes left by the original hardware. I ended up finding this bin pull at Home Depot for $2 that completely covered the existing holes.

And that was pretty much it! I was very happy with the way it came out and with the fact that I was able to recycle a piece of furniture that I would otherwise have gotten rid of. 

© Salt Marsh Cottage 2013