No Sanding, No Staining, Just Chalk Paint

   I have this old end table that I moved into my bedroom next to the recliner.  I love the table, I bought it new in 1991, it's heavy and it has a huge drawer, but it needed to be refinished and I wasn't looking forward to doing all that sanding and staining.

   I found some tutorials on how to use chalk paint and I was sold.  I didn't have to break out the sand paper, I just needed some time, a cool color of paint, a wax, a couple of brushes and a couple of cotton rags.  I also updated the brass drawer pulls with silver rub which was a nice plus because I had never seen silver rub before and I love it.

   I did some research and I found out you can spend a lot on chalk paint.  I did not want to buy a lot of this paint because I don't have any other paint projects other than this one table.  I ended up getting an 8 oz. bottle of Folk Art chalk paint at JoAnn's for $7.99 in the color of Spanish Moss.  There was plenty of paint in that small bottle to do two coats on this end table and I still have some left.  One thing I would say is that I used a sponge brush to apply this and I think I would have done better with a bristle brush.

    The wax I bought for this project was liquid because that was all the store had, but I originally saw a paste wax in the tutorial and I think I would have liked to use the paste better.  The wax I bought was made by Folk Art and it was labeled clear wax.  The wax went on with a brush, you let it dry and then you buff it up.   I bought 8 oz. of liquid wax  for $7.99 and I have lots of wax left over.  I bought the silver rub on Amazon and a small tube (.5 oz) was $6.21 with free shipping.

      This was a super fun project and for less than $25.00 I have a pretty table in my bedroom.

New Information On Sewing Machine Maintenance

       I do the bare minimum when it comes to sewing machine maintenance.  None of my sewing machines are under warranty so I don't take my machines in for service unless they are truly broken.  I really good about cleaning out the lint in the feed dog and bobbin area after a big project and I will change my needle pretty often, but I don't oil anything on my computerized machines unless it's specifically mentioned in the owner's manual.   The other morning I went on the internet looking for information on oiling my Martha, Bernina 1530.  I found this youtube video on how to clean and oil a Bernina (not specifically a Bernina 1530) but a really good video and super helpful.

Link to video on how to clean and oil your Bernina sewing machine.

      I had about 15 minutes before I had to leave for work so I did a little maintenance on Martha.  I took my feed dog plate off, my needle out, and my bobbin assembly apart, brushed out all the lint, oiled the hook, and replaced my needle.  The video recommends you oil your hook every 3 to 5 bobbins.  I usually change my needle and do a full clean out about every 8 hours of sewing, but I never knew that I should oil my hook.  I did notice that after I oiled the hook, the machine seemed to run quieter and smoother.  It might be wishful thinking, but I think Martha is a little happier these days.