Refinishing Old Vanity Tables
Vanity tables have been popular in a woman’s bedroom for many years. In Victorian times ladies would sit at their vanity table while their maid styled their hair. Women have used these as dressing tables to help apply their make up, do their hair and show off their perfume bottles and vanity sets. If you have been lucky enough to inherit an old makeup vanity or you have found one at an auction or flea market, you might want to brighten it up by removing the old finish. There might be some controversy in the antique world about doing such a thing, but that will be totally up to you.
You might be worried about using caustic chemicals that can smell pretty bad, but not only that can do harm to you and the environment. There are now soy based strippers and low VOC paints available that are much better alternatives for the environment. A soy based stripper will work just as effectively as a chemical product, but it will need a bit more time to work. Soy strippers are in gel form and they will stick to where ever you put them and wipe away easily. Be sure to follow the makers guidelines and use the product safely. Many of these products are safe enough that you don’t need to wear gloves and can be put in your home bin.
Once you have the vanity tables stripped back, you can move onto refinishing. Before you do any painting, you should give the table a sanding, working from a rough grit down to a fine grip, so that you get a smooth clean surface. To get rid of the dust, first vacuum the table then wipe it down with slightly damp cloth and leave it to dry before painting. You can also buy paint that has a low amount of volatile chemicals, which means that they don’t have that paint smell and no dangerous fumes. You can get these paints in the usual colors, so matching your decor wont be a problem.
When you start painting, don’t use too much paint and use smooth strokes. Make sure that you get into all of the cracks and start at the bottom and work your way up, so there is less chance of runs or smudging. Once you are all done you will have a find example of a vanity table and it will serve you well for many more years.