Monday, August 06, 2007

Lesson of the Day

And this, my little ones, is a lesson in patience.

I've been wanting a child-sized table with chairs FOREVER.

So, maybe not forever. Well, since Sister could climb up to the kitchen table and terrorize Brother during his school lessons, anyway. It seems a good idea to have separate work spaces for them.

But not just any table would do, as it would probably be a permanent fixture in my living room. Fisher Price plastic would have been fine, but I hated to pay that kind of money for plastic that I didn't even really like all that much. Even people selling them at garage sales seemed mighty proud of their plastic. Then there were the flimsy character card tables for $20 at Wal-Mart that could never withstand my family's punishment.

What I really wanted, was the beautiful, wooden, Pottery Barn-style table with whimsical mismatched wooden chairs. It didn't have to be from Pottery Barn, mind you, I just liked that style. But again, my champagne taste far exceeded my beer budget.

Actually, not even a beer budget. More like a "generic cola in a can" budget.

So I've been waiting for the right deal to land in my lap. And last week, I was almost killed by a super-duper, mega, ultra deal landing in my lap.

Behold!

Guess how much this cost me?
Nothing.
Okay. Technically it cost me seven dollars in paint.
A teacher friend gave me the table, which someone had given to her for her classroom and she ended up not needing. It had some water damage and the paint was in bad shape. I bought pink spray paint and some silver glitter paint and Voile! A table fit for a princess...or two.
She threw in the chairs, too. Which are plastic, but hey, they were free.
Tell me it's not the cutest thing EVER.
See? Good things come to those who wait.
And know how to paint.
Eat your heart out, Pottery Barn.

6 comments:

Christy said...

I have been lurking for awhile-I love your blog. You are alot like me!!

I just had to comment and tell you that I LOVE the table...and I understand the Pottery Barn envy on a Coke budget.

Heth said...

very niiiiice. Great work!

MamaGeek @ Works For Us said...

sa-weet. very clever.

heather said...

i well up with tears of joy. and tears of missing you. soon, we will coffee again, and talk about that freaking cute table!! way to go, queen. ;)

elijah said he wants a "lady toy," i told him he will have to wait until he's older. he also wants a lava girl outfit. hhmmm..... do they sell baby testosterone in the baby aisle??

Anonymous said...

You hand-drew that crown? Wow, it's awesome...I'm painting some stools right now and I must say my stuff does not look quite as professional...

Amber said...

hey, remember me? Michele gave me your blogspot. How can I contact you? :) ps. i'm mad b/c you didn't come to my wedding. :)