If you’re visiting for the first time, you don’t know that our family of four (plus a college student who is sometimes here) has been living in a two bedroom apartment since we sold our little cottage in June. Selling our old house and building a new one has been exciting, but also a lot more stressful than I thought it would be. Our new house will be ready in November. The upkeep and cleaning required for a two bedroom apartment is pretty simple, so I’ve been using the extra time to procure and upcycle pieces to match the Industrial/midcentury/travel vibe I plan to create in our new home.
As our kids have gotten older we’ve been traveling a little bit more. This Upcycled Industrial Side Table was designed to encourage the wanderlust in all of us. I transformed the stained table top with some ancient world maps from one of my daughter’s textbooks (she will probably never notice they’re missing), then added some vintage travel stickers from Etsy.
When I found this cute little side table at a thrift store, it was stained with makeup on top and had an almost too shiny sheen. However, It reminded me of the steam trunk and suitcase tables I’d seen in Industrial Style apartments and lofts, so I bought it.
How I made the Upcycled Industrial Side Table
My Unfortunate Trip to Lowes
As usual, things could not be simple. I went to Lowe’s to get a 17″ by 22″ piece of glass cut. I wanted to cover the table because I didn’t want the kids or my husband to put sweaty glasses directly on the Mod-Podged surface. We have coasters for every season, but sadly, my family doesn’t always adhere to the coaster rule. My daughter and I waited for an hour for the salespeople to find someone who could cut the glass. They found a guy who had cut glass in the past, but hadn’t been trained to use the cutter at Lowes becuase it was his first day. He tried a few times, but the glass pieces kept breaking. The bins that hold precut pieces in different sizes were empty.
After the long, unfruitful Lowes trip, I went to Walmart to buy the pretty luggage tags I’d seen online. I was feeling impatient and hopeless about having to wait until Monday to call an official glass shop. Luckily, I found a 16″ by 20″ piece of plexiglass inside a front-loading picture frame for $5. The smaller piece of glass worked out better, because it fit inside the metal trim pieces on the corners of the side table.
Blessings,
Kristie
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This is SO cute and I am glad you persevered through all the challenges!
Thanks, Michele. It was a challenge getting that glass top. Walmart to the rescue!
Cute idea….I covered a table a few years ago with a local map of our area and it sold in a day! I love maps and have a few hanging in our home. One map shows all of the islands in the Caribbean we have visited!
Thanks, Patti! i’m keeping this one for my new living room.
I love your table – Thanks for sharing at My Big Fat Menopausal Life’s Share the Wealth Party! Hope to see you at the next one too. Happy Halloween!
Thanks, Helen.
What a beautiful transformation, Kristie, and I had a good laugh over the naked lady/mermaid! Thank you for sharing at Party In Your PJ’s – you are being featured on my blog Tuesday evening.
Thanks, Ann, I can’t wait to see the feature!
This is a great transformation, it’s so much better and I love the naked lady/mermaid!
Not long till you move into your new place then? I bet you can’t wait!
This makeover will be a feature at Handmade Monday later today 🙂
Thanks, Julie, I am honored.
Hi, Kristie,
Nice transformation with the table. The style of the original piece, however, is not Industrial. It is Campaign style, referencing a furniture style from the 19th century used by the British in their military campaigns across the Empire, where the pieces (small desks, chests, trunks, and tables, mostly), could be broken down and more easily transported. The pieces were simple in shape and featured brass fittings and hardware such as the protective corner brackets and flush bail drawer pulls. It’s an interesting bit of furniture history, and the nature of reproductions in that style nicely fit an eclectic vibe, mixing well with Industrial, Mid-Century Modern, and other styles. The travel aspect of the decoration you added to your table is a spot-on emphasis of the true functionality of such pieces that were designed for serving the needs of British officers in the moves necessary in their campaigns in India and other far-flung areas of the Empire.
Thanks for the tip! I will research Campaign Style.