This is Álainn: DIY - Jazz up a sad wooden table with a simple stencils

Crafty Emily Westbrooks of lifestyle blog From China Village is back again to share with us some of her slick DIY skills, this time she transforms an old table into an eye catching piece of furniture.

"Repurposed furniture is all the rage at the moment, but it can also be very expensive to buy in a shop. But most of us have a piece or two of old furniture sitting unused in the garage or shed just waiting for a little sprucing. One fast and impressive way to give an old piece new life is with a simple stencil. The shapes and patterns you can choose for your stencil are endless." [Emily Westbrooks]

What you'll need

A piece of furniture that needs sprucing! I used an old wooden table, but you could use an old bookcase or even new Ikea furniture you're looking to put your stamp on
Electric sander or sand paper
Thick card
Craft Knife
Ispiration for your stencil
Paint (I find Woodie's DIY sample paint pots are enough paint and they come in a range of cheerful colours)
Small paint brush
Varnish


Directions

[Photo's by Emily Westbrooks]

What to do

Create your stencil. Decide what shape you'd like to stencil your piece - this is a great way to bring in a trendy pattern you couldn't find anywhere else. I chose to use several different feathers, but you could do simple, graphic birds or stars or even just circles to make polka dots!
You can either freehand draw your stencil on the card and cut it out with the craft knife, or you can print out a shape, trace it onto the card and cut it out. You'll want to cut out several copies of your stencil as you can only really use each sheet once before the paint starts to soak through.
Once your stencils are ready, you can get your furniture ready for painting. Use the sander or sandpaper to smooth down the finish of the piece you're working on. I found an electric sander took off the old beat up varnish in just five minutes. I chose not to sand the rest of the piece because I wanted to keep it looking rustic - just updated!
Wipe dirt or sawdust off the surface with a damp cloth.
Arrange your stencils on your furniture. You really can't go wrong here - stencils look great grouped together or spread apart. Secure your stencils with blue tack.
Paint the inside of each stencil, brushing from the edge into the middle so paint doesn't get underneath the card. Paint one coat and let the paint dry without removing the stencil. Paint a second coat (and third if necessary) and remove the stencil. If you need to add one or two more stencils, now's the time to decide!
If you have a piece of wooden furniture like mine, you will want to paint the surface you sanded with a few coats of varnish (letting it dry in between).