DIY glossy red table / from drab to fab

forget the year of the dragon, for me this has been the year of the paintbrush. in all my years of apartment dwelling i longed for a space (garage / yard / driveway) to drag furniture out and paint it. i dreamed big dreams of do-it-myselfing. so now i'm putting my money where my mouth is and starting to accomplish little projects. this one quite easily landed in my lap!

i snagged this little black nightstand at the swap party a few months ago. and, no, i didn't even have to fight anyone for it. it was left there–lonely and sad–after the guests left, just waiting for a new home. i thought it may be perfect in benji's room. plus i've always wanted something lacquer, glossy and red.. this was the perfect non-committal piece to try it on! painting something for a toddler's room is also a great place to start, no perfectionism or scrutiny here.

it was a quick project; one night i stayed up late and hunted pinterest (see my home improvement board) and jenny komenda's blog (she's amazing!) for good advice on re-painting furniture. these two articles were very helpful to me: tools for painting furniture and i heart oil-based paints. one morning trip to home depot, one drippy can of paint, and one bright red paintbrush later, we had ourselves a shiny red table. three cheers! i love admiring it in his bedroom and try not to look too closely at the imperfections (the spindles were a bit tricky!). the red is the perfect pop. am pondering how i can use up the rest of that can of paint!

supplies for DIY glossy furniture
+ sandpaper and rags
+ plastic drop cloths
+ an old but decent paintbrush (oil-based paints don't come out easily)
+ paint thinner to remove paint from brushes (and limbs!)
+ Rustoleum brand oil-based enamel paint (i used gloss sunrise red)
+ use 2 coats of paint and voila!
+ at least 24 hours to dry