Refinish Fail

I really wanted to wait to post this project until it was done. But if I did that, at this rate I might never post again. So here goes--you get all the sad details about how hard we are working to transform this table into our new coffee table.

It all started when my friend bought a house complete with furniture, since the previous owners were retiring to Florida and didn't want their things. One of the pieces was a coffee table that they handed over to us. It was the perfect shape and size (no drawers, but hey, can't complain about free furniture).

 Not so much the perfect color or design. Check out those flowers and that awful golden beige.

Obviously we were going to have to refinish it. My first plan was to paint the legs brick red and strip the surface down to bare wood. First interesting set-back (and probably the root of all the other set-backs): I sanded and sanded and sanded but never got to wood. I got through the paint to white primer and then just reached more beige. It turned out that the top was some kind of artificial fiberboard. By the time I figured it out, I was left with a top surface sanded to varying depths--some exposed fiberboard, some primer, and some spots that were just scuffed up. I figured that would be sufficient for the primer.

I decided that for this project, I would try spray paint. It sounded more durable, which is important for a coffee table where we put our feet, our dinners, our late-night snacks, etc. It also sounded faster, with quick dry times.

First, I put on the primer--heavy-duty Zinsser Primer/Sealer to try to even out the different finishes of the surface. After two coats, it looked ready for the next step.

We used Rustoleum in Claret Wine. We noticed it was spraying unevenly, but figured that was just the first coat:

Coats two and three removed the white but still didn't look even.

We finally decided to try to disguise the uneven finish on the top (the legs came out just fine). I used gray stain and some sand paper to distress it. I liked the way it looked overall but was still unhappy with the top, which continued to look uneven:

Fast forward two weeks. I tried to get used to it but still didn't like it. So I decided to redo the top, sanding it lightly to rough it up and then taping it off from the rest, because I liked the way the legs came out.

 This time we propped it up to see if spray at that angle would help:

OK, primer looked okay...This time we tried Kilz oil-based primer.

 Redid the red. One coat, then two. Verdict: Still uneven!!!

Back to the drawing board, I guess. Our plan now is to try to paint brush on a primer, so we can get a thicker application. I can definitely conclude that spray paint is not faster, though I don't know if I can judge from this one project alone. It certainly seems durable--if only I could make it look nice! If you have any suggestions, please send them my way.