This end table lived in my parents home for over 30 years (maybe even 40). There are 2 of them and they have cream colored marble tops (you'll see them in the last photo). These tables saw me everyday of my life until the very end when my mother passed away. I love these tables. There was a coffee table too but I don't know what happened to it. 
Each drawer has 2 of these handles. Aren't they great! I love them. 
years of wear & tear, but for the most part they looked good. I sanded off the broken pieces (one on each drawer). 
First step is too sand off the varnish. You can use chemical removers but I just used a little sandpaper (120 grit) and it came right off. Since I'm painting there is no need to remove all the stain. 
As you sand it starts to look scary. Don't worry, it will look great. 
after sanding you need to wipe off all the grit. I also vacuum the dust (because I'm fun like that) 
Since I'm nuerotic I also brush it off and use a tack cloth to make sure my surface is totally dust free. All of this only takes about 10 minutes. 
next step is to use a good primer (I used Bulls-eye 1-2-3). Don't skip this step. It seals the old surface and allows the new surface to be smooth and adhere to the wood. 
It wont look pretty when your done, but it's not suppose to. It's just a primer coat. This step also lets you see any imperfections with the wood so you can fill holes with wood filler. I primed all the sides including the inside. Some times old furniture has an "old furniture smell". 
Here is the first coat of paint. I was really disappointed because I wanted a taupe color and that's what it looked like at Home Depot but at home it looked grey. I didn't repaint it because I knew I was going to stain over it. I painted a trial piece of wood before the project and I was happy with the end results. 
Ahhhh, It's starting to look new. 
My Mother and sister would have loved this 
Just a reminder of how it use to look like. 
Sorry, this pic is in here twice and I don't know how to remove it. Lets just ignore it. 
I experimented with the finishes. I like the shabby chic look but my husband hates it. I wanted an antique finish but not just a wiped finish. I love using these disposable brushes because the bristle pattern it left was just what I wanted. 
This is the finish I wanted. It's more like a natural wearing of color. 
This is what you get if you paint on stain and then wipe it off (by the way all the product were water-based). It's cute, but I wanted a more dramatic look, so I took that disposable brush and just stroked the stain back & forth until I got the look I wanted. 
I love the way the imperfections are highlighted and the stain distribution created by simply moving the stain back and forth until the look was perfect. 
After the stain dried I appied one coat of polyacrylic top coat. 
The base was stained in sections. first I did the legs then the sides. 
Before stain and after stain pic. It's unbelievable how different they look. 
Side view 
Once the polyacrylic coat dried I added the hang-up with a very small brush (2 inch). This is the step that highlights all the groves and gives it depth. I polycoat first becuase if you go back and try to do this step without the polycoat you will remove stain from the prior step. That is the best way to ruin the project and you'll end up re-painting. This is a major profanity area! Truck driver style! 
After adding the hangup I sprayed one more coat of polyacrylic, let it dry, and then flyspecked it. What's flyspecking? A big pain in the ass that's what! but it looks so cool! Flyspecking is little random dots of stain that mimic real fly specks. I used a cheep strainer and wire brush. That didn't work so well so I... 
used the wire brush and a paint stirrer. I used the paint stirrer to scrap the wire brush bristles and make splaters. I got most of it on my face and arms. Thank goodness it was water-based. 
I had a hard time getting the spots on the furniture until I realized it was all over the floor! So, I moved my angle and it worked fine. 
Here is a pic of some flyspecking (note on this end table I flyspecked before applying the hang-up). Six of one, half-a-dozen of another, as long as you polycoat between steps your good to go. 
Here is the finished product! I love it! 
2 more coats of polyacrylic to give it durability and I'm done! 
It makes me sad to not have the coffee table! I think the final product is beautiful.
If I only had carpet too!
Please note that I am no professional! I just dabble in the paint. Hey that's a cute name for a blog page.."just dabbling in the paint". Sometimes I amuse myself!
Best Wishes
Nancy
