Reclaiming My Hall Console Table – With My Toddler

My mission to achieve my dream Scandi-French-rustic home – one table at a time.

“Are you going to paint everything in the house white?” my five-year old asked.

“It’s not white, darling, it’s Winter Grey. But yes, my love – yes I am!” came my merry reply.

No longer for me the dark wood of our past: I want to breathe life and light into our home by lifting all the colours to 50 shades of whitey-grey and grey-y white. I am not alone, judging by the hundreds of such hues offered by the major paint brands.

This season’s “Hunting Lodge” trend ties in with this look: clean lines, pale washed wood, offset with cosy faux fur cushions and plaid throws.

White reflects the season too – while the rich colours of autumn are still on the trees and whirling in the air now, the colder mornings hold the hint of winter just around the corner. As trees lose their foliage, I am looking forward to adorning my reclaimed console with bare twigs.

And of course, there’s Christmas! Snowflakes, mistletoe berries, Father Christmas’s beard. White is the perfect backdrop to the bright colours and twinkling fairy lights of my favourite time of year.

So, I’ve been eyeing this console table of mine for a long time. I’ve had it for over ten years but I have never liked it. I bought it as a desk when my rented room in London was the size of a table and I needed something super-slimline. It has moved house with me countless times and has always been useful in terms of being a display space, but it has never grown on me.

Now we are in our forever home, I wanted to paint the thing, and who better to help than my able assistant, my toddler? Purists may question why I’d let a child anywhere near a paint job, but to be honest, most of the stuff I buy is distressed, causing my husband to roll his eyes and comment, “You could have done that yourself.” Also, I was willing to take the risk as the table was cheap to start with and has been battered to bits over the years anyway.

I’d bought a couple of tester pots and tried out the Winter Grey and the Antique White. I thought I preferred the latter, but in the light of the hall, where the console would go, the Grey looked better.

I have to confess, we did no prep at all, apart from putting newspaper down. The surface of the table was smooth shiny pretend mahogany finish, so the paint went on easily. We just slapped it on, and only as the pot started to run out did the brushstrokes start to show. But I managed to eke it out so we covered all the visible parts.

I say we – after a couple of brush’s worth, my toddler got bored of the whole affair and trundled off to play with his brothers. This is the beauty of toddlers, I find – they lose interest pretty quickly, so I always find it’s worth letting him “help” with whatever I’m doing, if he’s going to have a tantrum otherwise.

So here it is! My old console made lovable by a £5 pot of paint. What do you think?