Bunnings shopper’s ‘unreal’ dining table transformation

A Queensland mum has revealed how she “saved thousands” on her designer-look dining table by spending just $250 at Bunnings.

A Queensland woman has revealed how she managed to save thousands of dollars by transforming an old dining room table using $250 worth of products.

Katie Johnston, 42, was on the hunt for a new dining table to match her newly renovated Hamptons-style home in Brisbane.

However, after doing a quick Google search, the mother-of-three discovered the look she was after would cost her around $2,000 to $2,500 — and instead decided to put her DIY skills to the test.

Katie Johnston, 42, from Queensland, decided to upcycle her more than 20-year-old dining table after discovering a new one with a Hamptons style would cost her around $2,000. Picture: Supplied

The 42-year-old decided to upcycle her existing wooden table, which was a hand me down from her mother-in-law and more than 20 years old.

“I started off by doing a small coffee table — I thought I’d see how I go with that before I did the dining table,” she told news.com.au

“And I was impressed. It turned out pretty good.

“I did so much research on the different techniques you can use, but I opted to go with using an undercoat primer.”

She was after a Hamptons look to match the rest of her newly renovated Brisbane home. Picture: Supplied

Katie said she used three products from Bunnings to transform the table, as well as sanding pads and sheets and a wooden brush specifically for varnishing.

With the help of her tradie husband, Katie unscrewed the table top and chair seats.

She then used an electric sander to remove the old varnish and was “amazed” by the colour hiding underneath.

“I just kept sanding it using sanding pads and paper too and was like ‘oh damn, this is exactly the colour I wanted’,” she said.

The Bunnings items Katie used to transform her table, along with sanding paper and pads, that cost her just under $250. Picture: Supplied

She then added a few coats of the Monocel (clear wood) varnish, before shifting her attention to the legs of the furniture.

She gave them a light sand using 250 grit sanding paper, before applying two coats of Bulls Eye undercoat and primer, two coats of the Taubmans Easy Coat in white and finishing it off with a varnish once it was all dry.

“I purposely used the primer and undercoat because it stops the yellow varnish seeping through,” she explained.

Katie said that even though she had faith in herself, especially with the guidance of her tradie partner, she was “blown away” by how good it actually turned out.

“It’s the perfect outcome I wanted to achieved,” she said.

She stripped the colour back by sanding the chair seats and table top. Picture: Supplied

The mother-of-three got rave reviews online after sharing posts of her upcycle to Facebook. Picture: Supplied

She also shared before and after snaps of her transformation to a popular Bunnings Facebook group racking more than 2,500 ‘likes’ and hundreds of comments from fellow DIY enthusiasts.

“Fantastic restoration – looks like a completely different dining setting,” one person wrote.

“Huge transformation to your dining area,” a second person wrote, while a third added: “Love it, looks great. You did a fantastic job.”

Others were inspired to upcycle their old dining tables.

“Looks unreal. I’ve virtually got that exact table and chairs and I’m so sick of it. You’ve given me some inspiration,” one woman said.

Katie said she was overwhelmed by all the positive feedback but was glad she was able to inspire others with her handy work.