The Nate Berkus Show DIY coffee table

here it is folks! as i wrote about here, i did a segment on The Nate Berkus Show! so fun!!! there was a whole other segment on the show and on TV today where Nate intros me and shows a video of me shopping for my coffee table, at this rad reclaimed furniture and building supply non-profit called Build It Green NYC… but they haven't posted it on the Nate Show website yet! but in the meantime, i wanted to post the above video clip of me and Nate in which we reveal and discuss our coffee table spruce-ups!!!

below are more pics i took in the workshop while decorating my Book Page Coffee Table Re-Vamp before we shot the show! i also posted the how-to details so let me know if you have any questions! this is a really easy DIY! for those of you asking about my outfit and shoes from the episode - i posted pics, a video and details about it here!

Old Book Decoupaged Coffee Table

i love the look of old book pages in contrast with the bright yellow, but of course you can interpret this with any color you want for the legs and use other things like picture books, ticket stubs, decorative paper, etc. anything out of paper that you want to look at everyday and don't mind gluing!

What You Need:

  • coffee table
  • paint for the legs - spray paint or regular can of paint
  • sandpaper - medium to fine grain
  • old book - of other paper material to decoupage
  • Mod Podge or regular white school glue is fine too.
  • foam brush or an old paint brush you don't mind getting glue-y
  • another paintbrush for the paint and poly topcoat
  • can of polyurethane - get the water based kind not the oil based so that it does not yellow. you can also try: spar varnish, clear brushing lacquer, or polycrylic topcoat
  • cup with water
Do It:
  1. sand your whole table to remove any slick varnish coats.
  2. paint the legs of your table in your color of choice - you may need two coats.
  3. mix your Mod Podge or white school glue with a little water to get it runny - you want it to be easy to paint with.
  4. tear out a nice stack of pages from an old book and plan your placement on the table - remember you can always layer them which looks great!
  5. using your foam brush paint glue on the back of a page place it on the table and paint another coat of glue over the top of the page. don't be afraid to use a lot of glue - it might look milky but it will dry clear, so don't worry! for a better visual of decoupaging, check out this video where i decoupage a pumpkin!
  6. once you've glued on all of your pages, paint another coat of your glue mixture over the top to seal the deal and let it dry.
  7. paint a couple coats of your poly or clear varnish to protect your decoupage and make the coffee table durable. wait for it to dry between coats. you may want to do more than two coats to get a really slick seal that you can clean easily like any regular coffee table.

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