Now I know my ABC's ~ A Smart Lazy Susan Makeover

There is something about graphic elements in design that just attracts me.  I know I'm not the only one since there are so many gorgeous graphic fabrics being used in design and you see typography of some sort in many Designers' spaces.

You'll find faux zinc letters and a subway art poster in my home decor also.  

But I would like to introduce you to my brand new Lazy~Alphabet~Susan.

What do you think?

I'm pretty smitten.  :)

See, she wasn't very smart looking before.  As you can see below, she was looking like she'd seen her best days already.  She came home with me when we stopped at a garage sale and the owner offered to throw her in for free.  In case you don't already know, I'm pretty fond of free stuff.  If there is even a remote chance that I can turn it into something fabulous or useful, I'm game.

So home she came, all tired and worn looking.

At first I just knew I would turn her into a knockoff of those Pottery Barn wine barrel lids...

But that's been done a few (hundred) times before.

...and...uh hem...I have enough stuff that indicates I like wine :)

When I saw this fabulous mirror on one of the Joss and Main events I instantly knew that I would be borrowing this concept for my new Lazy Susan. 

Source:  Joss and Main Event,/Bassett Mirror Company

Although I wanted her to retain her original purpose, I didn't want her to look tired and worn out anymore.

I sanded the little bit of poly finish she had left off.  Then I took some scrapbooking die-cut letters to use as a stencil/template and traced the letters onto the wood in pencil.

We had fun making notes for each other with the letters while we were at it.

I laid the letters on the board and traced them in order.  A few letters were missing so I used the piece of cardboard they came from as a stencil to trace those ones.

Once they were all spaced evenly and traced onto the wood I took an exacto knife and scored the letters into the wood.  These score lines kept the dark stain from bleeding into the letters. 

I used a small paintbrush to apply the stain around the letters.  The edges were not as perfect as I would have liked but scoring them with the exacto knife first kept them pretty sharp.  I used a larger brush to finish the remainder of the surface that was being covered in the dark stain.

I applied three coats of a dark Minwax stain called Jacobean, allowing each coat to dry completely before starting the next.

Once I had the intensity I wanted with the Minwax stain I allowed the piece to dry for a couple days.  Then I went over the entire surface with some Howards Restor-A-Finish to give the unfinished wood (the letters and center) a warm glow.

I love how it looks in my dining room.  Not just any old Lazy-Susan anymore.  No Way!

And remember the kids that hang out here all day, they can practice their ABC's while they eat.  

Plus it will be so much easier to share markers and craft supplies with each other now!

Did I mention that I don't bother using a table runner or table cloth because it would just get destroyed by little kids?  

Well now I have something amazing on my tabletop and I don't even miss those table runners one bit. 

(Okay, maybe a little.)

And yes, that is wine you see in the background.  I'm enjoying some right now as I finish typing this post.  

Don't worry...the kids have all gone home for the night ;)

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