Give your little one the perfect space to create with this kid’s craft table! Repurposing a thrift store find is a great way to save money and give your artist space to store their supplies.
If you follow me on Instagram (@artfullyadventuring btw 😉) you know that I loooooooove the thrift store. I think of it as my own budget friendly treasure hunt. Most of what we currently have in our home now has been either thrifted or handmade. Not only is this a great way to save money, but it allows me to save money AND is great for the environment. I actually go almost every week, and never leave empty handed!
When I saw this table at the store I was a little unsure about buying it. As soon as I saw it I knew it would make a great LEGO table, but I wasn’t sure if I had anywhere to put it and at $15 I wasn’t completely sold. I kept shopping and I noticed an employee was putting up reduced stickers and saw that the table was marked down to $4.99! I saw it as thrifted fate and brought it home. My final project ended up totaling $17! Keep reading for the full tutorial and my favorite thrifting tips.
My Favorite Things to Thrift
- Kid’s clothes- Goodwill purchases bins from Target which means brand new Cat and Jack clothes for $.99!
- Books
- baskets and monkey pod bowls for storage and sensory play
- board games
- FURNITURE
Each week I can normally find at least one of these items at goodwill, although I do hit other local stores occasionally as well. My other favorite place is the virtual thrift store: Facebook Marketplace. I have sold a TON of our own gently used items and have gotten many others! I actually have gotten two giant ikea bookshelves, our craft shelves, and end tables for FREE!
Buying Thrifted Furniture
When purchasing previously owned goods it’s always important to inspect them fully. Not only do you want to check how it’s condition by looking for holes, or cracks in the wood beyond repair you also want to check for brands. Sometimes you can grab a cute shirt off the rack and realize it’s a Forever 21 top and you can buy it new for only a dollar more, or see that the Target tv stand you loved is on sale for cheaper on their website.
My table was in decent condition. There were small scratches and nicks but I knew they could be sanded out and painted over. I don’t think it’s actually real wood but it seemed really solid and you know, definitely worth the $4.99!
Making the Kid’s Craft Table
On the way home I stopped my Michael’s to grab chalkboard paint. I actually found some in the clearance section and used an extra 20% coupon so it was only $9! The paint is a little pricey when it’s not on sale so I definitely recommend using a coupon.
Turning this old table into a kid’s craft table was actually super simple. I gave it a simple sanding to scuff it up and gave it two coats of white paint. After letting that dry overnight, I followed the directions on the can and applied two coats of the chalkboard paint to the top of the table. I had to wait 4 hours between each cost but make sure you read the instructions for your can!
The hardest part of this project was waiting the three days for the paint to cure. We wanted to get creating right away! While we waited I set up baskets and bins from the dollar store with magnet tiles, play dough tools, and her morning binder. Once Santa brings her legos they’ll fill in the last spot! The table is set up against the back wall in our living room. I like that it looks so much cleaner than when her smaller desk was there! The shelves on the left have thrifted baskets that organize her drawing utensils. This is actually apart of my huge DIY sewing desk that will have its own post soon!
Using the Kid’s Craft Table
After the three days of drying time had past I covered the entire surface with chalk and wiped it away with a damp cloth. I’m not entirely sure what this does but it was in the instructions and I was determined to make this table work! It’s only been 5 days since the table was completed and we’ve already done soooooo many amazing projects.
Being able to write and erase has been a game changer for our activities. We’ve done letter and shape hunts where she traced each letter as she found them and then said each letter as she erased them. I wrote her name in chalk and she then “wrote” it with play dough. We also did a ton of fall leaf activities! I can see so many learning activities happening here, as well as small world play, and her being able to draw endlessly without using up lots of paper!
I’m so in love with this kid’s craft table and can’t wait to create tons of new projects!
