Fab Furniture Flippin Contest Entry: No Math, No Measure Geometric Design Table

I had so much fun serving as a guest judge for the Fab Furniture Flippin’ Contest a few months ago that I asked if I could join the group as a contestant. These ladies are awesome! Every month they pick a new theme and line up a new sponsor who gives away a fabulous prize to the artist who creates the best furniture project.

Who wouldn’t want to be part of all that fun?

This is my first entry into the Fab Furniture Flippin’ Contest and I couldn’t be more excited about this month’s sponsor: General Finishes.

General Finishes manufactures some of the best stains and top coats on the DIY market. Their High Performance Top Coat comes highly recommended as a super-durable, non-yellowing sealer for paint projects.

I was excited to try it out on this project.

Please note: General Finishes provided me with a free quart of product to complete my entry.

Thank you, General Finishes!

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I got so excited over the contest and the sponsor and the free can of top coat that I did not pay much attention to this month’s theme: Geometric Design.

Geometric.

As in Geometry.

As in Math.

Whoa. I’m really not good at Math.

I don’t know a hypotenuse from a hole in the ground.

Heck, I don’t even like to measure much for my projects. (I’m a Word Person!) How was I going to create a geometric design, scale it to fit on this table and—most importantly—make it look awesome?

Sure, I could do a stencil, but that seemed too easy. Then the Northern Virginia Community College catalogue came in the mail—with a cool geometric design on the cover. Inspiration struck! Those were just squares (like my table!) with diagonal lines criss-crossing through it to make triangles. It took me a few tries on paper, but I finally figured out my

No Math, No Measure Geometric Design

I started by painting the base of the table with Dixie Belle Paint, the new chalk and mineral paint we are carrying at our shop, All Things New Again in Leesburg, Virginia. I used two colors: black Midnight Sky and The Gulf, a dreamy swirl of green-blue.

Here’s the No Math, No Measure Part.

(Pay attention, Word People!)

STEP 1: Take a straight edge long enough to cover your entire surface. I used a big level. Draw a diagonal line from corner to corner.

STEP 2: Draw a second diagonal line to connect the other two corners. You should have a big X on the tabletop.

You just figured out the center point of the table—

without measuring an inch. Woo hoo!

STEP 3: Now come back and draw two more lines: a vertical line straight down the center point and a horizontal line straight across the center point.

These are perpendicular lines—two lines that intersect to form a right angle.

Whoa! That little factoid just popped into my head. See? I do remember a little something-something from 10th grade Geometry class! My teacher, Mrs. Swanson, would be so proud.

Now squint your eyes and look. You have also created four distinct squares within the larger square of the tabletop. I highlighted one here so you can see it better.

Here’s the fun part. Look at each little square you just created. There’s already a diagonal line down one side.

STEP 4: Take your straight edge and draw a criss-crossing line connecting the other two corners. Do the same for all four squares.

STEP 5: Draw lines straight across the table connecting the center points of all of those little squares-within-a-square you just created. Here’s a graphic. It’s kind of like a big Tic Tac Toe Board.

This gives you a cool pattern that will pop when you fill it in with a contrasting color of paint. Just paint every other section like a checkerboard. I penciled a “B” onto the black triangles and taped them off in sections, working my way around the table with the black paint. Here’s my design:

You can keep going after Step 5 to create more intricate patterns simply by drawing more lines. Play around with triangles and squares. Play around with adding more colors. Make the borders of the shape-within-a-shape in the center thicker. It really is fun once you get into it.

Here are a few other patterns I came up with on my scrap paper. (Pay no attention to my crappy coloring. The artistic process is messy sometimes!)

I finished my table by sealing it with the General Finishes High Performance Top Coat. It went on smoothly and—best of all—it did not have a strong odor at all. I paint in my kitchen so I can’t stand stinky products. This was great.

Here it is all finished …

My No Math, No Measure, Geometric Design Table!

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And if you really want to know what a hypotenuse is … it is the longest side of a right-angled triangle, the opposite side of the right angle.

OK—I didn’t magically remember that one. I Googled it.

Sorry, Mrs. Swanson.

~ Courtney

All Things New Again is a family-owned furniture and paint boutique located in Leesburg, Virginia about an hour or so west of Washington, D.C. We offer our own eclectic brand of hand painted furniture, paint for your next DIY project and home decor. Check out our schedule of fun paint classes and workshops. No prior painting experience needed! And please stop by for a cup of coffee the next time you are in town.

We always have a lot of fun!