Particle Board Furniture Fix

I own a T.V. stand, side tables, and coffee table from Ikea. They are made out of particle board and then covered with dark wood laminate. For the first year or so I loved them. Then I got a cat and his claws scratched the surface of it. We left a big cup of water on the table overnight and came down the next morning to a bunch of bubbles on the surface of the table! Panic set in and I ran and got some towels to dry up the mess but the damage was done. What to do about the bubbles. I let them stay for a while because I had no clue what to do. Any moisture on the table only made them worse. They got bigger and began to crack. Now not only was my table bumpy but it had the particle board showing through too. I decided to take some black pain and cover up the light particle board color underneath but that was only a temporary fix. Eventually I came up with this idea and I think that it will work out great!

Here is a list of the supplies you'll need to fix your table:

• Xacto knife and extra blades
• Wood filler
• Putty knife
• Self-adhesive vinyl sheets (You can get purchase patterned versions too and cover your whole table if it is really badly damaged along the sides as well.
• Black sharpie
• Number two grit sandpaper
  
• Primer or acrylic paint

Wipe down your table really well before beginning. After the table has dried, take the Xacto knife and cut around the bubble. Make sure to get all the way around the raised surface but do not cut far from the bubble because the stuff that has not bubbled is much harder to remove. Once you have cut around the bubble slide your knife under the laminate and lift it off. Then take the knife and shave the particle board until the bubble is completely gone.

The next step will be to take a duster and wipe away all of the excess dust that has gathered on top of your table.

Wash your hands and dry them well. You don't want to get any particles mixed in with the wood filler.

After your hands are dry, use the wood filler accordingly. There will be instructions on the back of the tube or bucket. I did find it helpful to squirt the filler onto my putty knife and then spread it over the hole or crack like butter onto bread. Make sure to use even steady pressure with the putty knife because you want a smooth surface. I also found it helpful to use my finger for some of the smaller spots. You may need to repeat this process on some of the spots to make a level surface.

Let these spots dry for about 15 minutes and then take a damp cloth and wipe away the excess wood filler then let this dry overnight to make sure you have a hard surface.

The next step is to sand it down with your number two sand paper and then paint over the spots with the primer paint. Then to make sure you have a nice smooth surface that is the same color as your table, you can take some paint that matches the color of your table and paint over it.

While the paint is drying you can take this opportunity to cut out your self adhesive vinyl. If you are covering your whole table then you will want to measure it out and make sure that you have enough to cover it. I bought some from JoAnns called Domestic bliss DECOR Decorative trim. They have it in all sorts of colors and patterns. I originally did the dots on my table because the damage wasn't so bad but now I am re-doing it and covering it in this super cute vinyl paper.

With the dots, I used my Cricut to cut out the dots in various sizes. If you do not have a Cricut or a dye cutter, you can just use a bowl or other various round things in your home as a stencil for the different size dots.
After the paint is dry you can peel the paper off the back of the sticker and lay them down. Be sure to use something to smooth out the bubbles. Then just enjoy your beautiful new table!