DIY FAUX GOLD & MARBLE BAR CART

I have been eyeing this bar cart for most of last year. But, let's be real... I was never going to spend that kind of money on that small of a piece of furniture. I am simply too cheap. Fortunately, there are ways to having what you want without having to break the bank. Let me present you with my own DIY version of a gold and marble bar cart!

I was so happy I found this bar cart at a garage sale for $5. It was a steal! Well...maybe not so much since it was in very poor shape (as you can see in the photos below). The lady who owned it before was elderly and unwilling to give it the TLC it desperately needed. One woman's trash, another woman's treasure!

I gave the metal frame a really good cleaning, removed the wood pieces, and spray painted it with Rustoleum Metallic in Gold (two spray cans worth). Just made sure to take my time and do it in small episodes so it would look even.

The wood pieces looked as though they had taken a beating and had water damage, but they could be salvaged. All I did was clean them extra good with soapy water and let them dry out. Once they were clean and ready, I applied marble contact paper. Because they were warped, I had to cut and maneuver the contact paper in a way that it would hug the wood tight. I ended up using extra sticky and thick packing tape on the bottom to help the contact paper stay in place. Since you cannot see the bottom of the wood pieces, I wasn't too worried. Finally, it was time to put the bar cart back together, so I screwed everything back on with new screws after tossing the old, rusty ones.

Originally, I thought about putting on new wheels, but decided against it. Instead I found the perfect little flat feet that really compliment the "marble" perfectly! Now, instead of being a bar cart, it is now a cute decorative stationary table. It has found a new life and I couldn't be happier!

Ta-da! I hope this project inspires you to find something inexpensive and that seems a bit lifeless and transform it into a beautiful piece that you simply adore. Sometimes all that piece needs is a little bit of elbow grease!

What splurge item have you been looking at recently that you are considering DIYing? Leave me a comment below! ☺