Transform a Traditional Coffee Table into a Mid-Century Modern Masterpiece! - Sponsored Post

Check out what this Mod Mom was doing in LA a few weeks ago with my friends at Cabot Woodcare and Kin Community!  We took a traditional coffee table and made it into a mid-century modern gem! 

I had the pleasure of using Cabot Premium Wood Finish -- in Maple tint -- and was so happy with not only the rich color, but how simple it was to apply.  The color and the protective polyurethane are all in one so you don't have to apply the stain first then apply the protective finish.   Best of all, there's no harsh smell.  I've used my fair share of smelly finishes and this is not one of them!  

INSTRUCTIONS

Materials: 

Coffee Table (one you have hanging around your home, or one you can pick up for a steal at a thrift shop/garage sale, or a pre-cut piece of wood at your local hardware store) 

Cabot Interior Premium Wood Finish in a Clear Base, tinted to 'Maple'

Tarp

Paint Brushes

Sand Paper (very fine or 300+ grit) and rag

Water to wash brushes

Electric Drill 

16" Hairpin Legs (widely available online by searching hairpin legs)

Screws

Steps by Step Process:

1. Use a coffee table you have around the house, or one that maybe you've found at the thrift store. If it is not bare wood, you will need to sand the existing finish down to the bare wood before you start. (Alt: Buy pre-cut wood from a home improvement store for the table top if you don't have a coffee table you'd like to transform within reach.) 

2. Remove the base of the old coffee table from the top and set the base aside (Or use it as a workbench for the next step)

3. Using your choice of Cabot Premium Wood Finish, apply the finish to the top of the coffee table with a brush using long, even brush strokes moving from one end of the table to the other. Do not use a cloth to apply. 

4. Wait roughly two hours for the first coat of finish to dry. When it's dry to the touch, use a very fine sandpaper and go over the table top running the paper WITH the grain of the wood.

5. Use a cloth to wipe away residue/dust left over from sanding.

6. Add a second coat to ensure the table's finish is smooth, rich, and protected. If the color isn't deep enough, you can apply additional coats until you get to the color you desire. Allow to dry again.

7. When the table top is dry, flip it over so you're looking at the underside of the table top and install your hairpin legs using wood screws.

8. After the legs are installed, flip the table right side up, inspect whether or not there are any spots that are rough. Again, use a very fine sandpaper to lightly go over those spots and test to feel if the table top is as smooth as you would like it to be. Wipe off dust and apply wood polish. You now have a gorgeous new, mid-century, modern-style coffee table. 

FTC Disclaimer: This is a sponsored video although the ideas and projects are our own. Thanks for watching, conference calling, insurance

American-made, Ready To Assemble Storage Now Available for $225-$299!!

The fact that we just launched ready-to-assemble designs like the AJ Toy Box, seen above, might not look like such a big deal but for this little guppy who swims alongside king fish in the sea of the kids furniture market, it really is!! 

Here's why...

Many of our competitors started with at least a million in capital when they launched their businesses.  That's pretty normal because in order to be competitive in the furniture market and be able to retail your items at prices the general public can afford, you have to produce your furniture over seas.  It's a sad reality right now, one that I hope will change in the near future.  In order to produce overseas, depending on the products, you need something like $200K  loan to get your goods produced and shipped over on containers.  If you do that, you get to retail them for A LOT less than those of us producing furniture in the US.  refinance The US furniture production market is much more expensive because we in the US believe in paying people who are doing the work a decent wage.  And we should!!  So costs to produce here are higher. 

We know that our furniture is not cheap.  We'd really like to make it less expensive but manufacturing costs and keystoning (selling your goods to a retailer who doubles the wholesale cost to get the retail cost) keep our hands tied with our existing line.  With that said, we put our heads together and came up with a plan to produce designs in the US that would would be ready-to-assemble; therefore, a little cheaper than our heirloom quality, fully constructed items.  And it worked!  We couldn't be happier to have partnered with a family shop - Spiceland Wood Products - in Spiceland, Indiana who specializes in RTA construction.

Sometimes I feel like a little guppy and other times that little train that is still slowly chugging up the hill.  Maybe we are both but one thing is for sure, we are SOOOOO happy we can actually offer eco-friendly, ready-to-assemble, storage options that are less expensive than our other offerings.

If you love clean-lined, modern style, both the Just Plain Square and the AJ Toy Box might be just what you're looking for! 

30% OFF Owyn and Maude Toy Boxes THIS WEEK ONLY! 8/16-8/23

Maude Toy Box/Book Cubby regularly $450 -
ON SALE FOR $315 until 8/23!!

Happy End of Summer all you lovely parents out there!!  As usual, we were ALL ready for school to start when it did.  And to celebrate, we decided to have a 30% off sale on Owyn Toy Box and Maude Toy Box.  Stash all those new things they are bringing home from school/preschool in these gorgeous, handmade storage pieces.

TO get the discount, simply go to the links below and purchase.  No code needed!  I just changed the pricing on both the Owyn and Maude to reflect the discount.

Here are so quick links to get you there super fast!

Also, keep an eye out for two new toy boxes debuting on MMF.com only in the coming days!  The AJ TOY BOX and JUST PLAIN SQUARE are our first "ready to assemble" designs MMF which will sell for less than our heirloom items!  We have always wanted to sell our furniture at reasonable prices but our commitment to manufacturing in the US makes it very hard to compete pricing from  those manufacturing overseas.  But we figured out a way to manufacture ready-to-assemble, eco-friendly furniture right here in the USA at prices that are more moderate.  You put them together at home and reap the benefits of lower pricing!!

Those items will only be available on MMF.com in order to keep the retail price as low as possible.

In the meantime, snap up an Owyn or Maude at a VERY discounted price and know you're not only buying an heirloom piece for your home, but you're also helping American family businesses grow and thrive!!

And you can even put your kid in the toy box!!  HA!  (That's my cutie pattootie nephew Chase when he was a little tike inside his toy box.)

Manufacturing In the US

Something struck me today that I want to explain how manufacturing works for furniture in the US.  And how pricing works in general.  We feel so blessed to have the partnership we do with our Amish manufacturer but with that said, it's still just not cheap to manufacture here in the States.  It's why most of your favorite furniture stores produce outside of the US.  I also want to explain how pricing works when you buy an item from a retail store.  It's something I never understood before I started selling my own furniture. I hope it's helpful!

Here's a breakdown costs to produce one toy box:

US-made - range is $110-$150 per toy box
Outside of the US (China, etc)  = range is $30-$50 per toy box.

Now, when you manufacturer, you sell to retail stores.  Those retail stores are charged a wholesale price by the manufacturer.  So let's say a toy box costs us $120 to make plus shipping then we have to charge close to double that to make our profit on it.  So we sell the toy box to retail stores for around $220-$240.  Then the retail store does something called "keystoning" where they expect to make double what they paid so they have to charge $440 for a toy box to make $220 on it.  Margins for retail stores are typically 50% otherwise they won't sell your items.

Like I mentioned before, we ADORE our Amish manufacturers.  They do amazing heirloom work that is shipped to you completely assembled (except for screw on legs).  This is not common in our market.  Most toy boxes are manufactured RTA (Ready to Assemble) so you have some work to do when it hits your doorstep. 

While we believe wholeheartedly in our products and their "grow with your child/heirloom quality," we also understand that those price-points are unattainable for some. We are working on creating a new line of furniture that will be ready to assemble so it will ship flat-packed and therefore we can lower the pricing a bit.   This way, you have the mod mom look and style but have the option to purchase designs that are RTA at a lower cost. They will still be made in the USA using eco-friendly products but because you put them together and they ship in smaller boxes, we can offer more affordable options.

I hope this helps to make clear what I truly didn't understand until I went into business selling goods.  We're working our little tails off over here to expand our lines and provide several different pricepoint options. We are so thankful you have supported us since 2007 and are truly excited to share what else we have up our sleeve in the coming months!!

Facebook Fan 20% off Sale - Now through Tuesday, May 28th!

We've had so much support since day one.  And we feel the love every day on Facebook.  THANK YOU!!

Check out our  sales and inside scoop.

A BIG "Honey Do" List

If you've been hanging around lately, you'll notice some changes!  And BOY are we excited! We've been talking about the new collections, the new partnerships, and the new web design for a little while but I haven't talked that much about the people behind all of it.  And without the people, there is no expansion.

Today, I want to feature my husband, Scott, our VP of Business Development and Design. 

I learned this past year that trying to expand without a lot of help was insane and practically impossible.  I was still drowning in the day-to-day MMF work that has to be done to keep the business running.  Enter my insanely creative husband.  As "luck" would have it this past year, he had more time to devote to helping me with the business than ever before in marriage.  That is, when he's not doing his own contract work with international tech companies.   And lucky for me, he still has time.

Scott is a one of those creative genius types you kinda wanna punch just a tiny bit.  He can draw, sing, paint, act, design, and write.  In fact, it was a bit of a shock to both of us when I started designing and building furniture because he's always been known as the more artistic one of the two of us.  I can sketch like an 5th grader where as he can sketch and it looks amazing.  I would always ask his opinions about new toy boxes emerging from my garage workshop and he would agree or disagree and then I would do it my way.  Ha!  He even helped me design the Bertie Toy Box one summer while he was in between corporate jobs. Over the past six months, he's helped to design new pieces like the Wes Rocker, worked to create partnership opportunities with other very talented artists, helped retool current items, and the list goes on and on.  I really can't imagine doing this without him!  Funny, because when I was building all of them myself for the first four years, we kept it very separate.  Mod Mom was mine.  He had his stuff.  It worked for both of us back then but recently we've been guided to put our heads together and I'm so happy we are doing just that.

And we haven't killed each other yet!!  (Married couples will really understand that, especially those who work together.)

 Big thanks to Scott for all he does every single day to make Mod Mom what we know it can be.  Turns out Mod Dad and Mod Mom work quite well together.  I'm a quick learner...it only took me 5 years to figure that out!

Next post...our VP of Operations, Barry Parsons and Samantha Cobos, our Director of Textile Design!

How I got on Shark Tank! Pre-Production Video Submission Included!

I've been hearing that Shark Tank is casting now and wanted to share the video I had to submit after getting through the initial vetting by Shark Tank producers.  I also wanted to share a little about my experience going through the casting process in hopes, if you're looking to apply, it might help you!

I can't believe that I filmed Shark Tank back in 2010!!  I'm like one of the Shark Tank grandmas now!  Back then, I was fortunate enough to be able to look to Season One folks like Lori Lite from Stress Free Kids and Michelle from Send A Ball for tips on even just getting past the the first round of cuts.  I studied their pitches and hoped so much I would a. make it to filming and b. not fall on my face during filming!

After the initial question and answer session with a producer they asked if I would put together a video submission that answered many questions.  So I took a shower, put on my go-to dress with jeans under it.  Remember when that was popular?  And I nervously did the best I could to answer ALL of the questions they wanted me to cover.  My husband was the camera man and my dirty garage was the backdrop.  You can see the finished product below. :) Thankfully, this video and a VERY long questionaire got me into the finals where producers asked roughly 40+ entrepreneurs to come to LA to film their pitches.  I think, that season, only roughly 25 of us who filmed actually saw our pitches air on ABC.  I think back then, roughly 20,000 people submitted initial applications online or through casting calls.  Then it gets whittled down and whittled down some more.

To all the folks who have submitted the initial info or visited a casting call, kudos for you for putting yourself out there!! 

My advice for you, if you're going to submit or are going through the process.....

• Believe in yourself and your product.  Be yourself and listen to your intuition regarding every part of the process.  I went into it thinking I could really get some help with funding my company.  So that was focus.  
• Shark Tank is a TV show, so while they're looking for good products and entrepreneurs, they are looking for a good story that will play well on TV.   Remember this when you're speaking with producers.  Hardship, underdog stories make for great TV.  There was no faking involved in our hardship story as we were in a tough position with lay offs so again, just be yourself when you tell your story. But know they will play up ever angle that they feel will make good TV. 
• Everyone will give you notes and suggestions.  Go with your gut.  You have one shot in the tank and if you feel uncomfortable with what production would like you to do, say so.  Initially, it was thrown around that I'd wear something ala a white tank top and jeans.  I didn't feel comfortable with that.  The business experience I had is equally as important as the carpentry/design work so I compromised.  I said I'll wear heels and a dress but I'll also wear a tool belt.  
• Practice practice but then give it up to the powers that be.  If you are prepared with your numbers and your pitch is memorized (no notes are allowed in the Tank), then relax and know they are just people, too.  I was much more nervous before the doors swung open than I was when I finally made it out to Sharks to deliver my pitch. 
• Even if things don't go the way you want them to, don't be discouraged.  There are so many opportunities out there and this is just one of them.  And if you do get on Shark Tank but don't get a deal or do get a deal, know that your company just got a 15 minute commercial during prime time.  That is priceless.

Biggest piece of advice is if you feel it in your heart that you want to submit for Shark Tank, do it.  In my life, the stuff I've been most afraid to tackle has always been the most worthwhile.  You just need a few seconds of courage.  Then about an hour of courage in the Tank but regardless, by that point, if you make to filming, you will have lots of support and if you truly believe in what you're doing, it will show no matter what the outcome.