Wonderful table covering idea

I just had to share a fabulously simple idea a friend gave me. We have a nice wooden table which we have strived since the kids arrived to protect from their batterings but also while keeping it wipe clean - I am sure you can appreciate that bit! So we have kept it covered with a heat-proof mat thing that we bought which I put poppers on the corners to keep it in place but which quite frankly is pretty ugly!

I had considered buying a laminated tablecloth but my friend gave me a better idea - I went and bought a piece of fabric from Ikea, hemmed it and then bought a piece of polythene to go over the top. The thing I like about this is that I can use whatever tablecloth or fabric I like and the polythene sheet I bought from Longsight Market for £2 a metre!

It now looks nice while being totally wipe clean - total price about £14

Here is the table with the horrid heatproof cover with the kids showing off their eggs they dyed at Easter (kids crafts are just one of the reasons we keep it covered )


And here it is now looking stylish (I could have done with buying the fabric a little longer as it turned out a little short when I hemmed it but I still like how it turned out)

you can just see the polythene sheet over the top

Fantastic idea, Annette! and the tablecloth is lovely too

My table is battered and stained and needs a tablecloth at all times, but they need washed so often and it's a PITA. I got some spotty red oilcloth off ebay for about £6 and it worked really well, except that I got a bit bored of it after a couple of months and have gone back to the cloths, so I must keep an eye out for that polythene stuff!

This is a brilliant idea.

We bought a new table earlier this year and I've also got the same heat protector that you have in your first picture.

I've then got some white pvc and cut it to table cloth size but it's not very nice just having white and it doesn't look good in our room.

This is an excellent solution, thanks for posting it.

great idea and I might just have to pinch that myself.

Fab idea! We have some childproof / waterproof tablecloth stuff but it's very childish.

I think I might have to go and try this to make our dining space look posh in the new house

@Annette, where did you get the green thing - I assume it's to raise Ben's chair up.

@Annette, where did you get the green thing - I assume it's to raise Ben's chair up.

@JabberJabber It is a Kaboost and has been a godsend, we had 2 at one point but Charlotte decided a little while ago she was too big for it. They are brilliant as I hated highchairs and booster seats with all the nooks and crannies they hide food in. Also this means you can just use your normal chair and pop it on and off really easily if you have guests, with it taking up no room.

This is the website but you can buy them in all the usual places like Amazon if you google it and they come in much more subtle colours now http://www.kaboost.co.uk/