River Club resident wisely uses pennies in decoration

RIVER CLUB — Tanya Waxler decided the scratched-up surface of her family’s 9-year-old kitchen table needed a facelift.

For the makeover she solicited the help of a national icon: Abe Lincoln.

In May, she armed herself with more than $25 worth of pennies and began sticking them to the table’s surface. The finished product? A coin-covered table top that offers a new look for the family's daily perch.

“I love it,” Tanya Waxler said. “Everybody on Facebook loves it.”

Waxler came up with the idea to cover the table with coins after her husband, Adam, didn’t take her hints about refinishing the table. After seeing the concept on Pinterest, Waxler armed herself with the 50 or so pennies she had on hand, only to discover they only filled a small corner of the roughly 3.5-by-3.5-foot table. So, she headed to the bank and bought a box of them — $25 worth.

Then, on a day when Adam and their 15-year-old son, Levi, were skiing, Waxler wielded her super glue and began her task. Her first round of business: lining the outer edge of the table with pennies — with Lincoln's face toward the guest.

“It got really boring,” Waxler said.

So she changed the design.

Round two: tails up. Round three: Lincoln upside-down.

After that, she expanded her design, throwing in nickels,  dimes and quarters occasionally and creating a center design of silver coins.

Placing the coins took about four hours total, and then Waxler poured a layer of epoxy on top. The family ate at the kitchen bar counter for two days until the table was ready.

At 56 pennies across, the table holds about 3,100 coins total, although the number isn’t exact. Waxler estimates she used about $30 in coins.

Levi plans to cover the family’s coffee table in coins as a summer project.