China Cabinet Craziness

Wow, can't believe it's already been a month since my last post and yet I don't really have much to show for it.  I've got a number of projects on the go, but none of them are quite ready to be revealed...hopefully soon!

I did manage to ALMOST finish a project that I started a few months ago but now it's even closer to being done!  Ha ha.  Does that even make any sense????

A few months ago I came across an online ad for an “Apartment size China Cabinet”.   There was no picture and very few details, but it was local, so I thought I would go see it.    It was bad.  I couldn’t seem to look past the horrible dark brown color, the cobwebs & the dust.  (It was being stored in the owners garage and covered in paint cans and car oil containers).  I actually decided to pass on it and went home empty-handed.   

A week later, I couldn’t get this cabinet off my mind, so I emailed the owner to see if it was still available – it was.  It was just as horrible as I’d remembered, but I managed to get the price down a bit, so I decided to take a chance.

Here it is in its ugly state on our front deck.   

My husband helped me unload it from the van, glanced at it and then gave me “the look”.  Yup, that “why did you buy this ugly piece of crap” look.  I’ve seen it many times. ;)

The original hardware was definitely not helping!

What I did like was the storage though.

I started on it right away by giving it a light sand and a coat of my favourite primer...Zinnser Cover Stain.    It covers everything!!!  I realize now I actually forgot to take a picture of that step.  Oops.  After that, I covered the entire piece in a coat of white satin paint.  Ahhhh...so much better.  I felt it still needed a little something, so I added some crownmolding to the top to give it a little more height and add a little bit of a decorative element.  This was my first attempt with crownmolding and, well, let’s just say wood filler and I have become good friends.

After giving it a 2^nd & 3^rd coat of white, I added a clear coat and moved it into our living room for our electronics and a few higher shelves for me to decorate that would be out of reach of little fingers..  It sat like this for 2 months until I finally finished painting the doors this week to add to the bottom.  The doors had a, um, “unique” block design on them.  Shall we look again?

I hated it.  The inside was very simple and I much preferred that look, so I turned then “inside out” instead.   I would still like to add some beadboard to the front panels to dress them up a little more, but that will be at a later date.

I decided to keep the original drawer pulls as I found them to be a little unique and don't mind the way they look now against the white paint.  I added some glass antiques knobs I had on hand for the doors though and for now, I’m happy with the way it looks.

It’s the perfect spot to tuck away our kids dvds and the extra blankets we like to curl up under when we watch a movie.

So much better now, isn't it?  Thanks for stopping by!

Cristina