Dresser & China Cabinet

Hello, hello!!!

I realize it’s been AGES since I’ve posted anything, but although things have been quiet on my blog, I have actually been working away.  Of course, with my kids on summer holidays my painting tends to take a back seat, but I’ve been sneaking out to paint when I have the opportunity.  If you’ve popped over to visit my facebook page you will have already seen these, but I thought I should share them here as well.

A couple of the projects I worked on and completed.

I actually agreed to purchase this dresser after only seeing a picture online.  I was drawn to the unique carved design on the front and the lion-head drawer pulls on the top drawers.

I painted the top a dark espresso with a glossy clear coat.  The bottom was painted white followed with a dark glaze to really draw out the details of the dresser.  The original hardware was updated in an oil rubbed bronze colour.

This next big project was this china cabinet.  I'd had it sitting waiting its turn for too long and it was high time it was refinished!  

 

I stripped the paint off the top of the bottom portion and stained it a darker colour followed by a glossy poly.

 

The remainder of the cabinet was  painted a light grey and then also followed with a darker glaze.  I replaced all the old/damaged hardware with new brushed nickel and removed the dated glass and added a simple hardware cloth.  The original back panel was damaged so I also replaced that with a brand new piece.

Both pieces have been sold.

Thanks for popping by!

 

Sugar and Spice

It’s another desk makeover!  This is the last desk for awhile...at least, I don’t think I have another one buried in my garage right now.

I picked up this cutie last summer and finally dragged it into my garage to work on it. I forgot to take a full before pic, so I contacted the seller I’d purchased it from and she gave me permission to use the original picture she’d sent me.  

It was solid, but needed a bit of a face lift.   

The paint along the top had started to lift and chip away so I decided to spend the time stripping it down with the intention to stain it.  I just love the look of a two-tone piece!  

After spending a fair amount of time stripping away all the paint, I was disappointed to find the wood had some serious discoloration.   

I’m not sure if it had been painted over that way, or if something had somehow gotten under the paint.  After some serious sanding, I was happy to find it was just surface staining and I could continue with my idea of staining it.  I chose to use my favorite chestnut color, English Chestnut by Minwax.  I love the rich deep color.    

First coat

 

Second coat

 After two coats of stain, I finished it with five coats of glossy polyurethane.  

To update the look of the hutch, I chose to remove the two doors.  I found the design slightly odd with the open shelf above them.   

Both the hutch and the body of the desk received coats of primer, crisp white paint and were followed with a glossy clear coat.

I decided I wanted to try something different than my usual “paint everything white” treatment like so many of my furniture pieces usually do.  My inspiration was this gorgeous buffet refinished by Marian, aka Miss Mustard Seed.   

I chose to paint the desk drawers in the same soft blue/green color I used on this little desk chair makeover.  The original hardware was updated with oil rubbed bronze paint.

I'm such a sucker for furniture with curvy little legs!!!

I thought it was only fair to freshen up the inside of the drawers as well with a simple black and white vinyl.

I left the very back of the hutch until last.  I debated whether to just paint it white, the same blue/green as the drawers, or to go with something completely different and add some colorful fabric.  The fabric choice won.  I had this beautiful piece in my fabric stash and it worked perfectly with the painted drawers.   

I cut a new ¼” plywood backing and adhered the fabric.  Once the edges were trimmed, it was attached to the back of the hutch.

I am absolutely thrilled with the way this makeover turned out.  I knew I was taking a chance straying from my usual solid white paint, but I felt this desk could handle it.  I love the way the fabric picks up on the white and blue/green paint colors as well as the glossy wood top.

 

This beauty will soon available in my shop and ready for a new home.

Thanks for stopping by!

 

THE China Cabinet

The china cabinet.  THE china cabinet.  THE EVIL china cabinet!  Where do I begin.  When I first got this piece, I actually thought it would be a fairly quick project.  I loved the look of the detail along the top of the hutch and couldn't wait to get started.  Unfortunately, it took a lot longer than I had anticipated.

  

I started off by removing the front doors and all the hardware.  After sanding it down, I applied a coat of primer.  I already had a few other pieces in my garage I was also working on, so the front deck became another “work space”. 

 

Like the grey buffet I recently finished, I chose to leave the interior of the lower cabinet unpainted.as it was in excellent condition. 

While the main part of the buffet was simple to paint, the doors decided to give me some grief.  I had sanded, primed painted and had just started to apply the clear coat when I realized that the doors were developing some yellowy spots!  It seems that the old original finish was working its way through the primer and paint!  I always use an oil based stain blocking primer to prevent this, but I guess my coverage wasn't adequate enough (serves me right for painting at night in a poorly lit garage) and that darn finish was going to prove it!  I needed to basically start over from step one and sand, prime and paint AGAIN before I could add the clear coat.

This particular piece was custom painted for a friend and she had requested a bright white, but asked if  could replace the glass with chicken wire.  Because I had replaced a previous cabinet glass door with wire with no issues, I thought this would also be a simple job.  It was not.  After I had painted the entire interior, I went to add the wire.   

Because the  upper cabinet was fairly narrow, I had to squeeze my upper body into it at the oddest angles along with my somewhat bulky nail gun.  I’m sure I could have just slapped the wire up and nailed it in place, but being a bit of a perfectionist wanting it to look nice I wanted to make sure all the edges were tucked into the existing groove where the glass panels had originally been.  The wire wasn’t being overly cooperative though and the sharp edges were scratching away at the brand new paint!  I lost track of the number of hours it took to complete as well as the number of times I stormed out of the garage ready to call it quits!  I can’t even begin to express how happy I was to finally get it finished...with only two holes to patch after the staples decided to go THROUGH the wood and out the front of the cabinet!

After repainting most of the interior, the entire piece got a glossy clear coat.   

I felt the original hardware worked with the piece and only needed to be updated with some Oil Rubbed Bronze paint.  

Now I would like to say once the clear coats were finished it was all smoothing sailing from there.  It was not.  When I got the cabinet, one of the glass shelves had unfortunately been broken in transit.  I was a little concerned about what a new one would cost, but was pleased to find out it was going to be less than $30.  I measured the existing shelf and ordered a new one.  After I’d completed the cabinet, I grabbed the new glass shelf, put one end in the cabinet and then...freaked out.  The front opening was TOO SMALL to put the new shelf through!  I tried it at every angle possible and even called my hubby into the garage hoping he could figure out a way I hadn’t yet thought of.  No luck.  AGH!  When I took the shelf out originally, I had already removed the side glass panels and just slid it though there  Of course, with the chicken wire now stapled in place, that was no longer an option!  By this point I was so ready to cry.  My ONLY option was to attempt to pry out the staples on the back panel.  Because it was made of that pressboard-type material, I really hoped it wouldn't be damaged too badly.

Using a hammer, a TINY screw driver and some needle nose pliers, I finally managed to pry out enough staples to allow me to pull back the bottom of the panel just enough to slide the shelf in. 

I slid the shelf in and went to pick it up to put it on the first shelf support.  Oh oh – why was the glass shelf scraping the sides of the cabinet?  I grabbed my tape measure, measured it again....and realized it was ½” TOO LONG!!  ARE YOU KIDDING ME??????????  I grabbed my paperwork and realized I’d somehow given the glass company the WRONG measurements!!!!  I had to run back into town to get the glass “trimmed”.  Fortunately it was a quick fix, but I’m sure they were laughing at me after I left!

After may hours of work and a lot of frustration, here is the finished cabinet!  

This had to be one of the toughest pieces I’ve done, but now that it's finished I can say I am really happy with the way it turned out and I hope it’ll work out well in its new home.

Thanks for popping by!