The first nightstand is complete. It looks pretty darn good, if I do say so myself. I used a total of three layers of stain to get the desired shade I was going for. I used Minwax Polyshades in Bombay Mahogany.
I love the color, and the stain goes on pretty evenly, even when I am dripping all over the place. It is very important to read and follow the directions on the can when you are using any stain. The results will be fantastic. I opted to use a clean lint-free rag to apply the stain - brushes, stain and me do not mix - I always leave brush strokes, no matter how hard I try not to.
Once I let the final coat dry, I coated the entire nightstand with Minwax Paste Finishing Wax. It is easy to use - just take a clean, lint-free cloth (for me it was cut-up old t-shirts) and coat the piece you are working on in a thin layer. Let sit for 10-15 minutes, then buff out with a clean cloth or a buffer (if you have one - I do not).
I picked wax as opposed to any kind of polyurethane coating because I wanted to keep it simple, and I have already used this product on a dresser I made over into my kitchen island. The final feel is satiny-smooth, and it protects the stain (or paint) from chipping with use. I really love Minwax products - they are affordable, and very easy to
use - even for a beginner like me. You can check out their stuff here.
The final product, with the newly-polished brass handles, looks awesome!
BEFORE:
AFTER:
I didn't think I would like the finished product, but I was wrong. The nightstands were a pain in the rear due to so many inside corners, but the dressers and the headboard, foot board and mirror will be a piece of cake after this. It's not perfect, but I think the little imperfections here and there add to the character.
I will check back in once I have started working on my next project.
More to come!
I can't believe the bargain I found today. I scored two barrel chairs for $20 for the pair.
Yes, $20 for the pair.
And they are in pretty darn good condition too.
I am going to re-do these beauties with a fresh coat of paint and some new fabric for the seats.
I am going to shop for fabric first. That will help me to decide what color to paint them.
These chairs represent what will hopefully be the beginning of my own business. My first official purchase for Affordable Treasures.
Aren't they cool? Man, I love Craigslist!
First coat of stain is on. I'm not quite sure I like it.
Stain is very tricky to work with. Every stroke shows if not applied right, and the corners are a bear to get to. My hope is that with a couple more coats it will all even out.
I will post more when I have the finished product.
I started sanding the pieces I am going to stain. I wasn't sure how much (or how little) I needed to sand off the original stain, so I did some homework first. I can't believe how many blogs and websites are out there dedicated to up-cycling and living frugally! It's totally refreshing to see, and helps folks like me just starting down this road.
I found a couple very helpful sites on re-finishing and painting furniture here and here. There are a couple different approaches on painting furniture, so I decided to go with the first site's instructions. It just seems to me that sanding a piece down first will allow the primer (if you are painting) or the stain to better bond with the wood.
In case you haven't met her, here is my favorite tool - Suzie the sander.
She is my first power tool. I have to say, my husband loves Porter Cable tools, and I do too. Most of his tools are cordless, but Suzie plugs in, which is just fine with me. I picked this sander because after trying a few others, this one had the most comfortable grip for my hands. You can definitely tell most tools are geared for men - I could hardly wrap my hands around other company's sanders.
So, I started with one of the night stands (there are two). After removing the hardware and the drawer, I sanded all the old stain off. It was not easy - the pieces are older, and the stain job was a good one. The nightstand now looks like this:
Once all the other pieces are sanded down as well, I will use this little guy as the guinea pig and start staining him first. I have a beautiful color stain I have used elsewhere in the house (for other projects) and I want to use it on the entire bedroom set.
I will post initial pics one I start staining.
I have been looking for a while for a solution to polishing brass without losing all the patina, and also without using harsh chemicals. I prefer to use more natural methods when I can - not only is it a better choice for the environment, but they can also save some green - cash, that is. I found a great option here.
Lemon juice. Who knew it could polish brass, too? The trick is to make sure what you have is brass, and not just brass-plated. You can tell by using the magnet trick - if the magnet sticks, it's brass-plated. If it doesn't, well then you have the real deal.
So, I took all the hardware off the shorter dresser, and got to work. I used a bowl of lemon juice (100% juice - bottled), a bowl of warm water with a bit of dish soap it in to rinse off the juice, a towel to thoroughly dry off the handle when completed, and a toothbrush. I soaked each handle for about five minutes in the lemon juice before attacking with the toothbrush. Once I had gotten each handle to the look the way I wanted, I did a quick rinse-off in the warm water, and thoroughly dried each handle when done.
The results were amazing.
The top handle is pre-scrub. The bottom is post-scrub. I love how the handle didn't become completely polished - I still want some of the patina left on them, and it worked like a charm. I chose to use a toothbrush so I did not scratch the metal in any way. I have a heck of a lot of handles left to polish.
More to come once sanding is complete.
I find the concept of up-cycling to be most intriguing, and one I heartily support. I love to see an older piece of furniture, maybe one that is extremely ugly or just very plain, and re-imagine it as something beautiful. I am a bit of a novice, and so I am learning as I go.
Right now, I am working on a bedroom set that is quite nice, but had water damage to the surface stain, and to the wood of one drawer. The handles are real brass, and in need of a bit of polishing. The mirror was dropped, so the wood needs to be repaired and the glass part itself needs to be replaced. Here's the set.
My plan is to sand everything down, repair what needs to be repaired, shine up the handles, and stain the set dark - maybe mahogany. I will post pics as I go to keep you updated, but as I work a full-time job, the time I get to work on the pieces is relegated to the occasional evening and weekends.
