Mom found this cedar chest at the thrift store, and decided it was the perfect thing for the foot of her bed. She'd been talking about getting a bench so she and my dad had a place to sit and put their shoes on, and this one was perfect (because it's a bench + storage!) It was real cedar and in good shape - except for the finish.
I know you can't tell from that top pic, but there were lots of nicks and scratches in it from use, dribbles of black stain down one side, and red and blue paint in several places. On top of those issues - my mom hated the color of the wood and stain. My aunt warned her not to paint it, and my dad swore he would refinish it and stain it darker... but my parent's basement is full of Dad's project (he is Mr. Fixit and always has too much to do!) and we knew it would be a while before this one would get done. So Mom & I took matters into our own hands! (Sorry Dad & Aunt Tammy!)
[For the record - I adore real wood pieces! But if the finish really needs work and the piece doesn't have any sentimental value, then I say paint it! What's the use of throwing another terrible piece of wood furniture "in need of work" in your basement, when a coat of paint will make it beautiful (and useable) again?]
It only took an hour or two to give this chest a couple of coats of paint. Mom was shocked at how well the paint covered (and how quickly it dried!). It got dark pretty soon after that, so we waited to wax it until the next day so we could use the natural lighting to get the color just right. I got up and distressed the piece first (just the edges), followed by a coat of clear wax and dark wax on top. And now Mom has a beautiful bench for the master bedroom!
The 2nd makeover I have is a different kind of chest - a chest-of-drawers to be exact! This piece was once my great-grandmother's, and it has been everywhere with me. College, living with my roomies in Georgia, our first home in Michigan, and now back to Sweet Home Alabama! I was a little sad to see it go, so I went ahead and gave it a makeover so I could choose between keeping it and this piece for our bedroom.
As you can see, it turned out BEAUTIFULLY! I painted it Coco and Old White, and it's been aged with dark wax to give it an antique look. It took several days of thinking and comparing before we could choose between the 2 chests - but in the end the lighter one just worked better in our room.
And so, this beauty is now FOR SALE! If you're in the Birmingham area (or willing to drive here) then this could be yours! She would make a great statement piece for a master bedroom, guestroom, or nursery. You can check out the Craigslist ad for more pictures and info! And if you tell me you saw this blog post, I'll even give you a $10 discount! :)
As I was reading about your dad swearing he would restain it ... my mind was yelling NOOOOO before I finished the sentence :) We know them too well by now.
ReplyDeleteBahahaha! YES!!! I told Mom she had the option of having a finished piece in 2 days, or keeping it in the basement (where projects go to die! HA!) Needless to say she is happy it's DONE! I will give Dad some credit though - he replaced the hinges on the back, so technically he helped finish it! ;)
DeleteActual the refinish job is nice modern decor. If kept the original finish you would have retained antique re-value.
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