Waterfall Nightstand

Waterfall Nightstand Before

This adorable nightstand was the last piece of the waterfall collection of furniture which completed the bedroom set we refinished and restored. Unlike the art deco nightstand, this one was lightweight, with gorgeous woodgrain hiding beneath the watermarks and rings on the top and a few minor scratches on the sides. But it had great bones, so to do it justice, needed carefully detailed stripping. Because of the curved edge in the waterfall furniture style, refinishing is time consuming work, but well

Waterfall Nightstand After

worth it.

The grooves on the outer edges of this piece was where the old stain accumulated once stripper was applied so I used a wood carving tool and carefully scraped out all the extra gunk (that's what I call it!) This made it easier to sand and ultimately stain with the golden pecan stain I selected to match the other furniture in this set, which was a set of dressers a headboard and footboard.

This nightstand was my favorite piece because it was cute and tiny, thus easier to handle than the larger furniture items. I could pick it up and place it on my work table (saving my back in the process) so I could get a better look at the work that it required.

Waterfall Headboard and Footboard

Waterfall Headboard Before

Although getting the "before" photos of this headboard was a bit tricky because of where it was located at the time, it shows enough to see the wear and scratching that had happened over the many years of being used.

Waterfall Headboard After

This headboard matched the waterfall dressers and nightstand in this bedroom set with matching "V" shaped veneer in the center and decorative wood panels that were set in on each side. A rather large piece, this headboard required refinishing on both the inside and the outside to do it justice. It required many hours of stripping and then sanding, using various grits of sandpaper to best prepare the newly exposed surface for stain.

As in the other items of furniture, I close golden pecan stain to replicate the original color and bring out the luster and gleam of the wood beneath. The results were awesome! Furniture of this era is well worth preserving and holding onto because as they say, "they just don't make them like they used to!"

Waterfall Footboard Before

The footboard had the actual waterfall feature, the curved top, and required a lot more preparation than the headboard because it had water damage on the interior side and some broken veneer here and there. Using a hot, dry iron, I was able to heat up the original glue and flatten the lifted, curling veneer enough so that it lay flat.

For the rest of the veneer that didn't want to flatten out, I carefully applied wood glue through a wood syringe (which allows you to tuck the glue into small places), and used many clamps to secure the veneer until the next day, when I was able to remove them and proceed with the stripping and sanding. Using an iron is also how you would completely removed old, damaged veneer by keeping the iron on the wood and moving it slowly while you follow it with a sharp putty knife and lift the old veneer off. It works well, but requires patience and attention to detail.

Waterfall Footboard After

The footboard, like the dressers, took a long time to refinish, but it looked fabulous when it was done.

1940's Hutch Makeover

Hutch Before

Hutch After

This 1940's hutch caught by eye at a local antique shop here in Marine City. I fell in love with the great lines and gentle curves of this unique piece of furniture. A plain glass door was functional enough, but I could envision something much more suited to this beauty, so I added a leaded glass panel with bevels and glue chip glass to enhance the hutch adding classic, timeless styling.

With relish, I peeled off hideously sticky contact paper circa 1965 from the interior and painted the shelves with serenity blue chalk paint to give it a modern flair and fresh appeal to today's contemporary styles. I replaced the broken back with a section of bead board, which added vertical lines and created additional texture. It looked great! The exterior was in overall terrific shape, but needed refinishing, no easy task. Section by section, I carefully detailed
and stripped, using my special set of tools to remove many years of old finish which hid the beautiful cherry beneath.