Spindle Chairs, Oh My!

Spindle Captain Chair
Before Refinishing

Spindle Captain Chair
After Refinishing

I'll be brutally honest. I absolutely do not like to refinish anything with spindles. Simply because spindles require a great deal of time due to their shape and amount of detail. When it comes to chairs, that translates into many, many hours of tediously time-consuming work. There is just no way to do it quickly. Stripping just one chair can take up to a week and that's if if you work on it daily.

For this set of chairs (two captain, two regular), the entire refinishing process took several weeks, because there were so many spindles on the top and bottom of each chair.

Bar Stool Gets New Upholstery

Bar Stool Before

Bar Stool After

This bar stool was in desperate need of new fabric, otherwise it had great bones. The fabric was circa 1980 and had seen better days. Ripped on the seat it needed replacing.

The wood was teak as it was originally used on a boat. Still in great condition and sturdy, this heavy chair only needed new an updated look.

In order to reupholster the seat, I removed the arms and flipped the chair upside down to remove the staples which held the old, outdated and very stiff fabric in place. The foam was yellowed, but otherwise still usable. I decided to use the old fabric as a template, which needed to be taken apart so I could design a new seat with the existing fabric to get the right measurements, which is essential to get a good fit. It was much easier than I thought it would be and I was satisfied with the way the new fabric hugged the seat perfectly.

Two-Tier Antique Mahogany Table

Table Before Repair

Table After Repair & Refinishing

This table came to me as you see in the photo on the right, with three legs that were broken, the center piece which held them together was missing on two out of the three legs.

These missing sections had to be reconstructed using a template, traced from the legs themselves. This was an lovely antique two-tier table commonly seen during the 1920's and 1930s. Many people remember these tables in their grandparents homes, so they now hold a special place in our hearts along with all those memories. Commonly used for knick-knacks, plants, collectibles and many other

Tiny Rocking Chair

Rocking Chair Before

Chairs are the most commonly restored and refinished items that we receive. Chairs come in many styles, sizes, shapes and are made of too many types of wood to list, but they have one thing in common; they are not easy to refinish due to the many surfaces they tend to have. This tiny rocking chair once belonged to a little girl who has since grown up and wanted to preserve the many memories she likely had while enjoying the time she spent in this rocking chair.

Rocking Chair After

She may have sat by a window and enjoyed a Nancy Drew mystery novel as she rocked in time to the suspenseful mystery unfolding before her. Perhaps she stacked her stuffed animals on this chair to "keep it company" while she was at school. No matter how she used this little gem, likely she enjoyed it as a child and now as an adult, would like to see her own children make their own memories. This was a generational rocking chair meant to be passed down. As it where, the rocking chair had a couple of broken spindles in the center of the back. In fact, the entire chair came apart upon closer inspection, so repairing and gluing the broken spindles in place was the first thing that had to be done.

French Dining Chairs Reupholstered

Armchair Before

If you have ever wondered why reupholstering a chair is costly, this is why. It's a LOT of work! Today I finished working on six dining room chairs which included two French armchairs and four regular chairs with caning for the back. The French armchairs had a padded back which was open (so the fabric was actually on front and back) as well as the seat. I was uncertain exactly how the fabric was attached to the chair, as there were no nails or staples visible. The reason for that was that the staples were hidden in a 1/2" deep groove, which was created with a router so the welting could be pushed into it.

Antique Cedar Chest Revival

Cedar Chest After Refinishing

One of my favorite projects to refinish and restore is a beautiful cedar chest such as this lovely antique. The best part of this restoration was that it had retained all the original details such as the four vertical rows of rope braiding that embellished the front as well as the decorative trim surrounding the lid and another row of trim along the bottom. The chest was in pretty good shape overall, with surface scratches marring its top. Otherwise, it was in excellent condition.

Unlike other cedar chests I've done, this one had separate ball type feet which lifted it off the ground, allowing for easy relocating while working on it. Unfortunately, all that detail requires a great deal of time to remove the old finishes which requires a lot of time, patience and the right tools.

Cedar Chest Before Refinishing 

Never underestimate the power of an old toothbrush! Yes indeed a toothbrush is a key element to removing all that yucky, sticky residue that clings to the wood after you brush on the nasty stripper.

A good stripper will burn your skin on contact, so wearing gloves is essential while stripping. (I also keep a clean bucket of water on hand just in case I need to stick my hand into it. Ah, the burn!) A toothbrush, wood carving tools and a good brass brush are a great combination of tools to remove gooey varnish from all those nooks and crannies that would otherwise be impossible to reach. The ultimate goal is to reveal bare wood, that once sanded, is ready for staining. For this lovely cedar chest I used red mahogany stain and semi-gloss polyurethane, which brought out the natural beauty of the wood, showing its grain.

Cedar Chest After

Cedar Chest Before

It never ceases to amaze me just how awesome the wood looks once all the old finishes are removed and the lovely wood beneath is revealed. This was definitely one of my favorite cedar chests to work on because it had all those lovely details, which shows off its unique qualities and of course, the lovely craftsmanship that went into making it.

For other cedar chests I've refinished, you can click on these links:
http://finalefurniture.blogspot.com/2016/08/1948-lane-cedar-chest_22.html
http://finalefurniture.blogspot.com/2017/04/decorative-walnut-antique-cedar-chest.html
http://finalefurniture.blogspot.com/2017/05/solid-cedar-chest-with-copper-accents.html
http://finalefurniture.blogspot.com/2015/04/elegant-cedar-chest-revival.html
http://finalefurniture.blogspot.com/2013/12/1945-lane-waterfall-cedar-chest.html
http://finalefurniture.blogspot.com/2012/06/my-waterfall-cedar-chest.html
http://finalefurniture.blogspot.com/2014/10/solid-cedar-chest.html

Beautiful Antique Buffet Refinished

Buffet Before Refinishing

This was one of my favorite pieces to restore. It had been in the family for years belonging to a beloved grandmother who had passed on, so I really wanted to do it justice. Other than a few minor surface scratches on the top, the rest of this buffet was in amazing condition with everything still in tact. It was a fairly large piece, tricky to load in the truck.

Buffet After Refinishing

I love working on mahogany and cherry wood. The top of this
buffet was cherry while the rest of it was solid mahogany. The four front legs had detailed spindles which required a great deal of time and effort to strip thoroughly. I removed the back upper edge so the veneer that had been peeling away could be glued back in place before it was securely glued into the original holes.

Two front drawers and two cabinets, one on each side, gave this buffet a nice, balanced look. I chose to use dark walnut stain with satin polyurethane after everything was stripped and sanded to bare wood, always the first step of any refinishing project. The top received four coats of polyurethane for extra protection and durability.

Brand new hardware made all of our hard work "pop" and looked beautiful with the newly refinished surface. And boy, did it ever look great once it was all done.

Dresser Chalk Paint Makeover

Dresser Before Chalk Paint

Dresser After Chalk Paint

It's hard to believe that this lovely oak dresser was once used to store tools. It had been in a garage for many years being used as a tool bench and work surface so there was a bit of warping, but overall it was still in great shape. Although it had seen better times, the bones and structure were still good and we knew we could make it pretty again. We were both up for the challenge. (This was the last item in the "chalk paint makeover" using Annie Sloan's chalk paint.)

This dresser required some carpentry work before any painting could be done. The top had been split into two pieces, so Jim had to "biscuit" the two sections together and clamp them tight, then fill in the seams so that once painted, you would never know it had been broken. The left front leg had its back part broken off completely, so Jim re-engineered a new leg section, forming it perfect to match the right leg which was still in tact. Some of the drawers didn't open and close very well, so they required a bit of shaving on the table saw.

After he was done with his part of the job, I then sanded the sides and got busy painting. For this dresser, I mixed three parts graphite with one part French Linen which yielded a gorgeous color of a slate-ish gray, perfect for this particular piece of furniture. The thick, rich paint went on smoothly and looked terrific. I knew I would love this piece, since I just knew it would take on the largest transformation of the other pieces I had painted. Using clear wax on the entire dresser with black only on the bottom for accent was just enough to give it a sultry, rich look and a durable surface

The new brass drawer pulls provided the last touch of "bling," which was absolutely the crowning jewel for this amazing old girl. Wow!

Bench Gets White Chalk Paint

Bench Before Paint

A bench such as this one provides a great place to sit practically anywhere in your  home. But like with many pieces of furniture, after a while you tend to overlook this well-loved item. You may feel a bit guilty because you still love it, but know it needs that special something. In this case, the bench was destined to be a brand new look, which was accomplished by applying Annie Sloan's "Old White" chalk paint and finished with Annie Sloan's clear wax to seal it.

Bench After Paint

By its nature, this bench was a very labor intensive item to work on because of the amount of surface area, and of course, the spindles, which are difficult to paint. Spindles are my least favorite aspect of any furniture painting, restoration or refinishing job because they are, well, spindles. (Don't get me started!)

Chalk paint doesn't require a great deal of sanding or other prep work commonly needed to guarantee a greatly finished painted product, but I chose to lightly sand the entire bench anyway because that's just how I roll. Call it a pet peeve, but I feel that a little bit of sanding is better than no sanding.

I chose to brush the paint instead of spraying because I feel that you still get better coverage and a thicker, richer end product with brushing and for this piece of furniture, it worked quite well. That's another benefit of chalk paint; you don't see the brush strokes as it dries very smooth. The Old White paint was a light and bright color which literally changed the personality of this bench from outdated to outstanding. I added the customized stencil flower for a little something extra and it looked great. This bench received clear wax only so it will be protected from scratches and will be easy to care for.

Couch Table Chalk Painted

Couch Table Before Painting

This [behind the] couch table was the second project I painted using "Annie Sloan's" chalk paint and wax system. As in the Queen Anne Table in the blog post below, I used Annie Sloan's French Linen chalk paint.

I gave this table a shabby chic "distressing" by

Couch Table After Painting

scraping away the paint randomly with steel wool and a folded scrap of 100 grit sandpaper. After the paint had dried, I finished the table with generous coat of Annie Sloan's clear wax, then highlighted the border detail with Annie Sloan's black wax which brought out the border detail along the edge of the table top.

Once the wax had dried 24 hours later, I was able to lightly buff the table until it had a smooth finish which will be easy to maintain and provide a lovely, durable piece of furniture for many years.

Queen Anne Table Chalk Painted

Queen Anne Table Before

This was a lovely Queen Anne table in need of a new look and it was decided that paint would achieve this nicely.

Queen Anne Table After

Chalk paint is great to work with. The first coat shows the brush strokes, but this goes away after you paint the second coat giving you great coverage. It also dries very quickly, in 20 minutes so you can easily finish a project from start to finish the same day. Chalk paint has unique qualities and those qualities allow you to experiment with finishes, such as waxing. Prior to this project I had not heard of chalk paint waxing, but I was willing to give it a try.

Entertainment Center Downsized

Entertainment Center Before

As far as projects go, this was by far one of the largest in size as well as reconstruction. The original entertainment center consisted of the far left and far right panels only. After a while, the owner decided to have a center section built for the television and hired a carpenter to construct it so it would match the original bookshelf and desk areas. He did an amazing job in replicating the design of the original piece and it had served its purpose.

But this entertainment center had to go through yet another transformation. This one involved keeping the carpenter's addition of the television section and removing the far left panel altogether, reducing the piece to two sections, thus downsizing it considerably. It was necessary to cut the center and left sections and building a brand new left side panel which would support the center upper shelving units. This was no easy feat, but with a bit of creative re-engineering and reconstruction, a vision became a reality.

Entertainment Center After Reconstruction

The entertainment center was to be painted dark gray and fashioned with updated brushed nickel hardware, which completed the transition from outdated to updated on an otherwise functional piece of furniture.

If you have that special piece of furniture that you have grown fond of, be it something that has been in your family for generations or something you really love, for those pieces it's better to keep them (as you have invested in it already) instead of purchasing something new, which may not work as well as what you already own. This is a good example of what can be done with a perfectly good piece of furniture. Paint and new hardware creates an stunning, modern look which will function for many years to come. "Cheaper to keep her."