Secondhand Surplus

Saturday, October 5, 2013

Light Filled Corner on a Dreary Day

This may be my favorite corner of our house at the moment. The large window is south facing, so it receives a lot of light during the day. The plants love it, and it maybe why we spent to majority of our time in this room(it wouldn't be because the TV is also located in this room).
Just recently I set out to tackle a little project that I had had on my list for quite some time.
Years ago I had dragged home a simple Mid Century dresser from a neighborhood alley, and even though the dresser wasn't in the best shape, it easily served its purpose.
So, fast forward to a couple of weeks ago I found a matching dresser from the same simple line of the first found piece, and even though it wasn't free, I paid $10, and felt like I still got a deal.
Now I was the proud owner of 2 simple dressers, with great lines, in rough shape.
This is what sent the wheels into motion on making these pieces more pleasing to the eye.
Dresser Drawers
It was a quick project, more prep work than anything else. Like I stated before, these pieces were far from perfect. I glued and clamped any loose veneer and even filled and sanded chunks of missing veneer.
If you are one of those types that cringes at the sight of paint vintage furniture(I myself can sometimes be that person) these dressers were never high end and one was even destined for a landfill.
I just used two cans of high gloss white spray paint to hide much of the damage these pieces had received in the last 50 years.
I also spent time with a bottle of restore-a-finish, steel wool, and wax-n-feed. This made the walnut cases look better, and what the before mentioned products didn't take care of, I also got at it a little with a wax furniture pencil.
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Yes, we do have a TV that we do watch, and it is big and ugly and requires cords and boxes and what not

Toy storage
If you live in a smaller home or older one with little closet space, you know how very important storage space is. This was a very inexpensive solution to house and hide those things that are needed but are not the prettiest to look at.

5 comments:

  1. The dressers look great. I think painting is a perfectly sensible way to restore a piece that is in very bad condition and isn't a high end designer piece worth paying big bucks to have professionally restored. You did a gorgeous job, and I think they look perfect in your room. Several manufacturers, like Eastvold and Mash Studios, make walnut credenzas with white drawer fronts, so you're in good company.

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    1. Thanks Dana! Yes, even some pieces that are today considered high end have white drawers, and even Formica laminent!

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  2. Gorgeous! I sure would like to peer over your shoulder one day to see you in action. Such a great problem solver! They turned out beautiful. Your house is always changing!

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    1. Thanks Rachel! You can peer over my shoulder anytime, but you may start to think I'm crazy!

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  3. oh hanna, those are niiiice!! love your blog! post as much as possible, asap!!! smile!

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