Campaign chest of drawers restoration.....
.....from brown, old, dirty and boring to new, fresh, Teal and newly loved.
.....from brown, old, dirty and boring to new, fresh, Teal and newly loved.
My projects teach me something - read the "Teach Me A Lesson" at bottom of page.
A little about myself ...... due to lack of finances over the years, I have
developed a love for second hand items, whether they are road side treasures or charity store finds. I must say that I have made some big mistakes and have been blinded by the pretty
picture in my head and the thrill of finding a free or cheap treasure that I have failed to inspect items properly and often, the items have ended up in my own trash, but it's all so much fun.
Well, this item was picked up at an op shop/charity store, I had my mind on a campaign piece so my excitement overrode my sensibility and I didn't inspect it properly and just bought it. I had a white bedroom suite in campaign style which I had chosen myself as a little girl and I loved it so much.
The restoration took 2 days, should have taken longer but I am notoriously impatient. This piece was clearly very unloved for a very long time, it looked like it had possibly been out in the elements and had a little bit of water damage to the bottom sides near the back, it had heaps of mouse droppings internally so I carefully and thoroughly disinfected it and cleaned it up. There were scratches and damage on this piece, most of which disappeared with good sanding with hubby's electric sander & coarse paint removing sandpaper, followed by smoothing sandpaper afterwards, then damp dusted with soapy water and left to dry. Paint was done with 4 coats of Taubmans Teal Flash, while wet it was bright aqua, shock/horror, but dried to a medium teal, thank goodness. I used 2 sample pots, costing $14 and I still have 3/4 of one pot left over. I scrubbed the brassware with steelo wool which sent my allergies crazy even with a face mask on. There is one brass corner missing on the bottom right hand side and I hope I can find one to fit one day. All brassware is tacked in and was removed by gently prying a thin object to lift the brass without too much damage as it's very weak and pliable. Polished brassware with Brasso, retacked and and job finished.
The chest is now my bedside table, I had a standard small bedside table there and I LOVE this so much more, I added an art deco look mirror, the vintage lamp and some of the decorations just don't go but will stay until I find what I'm looking for. Hubby is going crazy with each new piece I drag home, he huffs and puffs and says lots of OMGs but I am who I am and he just has to deal with it, LOL!
Well, this item was picked up at an op shop/charity store, I had my mind on a campaign piece so my excitement overrode my sensibility and I didn't inspect it properly and just bought it. I had a white bedroom suite in campaign style which I had chosen myself as a little girl and I loved it so much.
The restoration took 2 days, should have taken longer but I am notoriously impatient. This piece was clearly very unloved for a very long time, it looked like it had possibly been out in the elements and had a little bit of water damage to the bottom sides near the back, it had heaps of mouse droppings internally so I carefully and thoroughly disinfected it and cleaned it up. There were scratches and damage on this piece, most of which disappeared with good sanding with hubby's electric sander & coarse paint removing sandpaper, followed by smoothing sandpaper afterwards, then damp dusted with soapy water and left to dry. Paint was done with 4 coats of Taubmans Teal Flash, while wet it was bright aqua, shock/horror, but dried to a medium teal, thank goodness. I used 2 sample pots, costing $14 and I still have 3/4 of one pot left over. I scrubbed the brassware with steelo wool which sent my allergies crazy even with a face mask on. There is one brass corner missing on the bottom right hand side and I hope I can find one to fit one day. All brassware is tacked in and was removed by gently prying a thin object to lift the brass without too much damage as it's very weak and pliable. Polished brassware with Brasso, retacked and and job finished.
The chest is now my bedside table, I had a standard small bedside table there and I LOVE this so much more, I added an art deco look mirror, the vintage lamp and some of the decorations just don't go but will stay until I find what I'm looking for. Hubby is going crazy with each new piece I drag home, he huffs and puffs and says lots of OMGs but I am who I am and he just has to deal with it, LOL!
Teach me a Lesson.......I'm finding that with each restoration I learn a lesson, this one taught me to not dive head first and blindly into picking up a piece of second hand furniture, I need to take the time to inspect it well, I've ended up having to throw pieces out too many pieces myself as they are beyond my expertise in what I can do to repair them. Lesson Learnt!!!
Hope you enjoyed my post.
Feel free to leave me a message :^) Lara
Hope you enjoyed my post.
Feel free to leave me a message :^) Lara
No comments:
Post a Comment