Staining a Railing

I found treasure! Ok, not quite, but close enough. In our basement, I found 3 pieces of railing that was untreated, cut to size and with hardware. What a great find! It was obviously meant for the basement, but was never put to use. Of course, I couldn't help it and put my grubby hands on them immediately.

I made my 3rd trip in 2 days to Home Depot to pick up a can of clear polyurethane and a foam brush. I went with clear because I could tell it was cedar and I wanted to bring out the natural red color. Work outdoors, lay some newspaper down, and elevate your railing.



Before and After: After I took this picture, I put 5 more coats on the rail. After 2 coats, lightly sand the rail with sand paper to give it a smoother feel, and repeat until you're happy with it. Allow to dry completely before handling. Avoid drip marks.

"New" furniture!

We got this old bureau from our neighbor. Keith will take anything home, even if it's a junker. He wanted to put it in his office for storage. Even though it's old, it makes a good storage piece to put in your basement or attic for various things. ie. tools, wrapping paper, old pictures, video tapes. So I gave in. What the heck, right?

Turns out, it was a HUGE bureau! Too big to put in his office, but would make a great tv console! Just what we needed too! I love those tv consoles from Restoration Hardware, but I can't imagine spending thousands of dollars on one.

It had a lot of water stains/damage on the top surface. It was really worn.



The front was really worn, dirty and had a huge scratch on the front of the cabinet door and dresser drawer. The picture on the left is more accurate of how worn it was. The picture on the right is actually really flattering.




Keith decided he would sand it down and give it a new coat of stain. He was sanding and vacuuming at the same time to reduce the amount of dust in the house.







Once he got started he decided to sand the whole thing.




You can see where he had to really sand the damaged areas. It was still a little discolored. Then he wiped it down with a damp rag to get rid of any excess dust.



Then Keith began staining it with the first coat. As you apply the stain, you have to do it quickly and spread it evenly so there aren't darker areas.




It looks really pretty and glossy when you apply the stain. It really smells, so do it in a well ventilated area, preferably outdoors.




Then allow to dry for at least 4 hours before applying a second coat. As you can see, when it dries, it soaks into the wood and it doesn't look as nice as when you first applied it. It just needs another coat.



Then he stained the cabinet doors and dresser drawers.




The following day be sanded it again so that you could no longer feel the grain of the wood. It almost looked laminated afterwards. Then he gave it 2 more coats.



Then he also did the sides. The results were like night and day.


And tadaa!!!

September 3rd, 2006 - Refinishing wood furniture

Move over Bob the Builder and Tim the Toolman! Make room for Keith the Kraftsman!

I have always wanted an office of my own after years of college-like living. My own santuary outside of my bedroom. I have always loved antiques. I envisioned my office would be out an Edith Warton novel with high Victorian decor. Alas, with dreams like that, you better come from old money like an Edith Warton novel as well.

A desk like this from Horchow comes at a whopping $1299! (Chair $839 is not included) The same goes with Pottery Barn and Restoration Hardware. Also keep in mind, those large pieces made now don't quite fit in an old house with odd dimensions.












So the other alternative is to scour the net and local antique shops for a "lovely" (worn) antique (old) with lots of "character" (scratches) as I did. I found this desk in "good condition".

French style desk in Mahogany circa 1935. What caught my eye was that it is extendable (for crafts) and still ornate as is. The flip side was in excellent condition, but the closed top side was very worn.











With some $5 quart of gloss wood furniture stain (in Walnut) and a sponge brush, Keith was able to restore it back to new! He used a small sander ($49) and 3 different sizes in sand paper. It only took an hour. Sand it. Clean it off. Then paint the stain on it. Let it dry 24 hours and then apply another coat.









And tadaaa! The finished product!