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Thursday, June 14, 2012

Beauty Hides in Funny Places

This beast of a dresser had been waiting a long time for it's makeover. It was brought to me in solid condition, aside from the badly peeling veneer on the top.

Before
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I had no choice but to get out the heat gun and remove the veneer (which, I might add, is actually kind of fun!).

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What I did not expect to find, was a gorgeous, solid pine, butcher block top. Seriously. But it couldn't be that easy, right? Not with me. I went about my business...sanding it down and getting ready for stain. At first we (Shayne and I) thought we'd lime the top, but after choosing the color I did, we needed to go darker. I ended up with a gummy, tacky mess of 2 coats of liming stain and 1 coat of provincial. After 8 hours it wasn't even near dry and I knew that there had been residual glue left over from the veneer...even after all my sanding.

If you know me or read this blog, you know I called my father-in-law, who graciously came over with his lacquer thinner and quickly took care of the problem. I re-sanded and used Minwax Dark Walnut stain.

For the color of the base, I started with Ben Moore Chelsea Gray, but it was way too green and frankly, lighter than I'd expected. So I mixed in a bunch of black and then used plaster of paris to make it homemade chalk paint. Then I waxed the painted area with Fiddes Jacobean wax. I have to admit, I absolutely love this piece.

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Can you believe this was hiding under the veneer?

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Ok, enough pictures! What do you think?

~Allison



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TDC Before and After

51 comments:

  1. Great piece! Came out fantastic... that graphite color and the wood top look really nice!
    Blessings, Lorraine

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  2. found you over at french country and i love this dresser so great and that finish is so great amazing they use to cover that up hehe

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  3. Wow, such a gorgeous piece of furniture. I love that paint color.

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  4. Oh my gosh, that turned out so cool! Love the dark weathered look and it's just a great piece of furniture! Way to hang in there!

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  5. I cannot believe what was under the veneer! It looks awesome!

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  6. Perfection. This is one of my favorites of yours Allison!

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  7. Isn't it like a surprise gift when a piece turns out this great?
    The contrast is lovely!

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  8. BEA-U-TiFUL!!!! I love the variations in the paint you mixed. You just can't get that straight from a can. Great job.
    Rachel@remasteredrelics.com

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  9. That turned out terrific!!! Love the color mix you used!!! The veneer buckled because it was not the same wood. For example, oak veneer should be glued to oak wood, it breathes the same and will not warp. Inexpensive furniture will use other woods such as pine as a money saver....that's why veneer has a bad reputation. But actually, furniture makers will save the best cuts for veneer to make a really beautiful top, sides and especially for door fronts, but again, it is glued to the same wood. Your cabinet is a treasure for sure and you did it justice!!!

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  10. So beautiful! It is soft and perfectly understated!

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  11. Love it! (I'm a new follower and love your blog.) That piece is really lovely. Were those lion head pulls original?

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  12. Love love love! Gorgeous piece, you did a fantastic job :). I like the the lion head pulls too.

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  13. popped over from MMS link up because I'm working on a piece that has a veneer issue as well. Problem is mine is worst on small drawer fronts and the large drawer fronts with inlays and carved details are still in tact. I may try to remove the veneer or I was thinking of creating a folded/pleated fabric panel to mod podge to the face to make it look upholstered! We'll see what I come up with! :)

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  14. Popping over from Miss Mustard Seed's FFF. Excellent work! Really love the colour, reminds me of the antique colours found on old German and Austrian painted wardrobes.

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  15. Hmmm, maybe I need a heat gun ?
    ~ Christie

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  16. Wow! All that hard work definitely paid off, it looks amazing! I LOVE the dark grey blue color. I’d love it if you’d link up to TA-DA TUESDAY <3 from your newest follower I’d be delighted if you’d follow back!
    ~Misty
    413 Sparrow Lane

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  17. Good job! That is a beauty, and tastefully done. Love it. Ann

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  18. LOVE. That is amazing!! So beautiful. Way to rock it. :)

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  19. Simply gorgeous! I love that butcher block top, but I really love the color you did. What an amazing transformation.

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  20. This one is a stunner... I was wondering what paint you used, thinking it could have been ASCP in graphite. The color is amazing... are you keeping it?

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  21. That top almost looks like hickory. They used to put veneer on top of good wood to preserve it. They also used to paint furniture black to preserve it if it was being shipped across the ocean.
    I am seriously loving that dresser, something about that shape that always appeals to me and the little casters are awesome. I would so love to have that. I'd like to make a gorgeous vanity for our bathroom out of it.

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  22. Amazing piece! I love the color and finish. Great job!

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  23. So PERFECT!! Crossing my fingers you'll share at my party! Saturdays at Seven! XO, Aimee

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  24. Pretty, pretty, pretty!!!! Great job!

    ~Jeannine @ The Concrete Cottage

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  25. It is GORGEOUS!!! Aren't you glad you persevered?!
    What a treasure!

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  26. I love your dresser. I have the same problem with the top of an old family dresser and you've helped me get a little braver towards stripping off the veneer that's peeling.

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  27. AMAZING piece of furniture - I'm so envious!!! Lovely job on it, too. Love the colour.

    Visiting from Homemaker on a dime.

    xox

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  28. This is absolutely beautiful! Love it =)

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  29. this is a beautiful piece and you picked a great color for it, the grey really shows it off,
    lauren

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  30. It's gorgeous---now! What would ever posess someone to veneer that? Good save!

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  31. This piece looks amazing! Great job! I'm a new follower and looking forward to seeing more of your work.
    Danielle @ The Retail DIYet

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  32. this is beautiful i can see why you fell in love with it, it wouldn't leave my home if i had it!!!

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  33. Love the finish!

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  34. WOW! You gave this piece a beautiful second life! Masterfully done!

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  35. This is absolutely gorgeous!! LOVE it!! Shelly Andrade

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  36. I love this! The color is perfect and amazing what lies beneath veneer. Makes ya wonder why the heck they veneered in the first place. How hard is it to get the veneer off with the heat gun? I don't have one but always see them super cheap at the flea market.

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  37. oh my goodness. I am speechless. I LOVE the final look, I love that you can take of veneer with a heat gun and I love that your final look is this AMAZING! I am totally pinning and sharing on facebook! Thank you SO much for linking up!!!
    Jaime from crafty scrappy happy

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  38. It is gorgeous! I actually want it. For real. ;)

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  39. Looks beautiful! Just wondering if you have any tips for getting/finding resouces on how to refinish furniture including all sorts of creative finishes. I'd love to redo some and just got a beautiful vintage desk at goodwill for $6 and don't even know where to start!

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  40. Such a beautiful piece! Great job. I have found nice wood under veneer as well, it's always a pleasant surprise.

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  41. I would pick the Anna Damask stencil. Thanks for hosting such a great giveaway!

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  42. It is beautiful! elegant color, very pleased tabletop. Excellent!
    Olga

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  43. You are amazingly talented!! I dare say the blury before drive me nuts. Makes me think I need to see the eye doctor! I need to see the true nature of the before to be awed by the after!!

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  44. I LOVE this dresser/cabinet! I've been enjoying your blog posts and just had comment on this beauty.

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Thanks for commenting! My heart goes pitter-patter!