Does anyone have suggestions as to how to restore it - is there somewhere I can buy new veneer for the top? How hard is it to apply new veneer? Any suggestions are greatly appreciated. Thanks!
-justine"
Good Questions: Formica veneer replacement
It's funny you come to us with this question, because we only recently salvaged a vintage 1950's Westinghouse stereo cabinet of similar size and finish from the street, and are also hoping to restore and repair it back to life (when we restore our lives with some free time). But our unit doesn't have the Formica veneer ontop, so we plan to just sand and refinish it to smooth out the scratches and scuffs.
Damaged Formica is supposedly very difficult to repair. Perhaps you could fill in the chip ontop and the scratches on the drawers with a two-part epoxy cement, prime and then repaint the whole credenza a new colour. We've never used this product, but there is also a Wood & Formica Repair Kit for $9.99. If this sounds like too much trouble, it might be best to contact a countertop fabricator or cabinet contractor to replace the whole top. Or perhaps some of our readers have some other options for Justine to take with her restoration project.
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Well depending on how much time and ability you have refinishing this piece can be fairly easy.
You'll first want to completely disassemble everything you can and begin the process of stripping/sanding off all the original finish. If it's thin then sanding will work, if it's thick look into a chemical stripper. Once you have it down to the wood then you can stain it if you like and then either oil/wax/polyurethane to protect it.
As for the top... I would reccomend removing the formica. You may find that what lies underneath is beautiful. If not you can always re-cover it with formica, plastic, anything really You could have a 1" piece of frosted plexiglass or Lexan (harder and more scratch resistant) cut- that would be nice, or even frosted glass. You can buy veneer online at any number of stores or of course eBay. It's not too hard to veneer something particularly if it's flat like your surface yet the trick is that you want it to blend in well. You'll have to remove the formica one way of another methinks...for veneer to look good it needs a very smooth surface onto which you'll glue it.
If you have some cash and/or a hookup you could attach a piece of marble/granite/slate hell even a nice piece of limestone to the top. If stone is cost prohibitive you could always make your own slab of concrete and the polish it up... that would be pretty neato if I do say so myself.
The concrete idea is pretty cool in my opinion. All you'd need is a piece of concrete, masonite, some pieces of straight pine or poplar 1" x 2"s, wire mesh, vasaline or other release agent and some latex paint. You would build a mold to your desired size using the masonite as the bottom and the pine/poplar as the sides. Paint it all to seal it from moisture, coat it with vasaline or other release agent and then mix the concrete. Lay down one thin layer of the concrete and let it begin to firm up a bit. You'll want to let it firm up just enough so that you can lay down the wire mesh without it sinking to the bottom of the mold (the top of your slab) and then pour the rest of the concrete until you reach your desire thickness. Once dry you can remove the mold and clean it up where it may be rough. Sand it, file it etc... and then you can begin to seal and polish it.
Sounds hard but it's much easier...
I have a set of 4 midcentury bent ply chairs that need refinishing. Does anyone know of a good place to have it done. I barely have a balcony, much less are yard to do the work myself.
Thanks
You could fill in the chipped spot with some kind of filler compound and then re-laminate the top, maybe in a solid color. I'm no expert, but I don't see any reason why you couldn't lay a new layer of laminate on top of the existing layer (after cleaning it well, naturally, and probably sanding it to roughen the surface for the adhesive).
In fact, I'm thinking you could re-laminate the entire piece in cool '50s colors and finishes - lacquered turquoise and red and the like - maybe in big colorful patches. So the side drawers in one or two colors, the middle drawers each a color of their own, etc. Mondrian-esque, with maybe the body of the cabinet painted or laminated in black to divide the various colored sections.
I also saw a kitchen one time in Met Home that had cabinets which had been laminated using pictures. So each cabinet door had a different picture, pattern or color laminated to it. Not sure where you go to have custom laminates made up, but it would certainly make for a unique piece.
Here's a (quickly hashed together) example of what I was thinking of:
http://f3.yahoofs.com/users/41e2766bz24198126/9ccdscd/__sr_/e53fscd.jpg?phgKD6EBlraKhxvN
Didn't quite turn out the way I wanted it to - the colors aren't quite right (shoulda used my color wheel) and I didn't think thru my Mondrian-esqe composition, but you get the general idea.
Thanks for the info guys - I appreciate it@
i had the same dilemma with a credenza. a designer friend recommended topping it off with a custom cut mirror. haven't done it yet, but will when i have some extra cash.
Hey there-
I guess it all depends on how funky you want to make our dresser- If you want to keep it in the original form, I would suggest a good sander and wood filler. As for the top, the idea with putting a piece of glass is a great one. I too bought two vintage dressers. I went totally funky. I used a liquid sander and a real sander to get off the varnish and I used spray paint for all the rest. I think it turned out really well. Have fun with your project.
Cheers!
J
Before:
http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y135/moddiva10019/Projects%20and%20Junk%20finds/DSC00961.jpg
After:http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y135/moddiva10019/Projects%20and%20Junk%20finds/DSC00996.jpg
This is the other dresser no "before" pic :(
http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y135/moddiva10019/Projects%20and%20Junk%20finds/DSC01320.jpg
I love those, Jenni. Great way to recycle old furniture, especially pieces that may not be in great condition and would otherwise be trashed.
Yeah nice job Jenni - I love the colors you chose.