I love reading great responses to AT questions so I thought I'd pose one as I need some advice on restoring these chairs to the AT community. I'm thinking of using these chairs as bedside tables in our master bedroom. The wood is quite raw as you can see. They've been kept outside so the varnish has worn off in places leaving the wood with a gray tinge, especially on the top...
I would love some advice on the best way to treat the wood - eg what type of varnish, stain, lacquer etc is suitable as I've never restored a timber piece before. Are there any dos and don'ts when restoring timber?
I've only ever painted timber before and I don't think painting these pieces would be a good idea... Open to suggestions on stain colour etc. They will be going in bedroom which has a lot of neutral colours eg whites, taupe with splashes of pale blue and red and a predominantly yellow and red artwork.
Many thanks from Elspeth in Sydney
Elspeth, here's Abby's personal advice about staining a wood piece:
- Prep the surface by sanding it in the direction of the wood grain. Begin with medium grade sandpaper before switching to fine grade sandpaper.
- Miniwax suggests using their Water-Based Pre-Stain Wood Conditioner which will help the stain to go on evenly.
- Sand lightly using fine-grade sandpaper.
- Apply stain, wiping off excess with a rag wet with a small amount of stain.
- To deepen the colour, apply a second coat 2 hours later.
- While Miniwax suggests finishing your project with a clear protective top coat such as their Minwax Polycrylic Protective Finish. their Fast-Drying Polyurethane or their Wipe-On Poly, we suggest my dad's trick for a richer look and finish your project with a coat of black wax. This will both accentuate the grain and add a deep, rich patina.
For readers who may not have seen an earlier blog post about these chairs, you can see 33 responses and great ideas here:
http://decorno.blogspot.com/2008/12/chair-help.html
view Decorno's profile
Makes me wonder what a good slathering of tongue oil would produce...
I think they would make great bedside tables! Go for it.
view 1949charm's profile
Very cool pieces!
I am a HUGE fan of Restor-A-Finish. I've used it with my mid-century modern furniture and have LOVED the results:
http://www.howardproducts.com/restora.htm
And you should follow up the restoration with their wax, too.
Of course, I recommend you read their info well to determine if it's a good fit for your project. I know we couldn't be happier--we saved $350 in refinishing three end tables alone!
Lots of luck!
view modtramp's profile
Oops, "tongue" should be "tung." Oh well, you get the idea.
view 1949charm's profile
Gee Elspeth... what, you didn't like any of the excellent suggestions on Decorno and had to ask for even more input? Good grief.
view RedShoes's profile
At the time this was posted on Decorno, AT was taking a long break from new posts and answering new questions. It's the first thing I'd think of seeing them in both places.
view K T G's profile
Since it's been outside, go to a paint store and get some wood cleaner. I used Wolman's DeckBrite last summer with amazing results. Made gray wood look like new, seemed pretty environmentally friendly.
http://www.wolman.com/product_detail.asp?ProductID=3
view BudFox2's profile
i was very happy with the responses i received from decorno's site! i actually sent my question into AT quite a while ago and heard nothing. i thought i had been ignored so i sought decorno's advice after finding her blog (and falling in love with it) through the homie awards.
work hasn't started on the chairs yet. happy to hear more ideas and advice as i'm truly a novice when it comes to treating timber.
elspeth, owner of said chairs.
view *elspeth's profile
that's reassuring to know, elspeth, as i've also sent two questions to AT and never heard back either. maybe there's still hope! i love the chairs, btw!
view littlebunnyfoofoo's profile
Thanks for clarifying, Elspeth. Your chairs looked so familiar, that I was about to comment 're-post.' Of course, I'd seen them on Decorno.
No advice to add, but I'm looking forward to seeing the 'after!'
view gquaker's profile
no worries, i wanted to clarify because i think decorno's blog is fantastic and i am very grateful for all the responses i received from her post
view *elspeth's profile
I am super excited to see the results, too. I don't think I said it on my blog, but I will chime in here to say I think you should oil them. No paint, no stain. Oil.
I think they are amazing, BTW. I am very jealous.
view Decorno's profile