Before and After: A Beat-Up Vintage Buffet Shines After a $100 Stain and Paint Job
Facebook Marketplace and No-Buy Groups can be a treasure trove for antique furniture at a low (or free) price point.
Case in point: this vintage buffet that Dana Metcalf (@houseofrevivaldesigns) snagged for $100 on Facebook Marketplace. Over the course of three days and with $100 worth of materials, she and her husband, William, spruced it up with paint, primer, and gold leafing.
It was in disrepair when they first acquired it, with dings here and there and rings from beverages on the top. The Metcalfs have done lots of furniture flipping, and Dana says her advice is to “research the value and quality to determine if it should be refinished or completely restored if possible.”
If it’s not a piece with great value or if it’s in poor condition, “a new paint job will bring it back to life,” she says. In this case, partial paint was the way to go.
“We loved the look of the antique wood and wanted a color to accentuate it,” she says. They sanded and stained the top of the buffet with Minwax’s Antique Walnut stain and used Danish oil to bring out the original shade of the wood faces.
As for the painted elements, “we chose Tricorn Black and gold to make it all pop,” Dana says. “I had never worked with gold leafing before and didn’t find that it was that difficult, but there is a learning curve. I will definitely do it again as it really brings out the details.”
For just $200, the buffet is now a beautiful statement piece that looks much more expensive. It blends beautiful wood tones, with an understated black and hints of gold.
Dana says she’s proud that she was able to revive some of the original beauty of the piece while remedying what couldn’t be restored with paint. “When we get these pieces they have been well loved through generations of use and change of hands,” she says. “They are scratched and sometimes damaged veneer lifting or broken. We want to revive the pieces to modern tastes but also tribute to the original look… you have to create a vision to marry the two.”
Inspired? Submit your own project here.
This piece is part of Throwback Month, where we’re revisiting vintage styles, homes, and all kinds of groovy, retro home ideas. Boogie on over here to read more!