My New Lady Table

So I was trolling on Craiglist the other day and found this fantastic dresser.  I love the curved front that reminds me of bombe chests that I've been eyeing. I love the lines and that it's real solid wood, but wasn't a huge fan of the color, which is kind of yellow.  So we got it for a steal and brought it home for a little weekend project. [Ignore the basement in the background. It's disgusting and in a stage of temporary/kind of permanent destruction. Will address that soon.]

new dresser arrives in my basement

love the curvy top

My arsenal for this project- 3 sanding blocks of various coarsenesses, paint thinner for cleanup, prestain wood finish, two stains of different shades, polyurethane, six new handles, five foam brushes (not pictured: a few rags, music, several cats).

Step 1. Remove the old hardware and sand

drawer pulls come off easily

after a couple passes with a coarse sanding block

Step 2. Prestain
I wiped it down to remove the sanding dust. Then, I prepped with some wood conditioner which I believe isn't necessary for oak, but I figured I might as well. It's supposed to even out the blotchiness, so why not. It was quick to put on. I left it for like a half hour before moving on to the next step. Hard to tell if it worked or not.

cleaned up and prestained

Step 3. Stain
In my last staining project, I liked the darkness of the color, but wasn't a huge fan of the greyness. The little swatch of color on the cans is hard to read, and a little deceptive. This time, I got two stains for a trial run on some leftover wood. I picked the dark walnut, the same color as my last project, which seemed a littler warmer than Jacobean. Then I carefully added a thin coat to the dresser, and wiped off the excess. In comparison to the last project, I really like the color. Clearly the same color of stain looks different depending on what kind of wood you put it on.

Jacobean on the left, dark walnut on the right for the win.

After a light coat of stain

Step 4. Seal
I gave it the night to dry, and then gave it another light sanding with the extra-fine sanding block. I wiped it down with a clean rag, and then added a light coat of poly. It soaked in fast, so by the time I finished one coat, I could come back and add a second and a third. 

Step 5. Add new hardware

After a couple hours of drying time, I added the new drawer pulls. They weren't my absolute favorite, but the size was a little unique, so this was the best option that would fit.



Step 6. Move upstairs and load up.
I let it hang out in the basement for a week so that it had plenty of time to dry and stop stinking. Particularly since it's going to our bedroom, I wanted all fumes to be gone. Plus it gave me some time to order a mirror and lamp to go with it. Then we carefully carried it upstairs-- definitely a two-person job. Once up there, I loaded it up with all my getting ready stuff, taking the opportunity to cull out anything I don't need anymore. Since it's full of all my lady stuff, ie hair, makeup, jewelry, etc, I decided to go glam with the mirror and lamp.

Lady Table looking purty. 

I love it. It feels so feminine and makes me feel pretty just looking at it. Plus, it frees up space in the green room where my clothes still live. The extra light helps brighten this dark room and give it a little more life. Success!