It's always an awesome feeling when I am hired to create custom work. It is very humbling knowing that someone trusts you with a cherished piece of furniture, whether it’s a family heirloom or a piece of furniture that needs some TLC. This curio I refinished is definitely one of those cherished pieces. You see, the gentleman that hired me wanted to honor his late wife. She had a "honey do list" for herself. The curio was on that list, but sadly, it was started and not finished. She wanted it to match her current coastal furniture, which was off white with driftwood tops. So, her husband decided to find someone that could possibly do it for him and finish that list in her memory. That is where I came into the picture.
Coastal white curio with faux driftwood top.
Antique Curio
As you can see from the before picture, there was nothing coastal about this curio. There was metallic gold wallpaper glued to the back. The color of the wood was cherry in tone. The feet of the curio were cracked, very loose, and the veneer was falling off.
Step One:
Stabilize!
Before I took one piece of sandpaper or a rag to the curio, I had to stabilize the the feet. Fortunately, once I had the curio set up on a table, I was able to access the bolts that held the feet in place. All it need was a few turns of a socket wrench. After tightening the feet, I had to fill in the cracks with wood glue and secure them in place. What's a girl to do? ... Get creative, that’s what. Without having any way to use a vice grip to clamp the feet back towards the body of the curio, I used a small finishing nail that I carefully tapped into the door frame. Mind you, the glass is super thin and it was a little nerve wracking bringing a hammer anywhere near it . It all worked out just fine, otherwise there would be no blog post. Anyway, I took some twine and wrapped it around the wheel of the foot and the nail. That allowed me to cinch the foot back into place. Copious amounts of wood glue was poured into the crack and any drips were wiped away. I did this a few times and let the foot dry for a couple of days.
Step Two:
Fix the Veneer and Remove the Old Wheels.
There were a few areas of veneer that needed to be repaired. Since this piece was being painted, I didn't have to worry about finding the correct type of wood or color matching the stain. To fix the gaps and missing pieces, I used Bondo, an auto body filler. It's a two step mixing process, just follow the instructions carefully and you should have no problem. There is a window of working time, so you have to move a little fast. I always over fill an area. I would rather have too much than not enough. All you have to do when it dries is sand it smooth. Make sure you wear a dust mask whenever you are sanding.
Bondo used to fill in missing veneer.
Removing the wheels was not too difficult, but I was still nervous about the stability of the feet. I used pliers and a screwdriver and was able to pop them out.
Step Three:
Remove Wallpaper.
The inside back had metallic wallpaper attached to it. There was a previous attempt to remove the paper, which mostly worked, but left behind the the glue. I use Citristrip on a lot of pieces of furniture to remove paint, so I figured I would see if it would help loosen the wallpaper and soften the glue. I laid a thick coat of it on top of the wallpaper and let it sit overnight. It did the trick. The wallpaper came off and the glue was softer, but not enough. So I applied another coat and let it work for a few more hours. Using a plastic blade, I removed all of the glue. After the wallpaper and glue were gone, I had to clean the back off with warm water and rags. It took a little time, but it was well worth it to have a good surface to work with when it was time to paint.
Step Four:
Prep! Always Prep!
Sandpaper is my friend and can be yours too. I used 220 grit paper and a sanding sponge to cut through the existing clear coat. After any moisture from cleaning the Citristrip away, it was time to sand and get ready for the painting process. Normally, I would have removed all of the hardware before I started to sand, but since this one was old and delicate, I removed only the keyhole. I left the hinges on the door. It took several passes to get it all sanded and it created a good amount of dust. I actually used a leaf blower to blow the dust off and out the door. Time is money, right? Also, there was so much dust that it made sense to use something stronger. Once I cleared out the dust, I did go back over it with a tack cloth and a lint-free damp towel.
Sand, sand and sand again!
After all of the sanding was finished, I was planning on spraying the finish, so I had to protect the glass. I could have taped and papered the glass, but I decided to check a new product. H20 Liquid Masking is what I ended up using. The video below is my Facebook Live product review. The stuff was awesome. A complete and total time saver. I was able to brush it on the inside and outside areas. If you ever have to protect glass while painting, this is the stuff for you!
https://www.facebook.com/FauxGetMeNot/videos/1877246858969339/
Step Five: Prime and Paint!
B-I-N shellac was my choice for a primer. It has excellent tannin and stain blocking properties. I applied the primer with a roller and brush. Mind you, I did throw them away after use, because I didn’t want to use denatured alcohol to clean them. B-I-N shellac dries quickly, so I could move along to the color coat sooner rather than later. Two coats of primer were applied, with sanding in between coats with 220 grit sand paper. Before painting, I used a tack cloth to remove any dust.
Inslx Cabinet Coat tinted to Ben Moore Dove White was my paint of choice. I used an Earlex 5500 spray station to apply the paint. The paint was thinned with a little water and strained prior to going into the sprayer. Two coats of Cabinet Coat were applied with 24 hours of drying time between coats. The Cabinet Coat does not require a protective top coat.
Once the paint was dry, I used a razor to cut and remove the H20 Masking. I took the razor to the corner of where the glass and wood met. All I had to do was score it a little and peel it away. As I said in the Facebook Live I posted, it reminded me of super elastic bubble plastic! I know, I totally dated myself with that one.
The final step was creating a faux driftwood effect to blend with the homeowner’s furniture. Using a variety of sample paints, chip brushes and wood graining rocker tools, the muted faux driftwood came to life. To create the the driftwood, I took a chip brush with very little paint on it and brushed back and forth. This is a dry brush kind of approach. It’s a very free flowing and forgiving process. The brush was dipped in a light toned paint, then a darker toned paint, dragging it lightly across the surface to mimic wood grain. I repeated this several times to build a layered look. I was careful not to over brush, because the colors would blend and the entire effect would disappear. I also used a wood graining rocker tool and comb to create thicker wood grain. I used two coats of Faux Effects Varnish Plus for a clear coat over the driftwood finish.
I really enjoyed this project and was very happy to help my client with the “honey do“ list.
Thanks for reading this post! If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact me.
Now go paint something!
Joni
PS. Always remember to follow manufactures instructions when using any of these products.
Faux driftwood finish.
Bright and Beachy!
All finished! If you have any questions, please feel free to email me!
Materials and Tools Used:
Faux Effects Varnish Plus
Orbital Sander
Earlex 5500 Spray Station
Twine, Finishing Nails, Screw Driver and Razor
