Stripping & Refinishing

 

I didn't get a great "before" shot of this furniture that was given to me.  Can you believe it was FREE?! A friend from church brought it to me!

 This was my first refinishing project and I learned that you shouldn't let the citristrip dry on your piece!  However, I also learned that if you do, all you need to do is smear some more on it, wait a few minutes and start scraping it off.  After that it really did come off pretty easily.

After stripping, I used a hand sander to go over the entire piece before I primed it.  My plan was to completely strip the top so I could re-stain it and paint/distress the bottom.  Once I finished sanding I cleaned it off completely with a damp rag and let it dry.  Here they are ready for primer...

And here they are ready for the first coat of paint...

Finally, this is with the first coat of ivory paint...

I thought the tops looked great even without the new stain after the way they had looked when I got them. I'd even started a little distressing at this point.

Here is the side table with the final coat of dark walnut stain and wipe on poly.  I also used some of the stain to rub on the bottom half.

I'm not quite finished with the dresser yet, but this is what she looks like at this stage.  

I haven't decided if I like the handles black or if I want to paint them ivory and distress them.  But overall I am so excited that I tackled this project.  I thought it would be overwhelming but I was really surprised at how much I enjoyed the process of turning something "ugly" into this!

Now, I'm thinking I want to turn that headboard into something wonderful for my youngest daughters room...adding that to the "project" list!

I'm linking up to...

The DIY Showoff 

How To's Day @ the Lettered Cottage 

http://typeadecorating.blogspot.com/2011/04/anything-goes-party-14.html 

Blue Cricket Design

Momma Hen Scoop
The Shabby Chic Cottage
Stuff and Nonsense
Miss Mustard Seed