Advice, please?
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I could use your help.
We’ve been in our home for over 5 years now, and everywhere I look, I see projects yet done. One being this inexpensive side board and china cabinet set that I picked up at a furniture consignment store for about $200-300 dollars. The pieces are nothing fancy. They really need some help, but I liked the details and traditional lines.
***Please note: After reading a few comments below, I thought I’d add that I when we originally cleaned up the furniture we lightly sanded it using a very fine steel wool, followed with a couple of applications of one of our favorite furniture refinishing products, Restor-A-Finish. In addition we had to glue some veneer back in places. It helped somewhat, but the veneer is pretty past it’s prime. You can see how the veneer is buckled and raised on the drawer fronts on the sideboard piece, which is just one of the areas. To properly refinish it would require a lot of work, and more than likely an experienced professional. The pieces are just not worth that much (both purchased for around $300 total … for both).***
I cleaned them up a bit and planned on refinishing them once we were settled.
I think we may be settled now.
There are no more excuses except for the fact that I can’t decide what to do with them. The wood is cheap veneer. I’ve concluded that painting seems to be the best solution, but do you think I can decide on a color? I walk in the room, stare, then walk away avoiding a decision. Avoidance. That’s what it is.
At least I’ve started a Pinterest board of things that have caught my eye. Pinterest sure does come in handy when working on projects, doesn’t it?
Anyway, I was hoping to get your input. I can’t decide. So, would ya help me? Could ya? Purty please?
The low down:
- Our dining room is pretty neutral: dark wood floors and dining table, natural linen covered parsons chairs, pale blue/grey walls, white trim. Pretty basic.
- The pieces need to be spiffed up, and I’d like to add some interest with the finish. But I’m thinking I can’t go crazy with color. I always play it safe and choose neutral grey, black, or dark browns. Would a red or other strong color be too much on two fairly large pieces like these in the same room? I like the red. But the red is … red.
- Here’s the Pinterest board I just started of some ideas that I am drawn to. You’ll see I’m leaning towards the neutrals/greys. I always migrate to the neutrals. Help.
Do you have any ideas and/or pictures to share? Please do.
Thank you in advance for any input. I do appreciate it very much.
Love ya bunches! xoxoxo
I’m throwing my 2 cents out there: Darker gray tone with maybe a cream/gray checkerboard in the center panel that is lighter. Crystal pulls or burnished silver knobs would be a fun bling touch. I have an old sideboard that is now our entertainment center that was painted matte black and then roughed up in “wearing” areas. I absolutely love it!! Cute piece!!
I love to paint furniture! I paint everything white or antique white. I JUST love it! Maybe that would be a safe change from grey and black? But red would be stunning! And ya know what the best part is? You can always paint it again if you don’t like it!
I’m all for keeping the natural look of antique — and this piece is beautiful “as-is”. Just my two cents 🙂
I want to see what you end up doing! I love the look of wood, but I understand. My grandma’s piano in our house needs help, too! PS. I want to come eat in your dining room with you, more importantly! 🙂
Check out the site, Sweet Pickins. She refinishes furniture for a living and does GORGEOUS work with lots of info and how tos.
http://www.sweetpickinsfurniture.com/
I love the idea of gray, too. Here’s the project that we did, using gray paint on furniture… http://firewifekatie.blogspot.com/2012/09/a-purple-bedroom-fit-for-tween.html
We are really happy with how it turned out, and how the emphasis is on the form of the furniture. We used the existing brass pulls with the gray, which I really like as a contrast to the cool tones. You could use the silver plates on your wall to pull the right hue of gray and I think it would look fantastic!
Are you planning on leveling and smoothing out the surface before you paint?
I read a great story about a couple that bought a barn to live in temporarily until they could build their dream home. They decorated it with any and all styles and colors that felt good to them. No surprise, they never built the other home, they stayed there. The Martha Stewart perfect look is good but it puts so much pressure on all of us – we should really just have fun and make it look like you! 🙂
The furniture is sturdy but veneer is a pain/expensive to rehab the “right way”. Take the doors off the second piece and use it for barware or fun trays, paint that inside and inside the other piece a bright color and paint the outsides something that makes you happy -then maybe coat it with a glaze/stain mix to tone down the color some and cover up the imperfections.
btw I like Mel’s advice… what “does” make you feel HaPpY?
Okay, now that you have a plethora of opinions…… what’s the verdict?
Isn’t this fun. Living vicariously.
AmyRuth, I don’t know. I’m still thinking on it, but thank goodness for the opinions. I have a couple of more weeks until I’m going to be able to tackle the job, so hopefully I’ll narrow down by then. Still like the greys I’ve seen and thinking maybe that would be the best decision long term and to be able to use the pieces in other places in the house if needed, but then again, I like the idea of getting funky with a fun color.
One of my cousins had an old brown piano not good enough condition to restore. She painted a glossy white. It is beautiful now.
I love it just as it is. I adore simplicity. We’ve just bought another farm and there is a huge old, old order Amish house on the place. I can’t wait to live in simple simplicity. Well, we won’t really be living there as home will be on this farm but I am sure planning on enjoying the Amish house!
I wouldn’t paint these pieces. They are good pieces and you can enjoy them in the current ‘distressed’ look. If you buy something new it likely will not be made with the same quality as these are. Wait until you can afford to have them properly restored.
Here is an idea for the first piece. We have one and I never thought about it until I was thinking about yours. Have the top covered with granite. You can pick a granite color that looks great with all you have in your room already and then leave the rest of the wood as is, it will look so nice. Plus this little amount of granite will be very inexpensive.
I love the way this furniture turned out. I’m not certain I’d have the patience to work through a project like this…but now I know how just in case!
Oh gosh, I am happy to read this. We have been in our place for just a year and the unsettled projects are beginning to drive me insane. For instance the lighting fixture that we are building for the dining room – yes, building – it is sitting on the table behind my desk …. for the past year!!! Glad to know we aren’t the only ones unsettled. Going to check out your board now …
I have a friend that has a blog site of her own. She does amazing things with things that most people would and have considered junk and thrown out. I think you should paint it. I know that sounds scary and I do not know if I would have the courage to do it either but here is her blog site. Maybe you will find some additional inspiration here:
http://www.kammyskorner.com/
I have a buffet, that was my great Aunt’s. I have to tell you, I’ve had it re-worked, twice, this last time, beaaaaaaaaaaaaaautiful, I’m not sure how to attach pictures to show you, but the stain is rich, and up to date, the hardware, more my taste and the end result is something you must see. If you’d like to see pics, lemme know…..
Robin, from Katy, TX
Hey!
I looked at you pinboard and tried to imagine the rest of your room in term of color schemes and style. I would say to go for a neutral color with secondary furniture in a usage defined space (dining room), especially as it seems that you already have some darker pieces that could become central to the room (dining table + armchairs). Also, these go quite close to the wall, so a neutral color could also help give the feeling of space. Not to mention that it makes a great blank canvas for later, bolder accents. I’ve tried to make some photoshoped images, but they are very rough, just to give you an idea of how it would look like.
To give it a little bit of interest, I thought this idea could be nice: http://pinterest.com/pin/53550683040455401/ , leaving some panels plain. Anyway, first pic is white, second a pale blue and third gray (4th introduces darker painted center panels):
http://pinterest.com/crista303/books-worth-reading/
Hey Crista!
Thanks for the handy pictures you created. I’m partial to the grays I think. They’d be neutral enough to work with anything in the future. I’m still trying to decide what (and when) to tackle the project.
Amy
I love it the way it is. Maybe rub them down with fine steel wool, touch up the stain and finish with low sheen tung oil.
I saw your lovely pieces and I too love vintage. Two of the best places for ideas that I’ve seen are on Facebook. One is called “Sawdust and Embryos” she does a beautiful refinishing technique of putting flower designs on furniture with wood stain. I know it sounds a little odd but it comes out beautifully and she has a tutorial on her page. You wouldn’t have to do flowers, you could come up with something else but it is the technique that is so amazing. Haven’t seen it anywhere else. The other Page is called, ” Charmed By Vintage”. On this site she doesn’t give tutorials but she does some of the most beautiful work that I have seen done on vintage pieces. I really didn’t look at when you posted this , just kind of looking around your pages. If you have already come up with something then I hope I see it. You can still look at these two sites and maybe get some ideas for future projects. Whatever the case happy refinishing.
Thank you so much for the great links! I posted it some time ago, but could never decide what to do so I just cleaned it up a bit more and moved on to something else. Will check out those suggested links. They sound fun! Thank you again.
By the way, I love the plate grouping on the wall. Very very nice.