Woodworking Family Life Style: mcm

If you are into mid century furnishings, then you know Kent Coffey.

He made some wonderful, top quality pieces. I saw this one on CL, but didnt think much of it.

Until, I saw the same one in black on 1stdibs going for $8900! Say what???!!

1stdibs is an online, high-end designer goods showcase. Many designer stores in the big cities list their inventory on this site. Needless to say, I called the guy on CL to see if it was still avail. I wont tell you what I paid for it, but it was a killer deal.

The one pic below is the one for sale on 1stdibs. I liked it in black. So I copied.

And here is mine!!! Not bad, eh??

But Im getting ahead of myself. Lets watch the transformation.

By far the most difficult and time consuming part, was this hardware. And there was a lot of it! I took off each piece and marked its place. Ive found that its always best to put certain hardware back in its original place. It just fits better. These were so grimy! I used Krud-Kutter to clean them and then steel wool and a metal cleaner (Brasso and Mothers) to try and take off the tarnish. I knew I was going to spray them with a metallic paint, but I didnt want to spray over this gunk. It wont hold up.

So after many, many hours ( I spread this process out over a period of weeks) heres what I

ended up with:

Just a tad better. Now these just didnt get sprayed once and put back on. Oh no. They were sprayed, then finely sanded with steel wool, then sprayed again. Sometimes a third time if there were bad spots. Then they got a final coat of sealer. Yes, even the screws were sprayed. 3 parts to each pull.

There were 18 pulls. Uh-huh. Count with me. MISERY!!

Now the wood part. This dresser has a mahogany base. The wood finish was in bad condition. Could I have just primed and painted over it? Well yes.

Would it have looked like poop? Well yes.

Your finish is as only good as your base. I used a glossy latex enamel. In black. Its gonna show ever mar and bump. So I sanded off every bit of existing finish until I got to raw wood.

Pristine.

You dont want to paint over raw wood. I applied a wood sealer. And sanded again.

I sand so much, it probably explains why I could use my own hands as sandpaper.

In the garage and the finished top. I believe I did spray a coat of gray primer.

And I think it got 3 coats of black. I did brush it on and it came out very nice. No marks.

I really like to add a pop of color to the sides of the drawers. Its just my thing.

Red just seemed to be it.

And just because, I put some scrap book paper in the middle drawers to go with the red.

This does have a matching mirror I have to get to. With about 10 of these handle things on it!

So not looking forward to that again.

Im going to contact a store in LA to see if they would buy this to put on 1stdibs.
That other one is in Palm Beach, Fla.

Linking up at my fave parties!! :

Kammys Korner - Trash to Treasure Tuesdays

Domestically Speaking - The Power of Paint Party

The Shabby Creek Cottage - Transformation Thursday

Miss Mustardseed - Furniture Feature Friday

Redoux - Friday Link Up Party

Funky Junk Interiors - Saturday Night Special

Knick of Time Interiors - Knick of Time Tuesday

Tuesday-Elizabeth and Co., My uncommon Slice of Suburbia,

Savvy Southern Style. Weds, Beyond the Picket Fence, PJH Designs

From my Front Porch to Yours, The 36th Avenue,

Monday-Between Naps on the Porch, The Dedicated House,

My RePurposed Life

Friday, June 24, 2016

MCM Credenza

Time to switch things up. In the LA area, these mid century credenzas are quite

the hot ticket item. But to find one on the cheap is rare. But I did.

I believe these retro vintage pieces look best either natural or bold colors of the era. I gave this one both. Tangerine baby! Now I realize this style isnt for everyone. I dont think its necessarily for

me. But that doesnt mean I dont appreciate it or enjoy working on it. Its different.

I get so tired of doing the same thing on the same pieces. I like to mix it up and try

out different techniques and different colors. So, here ya go!

I could not save the sides or top.

Sanded the whole thing. Primered the sides and top. Put a dark stain on the drawers and trim.
Solid wood legs. Bottom is before, middle is after sanding and the top is after staining.

This walnut veneer finished up beautifully! Look how it pops w/the orange.

I painted the top 3 drawers in a gorgeous Bahama Blue to pop against the tangerine. Love!

I used at least 5 coats of paint and 2 coats of acrylic semi-gloss top coat. I rolled a few coats

didnt like how it looked, and finished by brushing on the last 2 coats. I also sanded between

each coat.

I thought about lugging this into the house for staging, but this beast is heavy and at least 6 long!

So, use your imagination and ignore my icky garage floor.

Linking up at these great parties:

Restore Interiors - Restored it Wednesday

Kammys Korner - Trash to Treasure Tuesdays

Domestically Speaking - The Power of Paint Party

The Shabby Creek Cottage - Transformation Thursday

Miss Mustardseed - Furniture Feature Friday

Redoux - Friday Link Up Party

Homespun Happenings - Rustic Restorations Weekend

Funky Junk Interiors - Saturday Night Special

1929 Charmer - Sundays Best Party

Knick of Time Interiors - Knick of Time Tuesday

Elizabeth and Co., My uncommon Slice of Suburbia,

Savvy Southern Style. Weds, Beyond the Picket Fence, PJH Designs

From my Front Porch to Yours,

Between Naps on the Porch

The Dedicated House, Redoux

Sunday, June 19, 2016

On a MCM kick!

I picked up another credenza for a heck of a deal! This was made my Broyhill in the early 60s.

The guy had been keeping it outside and had no idea what he had.

This was located in a seedy part of town. So I took my pit-bull and a little something extra

for protection ;) (Im allowed to do that btw!)

There are so many on craigslist in the natural state, albeit refinished. They look great! But

they dont seem to sell that fast. I find that people like the ones that are painted.

Since this wasnt in pristine shape, I didnt feel so bad painting it.

I chose gray and black for this one. I refinished the top in espresso.

I redid the drawers as well. Everything was a walnut veneer. Remember with veneers, go easy

when you sand, lest you hog all the veneer off!! Ask me how I know this......

I love how the wood came out! This is a very masculine looking piece, quite

different from what I usually do.

Linking up at these great parties:

Restore Interiors - Restored it Wednesday

Kammys Korner - Trash to Treasure Tuesdays

Domestically Speaking - The Power of Paint Party

The Shabby Creek Cottage - Transformation Thursday

Miss Mustardseed - Furniture Feature Friday

Redoux - Friday Link Up Party

Homespun Happenings - Rustic Restorations Weekend

Funky Junk Interiors - Saturday Night Special

1929 Charmer - Sundays Best Party

Knick of Time Interiors - Knick of Time Tuesday

Elizabeth and Co., My uncommon Slice of Suburbia,

Savvy Southern Style. Weds, Beyond the Picket Fence, PJH Designs

From my Front Porch to Yours,

Between Naps on the Porch, Catch as Catch Can , The Dedicated House, Redoux

Wednesday, April 13, 2016

MCM with custom hairpin legs!

I picked up this piece for a good price, sans legs! Which is fine. I have been wanting

to order some hairpin legs and attach those to the right piece.

Looks pretty rough right?? Dont be afraid to pick up a piece that looks like this. Wood is so forgiving!

(Sometimes!) Although these are usually veneered, if the damage isnt too deep, you can sand it right off!

Take a peek at the after!

I was going to paint it. But the wood really turned out nice. Then I thought I would just paint the drawers. But they really turned out nice! Well I had to paint something! So I did the turquoise

on the insets, but it wasnt enough. So, I though I would try some graphic lines. Done!

Frog tape!

I did graduating grits for sanding, conditioned it prior to staining, used "Kona" to stain, another fine sanding, and then a semi-gloss sealer from "Deft". Used steel wool on that, and then a second coat!

Look at how rich this walnut is!! I just love it with turquoise or orange. Plus it fits the era.

I realize not everyone is into mid century modern. Its different. But I like to do all kinds of

furniture. This is a complete 180 from the antique buffet I just did in milk paint. Two

completely different techniques as well. But thats what I like. Variation. And just like people, there

is a piece of furniture for everyones liking!

Sunday, March 20, 2016

Just another MCM

Trying to do a gray thing with this new piece. Only the drawers are finished.

My little feral friend, The Shop Cat, is always there to keep me company.
She was completely enthralled with the sanding process:

I used a homemade chalkpaint to which I added some silver glittery paint additive things.
From Lowes. It makes it look like a quartz countertop in the right lighting.