French Bee

What do you think? It's not hard to do - just takes time and a little determination. I applied about 5 coats of gloss varnish because I wanted it shiny. It is important also, to sand in between coats of dry varnish. My new sewing bureau is ready for use. You could apply as little as two coats of a matte varnish if you prefer. It is now in my new sewing room, filled with fabrics and projects waiting to be finished. I couldn't find handles long enough to span the 5 inches of space between predrilled holes, so I opted to put two round nobs on each drawer instead. I like it - it functions very well. So, next time you see a throw away piece of wood furniture - take it home and give it some love! You'll be very glad you did. To see phase 1 of this project, click here .

As you can see from the photo, there was some weathering to the legs of this piece that resulted in a black stain. The process of stripping the piece seemed to naturally bleach the wood a bit and it wasn't necessary for me to do anything else to it. After the piece is completely stripped of old varnish and coating which had accumulated, you then begin sanding. Sanding takes about as long as the stripping. I used a palm sander in the direction of the wood grain (very important). I used a medium grade for the first layer of sanding. I used a sponge sanding tool for the rounded corners. To get in the crevices, I folded the sanding paper in half and rubbed in the grooves with the folded edge. So, after you get really sick of sanding, you get to sand some more! But, progress to the finer sandpaper and you will be so pleased at how smooth your piece becomes. When the entire piece is sanded and smooth to your satisfaction, then you need to clean off all the dust; a tack cloth...

I could hear it calling me - I couldn't resist this old bureau which was in my sister's backyard. I am inspired by wooden furniture that needs a little TLC. This piece was a little weathered, warped and some mold had set in on the legs. Kris was happy to get rid of this old bureau and I was excited about the project. However, it sat in my garage for about 3 years before I decided to start the refinishing. Once I decided to begin, I applied a gel furniture stripping product and removed it with a combination of steel wool, metal spackling spatula and old toothbrush. There is some carving and indentations, so I needed all three items to complete my project. I didn't do this all in a week. I was able to work on it for about an hour or two at a time, which fit in with my schedule. Due to the nature of the product, you could not apply the stripping paste and leave it for more than 20-30 minutes. Be sure to wear rubber gloves and some suggest goggles. Since I wear ey...