Whew, I’ve been in recovery mode since that last market – enjoying time with my boys (like chaperoning a field trip today!), getting the house back in order, adjusting back to a normal schedule that doesn’t involve working on furniture projects every morning, noon, and night. 🙂
I have a bunch of pieces to share with you – so how about we start with this antique nightstand makeover? My sweet mom picked up two nightstands for me at a yard sale, and I brought both to the Hunt and Gather Market. This is the first one:
It had good bones but some damage all over and the veneer on top was in bad condition.
I opted to remove the top layer of veneer. It took a couple hours total, leaving wet towels on top to soften an area of the wood and then gently scraping it with a scraper – repeating the process until it was all off.
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Here the veneer was about 2/3 removed:
Once it was all gone, I sanded the top smooth, primed the whole nightstand with my favorite primer, and then painted it in Annie Sloan Chalk Paint – Old White. Finally, it was lightly distressed to bring out the charming details.
If you look at the top now, you would never tell that it was in such bad shape before!
Tip: When you distress, stick to the corners, curves, and edges to give them more definition – it looks more natural than having distressed areas all over in random places. I use 220 grit sandpaper – anything higher and you might end up with scratches (and more distressing than you planned on).
I also lightly dry brushed the door pull and the hinges outside. I left the inside of the nightstand unpainted. I didn’t get a photo, but it’s one big open space in there.
Here’s a reminder of the before and after:
Have you had to deal with any damaged veneer? It’s definitely not my favorite type of repair work, but I’m slowly getting more comfortable with it. I’m thinking of getting a heat gun to really speed up the process next time. Let me know if you have any recommendations!
Talk soon,
Jen
Marsha says
Wow, Jen! That is really awesome! You are a true professional!
ROSE LEFEBVRE says
I did not even notice the design on front until it was painted. Nice!
Diana says
Hi Jen, I really like the nightstand makeover! You mentioned getting a heat gun to help with removing veneer. Would a hair dryer do just as well?
Jen says
Thanks Diana! A hair dryer can help with removing thinner surfaces like paper or felt that has been glued inside a drawer, but a heat gun gets a lot hotter (about 300-700 degrees, depending on the gun). So it’s better for removing veneer and even old paint. Hope that helps. 🙂
Jen says
Thanks Rose!
Barb says
That little nightstand went from drab to fab! It is gorgeous, and I love the vase with the face! How chic! The table is so refreshing in its new white coat.
Susan Ballard says
I love how you stay simple with your technique on most of your redone pieces, Jen. After you paint and distress are you doing any final coating to protect the finish?
Tonya says
You give me so much hope Jen. You do lovely work that doesn’t seem so intimidating now. I have a great love of French provincial. I have a blanket chest that looks like it was stored in the same room as your desk! That turned out gorgeous! I was told to scrub mine with Baking soda..lots of time and sweat on that and I don’t feel it did much good.. I believe I shall try to chalk paint it..definitely cant look any worse 🙂