It’s A Hot Mess….

“We’re not bringing that home…the leg is broken off!” … “it’s too heavy….too big…” … “it’s ugly”…

These are actual words that were spoken as we stopped to retrieve this sad desk.  There were also others that will not be repeated here…

All were quite true, except for the part about not bringing it home.  It desperately needed to come home with us!

The very first thing we did was use Bondo, epoxy adhesive and some creative carving to reattach the broken leg.  Since it’s a weight-bearing part, glue or putty would not have been strong enough, and there were also a few chunks missing which required re-creating the profile by carving into the dried Bondo surface. After carving, sanding and painting, it is hard to tell unless you know which leg it is and look very closely!

Decor trends go through phases; faux-painted furniture was all the rage in the 1960’s, and you can find lots of pieces painted from that time frame in mustard or avocado with this faux wood grained antiquing finish.

  Say what you will about them, I credit these sometimes heinous finishes for protecting lots of beautiful wood for decades!  Paint doesn’t harm wood furniture; in fact, it can preserve it nicely as you will see on this particular desk.

This desk had one potentially fatal issue; Mildew or mold infestation can be a serious and sometimes unfixable  problem with older furniture stored in damp places.  No one wants strange odors lingering in their furniture and they certainly do not want spore contamination to spread from furniture to the items stored in it.  Fortunately, the paint on this desk actually protected the wood from mold/mildew that had started growing on the painted surface; the mildew had not infiltrated the interior, and once the paint was chemically stripped, the wood beneath was beautiful and free of any mold infection.  A light wash inside and out of the entire piece with an anti-mildew agent ensured any sneaky spores wouldn’t take hold elsewhere.  Probably unnecessary in this case but better safe than sorry. (Using a mask and gloves is important anytime mildew issues are addressed).

As you can see here, we started sanding off the painted finish to get a peek at what was underneath before deciding to use a mild chemical stripper on the rest of it.

 I don’t know about you, but I was THRILLED by what I found underneath this corner – look at that wood!!!  Sanding can take a LONG time, and can be physically demanding both on the person sanding and the veneer (as was the case here).  Chemically stripping off old paint can be an easy – but messy – first step with just minimal sanding required after to even out the finish.

We did find a few cigarette burns in the surface (another sign of past trends) that were gently sanded out; creative wood stain application camouflaged the remaining scars.  A couple of coats of polyurethane on top, and this desk is well-protected for another few decades!

Did I mention in previous posts that I’m a sucker for Fusion’s Midnight Blue paint? Well, here’s more evidence!

While moving this desk into our spare bedroom/home office, we realized how the leg was initially broken off….this heavy desk is huge and required some creative angling to make it through the undersized doorways in our older home!  But it was SO worth it, and she will not be moving again unless we do!

All of the products used to refinish this desk are available at our shops, Vintage Matters at 7060 Ridge Road Sodus, NY and Lakeside Restoration 1833 Monroe Ave Rochester, NY  – or enjoy at our online store at https://lakeside-restoration.myshopify.com/