In today’s world they don’t make furniture like they used to. You want a vintage looking bedroom but nobody sells the chest of drawers you’re after. You go to an old furniture shop and they sell exactly what you’re looking for but, it looks a little drab.
Fear not, as with this helpful guide you will be able to restore those dreary looking drawers and transform them into state of the art, chic looking drawers at a reasonable price.
Set a budget
You’re not going to want to spend an absolute fortune on materials for restoration so you need to set a budget. Keep in mind how much you’re willing to spend on restoration; if the piece isn’t valuable, you’ll need to figure out just how important it is to you. If it’s going to cost more to restore rather than buying it new, is it worth the money?
Clean and Repair
Before you can do anything with the furniture you need to clean it first. If the furniture is really old it’ll have years’ worth of dirt and grime building up inside all the nooks and crannies. To remove the build-up on the surface you can give it a good scrub with a sponge, some vegetable based oil soap and warm water. For pieces with intricate detail, you can use a soft toothbrush and to get into really tight spots, you can use a dowel rod with the end sharpened to pick all of the grime out.
Next, you’ll need to repair your furniture and replace any broken parts. It maybe hard to source replacement parts but you can have a hunt around antique stores to try and find a match. However, you’re not always guaranteed to find an exact match, but you can have the part custom-made. If the furniture is wobbly you may just need to tighten the screws. You can find the culprit by turning the piece over and just checking all the screws are as tight as they can be. If they’re rusty, carefully remove them and replace them.
So you don’t ruin them, remove any handles or metal hardware from the furniture. You’ll need to fill any chipped, holed or pitted surfaces with wood filler. Apply the wood filler to the damaged area nonetheless, there may be some overlap onto undamaged wood but this can be sanded away.
Refinish & Paint
To refinish the piece, you’re going to have to remove the old finish and create a new one. This job is physically demanding and takes a bit of elbow grease. It’s best to use a combination of chemical strippers and sanding. Make sure you’re patient as some finishes can be tough to remove. It is imperative that you make sure all the surfaces are sanded down to a smooth finish so that it can be painted effortlessly. Use a sandpaper block to get a good grip or use a hand sander to help with those larger areas. You’ll want to give the piece another good cleaning once you finish stripping and sanding to ensure that you end up with a professional looking finish. When all this is done, you are ready to paint your furniture.
You need to prime your furniture before adding coloured paint. This is so you end up with a more professional looking finish. Gently brush an even coat of primer onto the surface of the wood and use a paintbrush to paint along the corners and edges. When the primer is dry, go over all the surfaces with a fine-grit sandpaper to help the paint bond to the primer. Remove the excess sawdust with a cloth.
Paint the furniture with a roller and a brush using even strokes. For a vintage look I would recommend using chalk-based furniture paint as this gives a classic finish to the piece. Allow the paint to dry and then see if any areas need touching up. Leave the furniture to dry for about 6 hours although it would be better to leave it overnight before applying a second coat of paint. Try not to be too heavy when applying the second coat. Remember, you don’t need to apply a second coat of paint; only if you think it’s required. Once your furniture is dried, you can seal it with wood sealer to protect it from scratches and chips. This will also add a slight shine to the piece of furniture too.
Finishing Touches
Finally, you’re going to want to add your vintage wallpaper, whether that on the inside of drawers or within the body of a wardrobe. This will give a stylish finish and create that vintage look you were going for. On the Fashion Wallpaper website there’s plenty of wallpaper to choose from that will look beautiful lined inside an item of furniture. Finish everything off by reattaching the handles or metal hardware and moving the furniture back into place.
