I first saw this cabinet about a year ago on a Facebook buy/sell group. It was a scroll stopper, but not in a good way. Fast forward to a couple of weeks ago and I saw it posted again for $25! Now, I don’t normally buy pieces that have already been refinished by someone else for several reasons.
Why don’t I buy pieces that are already refinished? The biggest reason is because I don’t know how they have been refinished. It’s normally more work to strip these pieces and re-do them versus buying a piece that is in its original state.
For this piece, I’m trying a new product to me, Dixie Belle Paint Company White Lightning. It is a granular cleaner that you mix with water, I put mine in a spray bottle and used a rag and scrubbing sponge to clean inside and out. This is the first time using this product and I was very surprised how well it cleaned the cabinet. It took the topcoat off without having to sand it! I think this might be my new favorite cleaner!!! After cleaning your piece, you must rinse it off with clean water to remove any residue, White Lightning contains TSP(trisodium phosphate).
I turn some of my pieces upside down so it’s easier to clean and paint the feet. This is the perfect time to clean all the cobwebs out from underneath the piece and to make sure I cleaned all the sides of the feet. I put a base coat of Dixie Belle Savannah Mist on the cabinet. I am new to Dixie Belle Paints and I love the coverage, one coat of paint covered the previous paint completely!
For my next coat of paint, I made a custom mix of Dixie Belle Driftwood and Caviar paints. I used this color as more of a wash than a layer of paint. In some areas, I painted and then wiped the color off, in other places, I just used a dry-brush technique until I got the movement that I wanted. When this layer dried, I dry-brushed more of the Savannah Mist in areas. I lightly sand after each paint color, I used 320 grit flexible sandpaper, and then wiped all the dust off with a clean damp rag. I love to use flexible sandpaper on pieces that have nooks and crannies. I wanted some pops of metallic on this piece, so I pulled out my DecoArt Metallic Lustre Wax in Silver Spark. I applied this with my finger and with a small wax brush. I wiped some off in areas and in other areas I kept it at “full strength” for more of a pop.
This is where it stands today. I’m not happy with all of it just yet. I have too much silver in some areas that I need to take back and I have to start on the knobs. I don’t know if the knobs on this piece are original but I think this piece needs a knob that hangs down. I haven’t found my dangles just yet, all of the ones I have are too large, so I’m still looking. The knobs that were on this piece are back on so I can open and shut the doors. The brass really stands out against the greys and silver. If I can’t find any knobs that I like, these will be refinished to match.
I’ll will update this post when this pretty one is complete. Let me know if you have any questions!
I have finally finished this pretty girl. I needed to take back some of the silver metallic wax that I put on too heavy. I took a Q-Tip cotton swab that I dipped in mineral spirits and rubbed it on the areas that had too much of the silver wax. I then took a clean lint-free rag and wiped the area clean. After I took off the wax that I wanted, I applied a coat of General Finishes High Performance Top Coat. I apply mine with a piece of an auto sponge. You can get these big sponges at the Dollar Store and cut off pieces of it as you need it. When the first coat has dried, I lightly sand the top coat with 320 grit sandpaper, wipe all the dust off with a damp rag and repeat the steps again. I apply 3 coats at a minimum for protection and ease of cleaning.
I am very happy with the way this piece has turned out. I love the industrial modern feel of this piece.
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Until next time!
Andrea
Andreas Uniquely Yours 