Saving a 70-Year-Old Bedroom Set

Written By Rachel Koehler

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You can find all of my favorite tools mentioned below & used in my projects at my link here: https://www.amazon.com/shop/restoreitwithrachel

What does $100 in furniture stripper + about 1 month of hard work look like when stripping down and refinishing an at least 70 year old multi generation super detailed appliqué antique wooden bedroom set with many layers of very thick paint look like?

This. It looks like this.

Every layer of paint reacted differently to different chemical strippers. I used citristrip, kwik strip, blue best pro, a carbide scraper, heat gun, steel wool and a few wire brushes and THEN I used my power orbit and surf prep sander to get this paint off.

I then stained it in early American, made Moldings for the missing areas of the detailed trim using hot glue and bondo wood filler. Then painted the trim areas in a deep enamel green. I boiled the hardware and hinges to remove all the gunk & bring that back. I conditioned the inside of the drawers with citrus wood conditioner, and sealed everything in 2 coats of satin polycrylic.

This very well may have been my most labor intensive project yet . This was my clients grandmothers that SHE had since at least a teenager, and after all that work I am SO happy to hand this beautiful set back for my clients baby girl to now use, and let this stay in their family for many more years to come.

Just a reminder on where we started . . .

And where we ended up :)

If you like this transformation or would someday like help with a project of your own, follow this page and send me a message to let me know how I can help you out!

Thanks for looking!

Rachel Koehler
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Upcycling an Old Entertainment Center into a Mudroom Storage Bench