Progress and Power Tools
>> 3.10.2010
Well, it has been a while since I showed you my dilemma with the sea of wood in the dining room...
(as you might remember: I liked each stain individually, but not as a group)
I enjoyed reading each and every bit of advice that you gave me and took my sweet time deciding which pieces would stay as-is, which I would paint, and which I would stain. Finally, I came up with a plan:
And this past weekend, while Nate was doing a little garden boxing,
I was having a little power tool action of my own:
Actually, at the exact moment he was using the circular saw, I was doing a little stripping stripping the finish off of the table.
Because the stripper wasn't a magic fix-all, I still had a lot of sanding to do!
I mean, A LOT of sanding! Okay, so Kate mentioned in every one of her refinishing posts that there was a lot of sanding involved... but wow!
Honestly, I didn't realize how much work would go into restaining the table, but I'm in it for the long haul now! With 90% of the work past me, I just have a little detail action on the curves to get through before it's staining time :). This baby is going dark!
Check out how far those pieces have come!
Oh, and the chairs haven't been left out of the madness! I've already started the process of making them a nice glossy white. The picture above only shows the primer... but with 15 minutes per chair x 6 chairs x 3 coats... I can tell this project is going to be a doozy as well!
Any last minute words of advice before I take the big staining plunge? Also, where are your favorite fabric sources? I'm still on the hunt for the seat cushion's fabric.
PS I'll be linking up my progress with Serenity Now's Progress Party (go check it out... it's not just a party for half-sanded tables!).
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21 comments:
Doesn't sanding take FOREVER!?! There's a reason I mention it every single one of my refinishing posts! It's the hardest part though and now that it's over the fun stuff starts! I actually really like staining. It's quick and you see results right away. My only words of advice are to use multiple coats if you want it really dark and to use a good poly top coat. The hardest part about staining is waiting for everything to dry between coats. Good luck! Everything is looking great so far! It's all going to look fab when it's done!
Usually the first coat of stain is light. You may have to let it dry and apply a couple coats. Awesome job! Keep up the hard work!
There is so much sanding involed but the after is so worth it! We went darker with our dining room too - my only advice would be watch for drips and the more coats of stain the darker and pretty it will be - good luck!
Oh, best of luck and congrats on getting this far! I tend to be pretty impatient once I start something like this, and I'm fearful I would rush it and mess up the finish.
Let us know what fabric sources you find, I'd be very interested to hear about those.
I was in Ikea weekend before last and they had a bunch of upholstery weight fabrics on sale for $1.99. If there's one not too far from you (and you need random other Ikea things), might be worth a shot.
@Strapless Living~ Good idea! We were planning on heading up there soon anyways.
I love your plan. It will be beautiful when you are done. And Kate is right, the hard part is over. You are in the home stretch!
i like your comments of being into the long haul, so on that note i try to find an upholstry shop that has enough remnant to cover my project and its way cheaper than buying in bulk. enjoy!!
Looking good so far!!! Can't wait to see once you get it all done!
I don't know if it's too late for this, but have you considered painting 2 of the chairs a different color? Maybe subtle, like a sage green, or even bold, like PINK or yellow? That could look pretty neat and mix things up a bit!
@Kim~ No, it isn't too late! I was actually considering doing something like that because two of the chairs are going to live upstairs in the office until we need six seats at the dining table. I was leaning towards different fabric for their seats. We don't really have a master plan for the office yet so it's hard to say if a colored chair will work or not.
Wow, talk about Progress!!! You are really doing a big job. :) I think you'll be so pleased when you're finished.
Thanks for linking up! I hope you are having fun "mingling." :)
It's going to look so good when you finish!
Don't forget the paint conditioner :o)
Oh. Not fun. And poor Heather (McKinney Living) recently had to do the stripping and sanding business with an entire piano. How miserable!
But, oh Kasey, it's going to look so good and be worth every bit of your pain! And you look so impressive in your action shots!
Wow, love your plan, and great job on the stripping! That's a lot of hard work, but you're going to reap the rewards :)
Reading about sanding just brought on a panic attack. I don't have any tips for removing stain (because I think it's different than removing paint) but I do know it will be SO worth it!
...and look at you with those power tools! Go girl!!
Oh my goodness! I'm super impressed at your will.
You wanna know how many times I've stained furniture?
None. Zilch.
This post reminds me of the reason. It's a heckuva lotta work. But, it's going to look amazing. Cannot wait to see it. Keep up the great work. =)
This is going to look AWESOME!! My husband's advice is to wipe down the table with stripper cleaner before you start staining (he restained our dining table). I'm partial to Calico Corners for fabric. I'm so excited to see this when it's done!
Great progress!
I don't have a go-to source for fabric, but I recently bought some beautiful fabric from Ballard Designs that was on clearance.
Wow! You are doing a great job on your table. It's going to be so worth your hard work once you are finished with the project.
This post could not have come at a better time for me! I'm just picked up a new dining table and I'm planning on sanding it back and painting it. Thanks for the heads up about sanding taking forever!
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