Yard Sale Finds

We all know and love yard sales. Some of us make a day of it and shop at as many as we can. Often buying things that only end up in our own yard sales a year or so later. Lesson learned I have tried to stay away from yard sales for the past few years. I really have enough stuff. But I have to admit, it’s hard to resist the lure of poking through all the treasures that are left out in the yard for sale. As I pass yard sales I can almost hear those treasures calling me to stop and take them home. It makes me crazy!

This past summer I was driving home from work on a beautiful Saturday afternoon and I passed one yard sale after another. I was trying so hard to resist the call. Finally, I just couldn’t stand it any longer and I pulled over at the next sale that came into sight. Darn, I wish I had picked another sale. It was so disappointing to finally stop and find mostly junk. I always try to buy something but I was having a hard time finding anything of interest. The only thing that attracted my attention was a chest. It was looking a little rough but interesting. Someone had tried to strip the paint from it and the feet were missing. It looked like it had been hanging around for a while.

Knowing that I really didn’t have any real use for the chest, I started walking back to my car. The homeowners called after me asking me to please take something home. Wasn’t there anything I might be interested in? I mentioned the chest and before I knew it, the thing was in my car and I was on my way home. By the way, they reduced the price to $10!

So, the chest has been sitting in my basement every since. Added to the treasures from the attic, it has been difficult to navigate through the basement and it was almost impossible to get to my treadmill. As much as I hate the treadmill, it was time to come up with a plan so this chest could move on.

The first step was to come up with some feet. My clever husband quickly crafted some wooden feet that I felt fit the style of the chest. After exploring my furniture finishing options, I decided to go with a natural Tung oil finish for the chest. I felt I would be able to get a warm consistent finish with this product. I had to chuckle to myself as I rubbed the oil over a surface that still had some leftover bits and pieces of paint deep in the crevices. If I had started to strip the chest myself, I would never have let this go. But because it wasn’t my work, I considered it a nice rustic look. Maybe there’s a lesson there. Anyway, I was right about the finish. The oil added just the right luster and the result was rich and warm.

Now I needed to tackle the feet. I dragged out my variety of stains and finishes. I could not get anything to match or even coordinate. I don’t know what kind of wood it is, but the tone is rust colored. Not being able to find the right color, I combed the hardware store looking for a creative solution. I even checked out the second hand stores looking for odds and ends of old feet that might have been left behind. I had an elderly salesman tell me I could take his old feet but I decided against that option. As hard as I tried, I couldn’t come up with anything. Back to the stains I went. It really is hard to look at that little sample and just “see” how it will look. I had to decide so I took a chance and I think I got it right!

With the feet stained and attached to the chest, I am very pleased with the result.
It’s an interesting piece that looks like it has a story to tell. The chest ha
s taken up residence in my daughter’s room for the time being but I’m hoping that it goes home with someone one of these days. Another project finished and crossed off the list. Maybe I’ll be able to find my treadmill again soon.

The Chair

Several interesting pieces of old furniture turned up while clearing out the attic of the garage at my husband’s family home. As luck would have it, they were just calling my name asking to be brought back to life. Among the pieces was a little rocking chair. Although it was covered with cobwebs and dirt, it was obvious that someone had started to strip the many layers of paint from the chair before putting it aside. There isn’t anyone left to verify, but I can only assume that the project was started by my father-in-law. I wasn't a part of the family very long before he passed away, but I remember him as being a very industrious person. He was always looking for a new project to tackle and wasn’t afraid to jump right in. Furniture refinishing was one of his many projects. He did complete several pieces but this one appears to have been too much for him.

As anyone who has ever tried to strip paint and varnish from an old piece of furniture knows, those spindles will either make or break you. When I looked at the chair, I could tell that many hours had already been spent taking off the old layers and the spindles were indeed the breaking point. I counted five layers of paint in the twists and turns of the spindles. The little chair was just gasping out its last breaths and I knew I had to help it.

I haven’t worked on furniture for quite some time and I knew that what was left to do would be very difficult. A friend recommended an environmentally friendly stripping formula. “The paint will just peel right of”, he said. Can’t believe I fell for that one. Countless hours were wasted while I waited for the product to dissolve the paint. Sorry environmentalists, sometimes you just have to bring out the big guns and that’s just what I did.

I won’t bore you with all the moaning and groaning involved in the project. Stripping furniture is a smelly, dirty and back breaking job. I have to admit that there were many times during the process that I would set the chair aside and debate about whether or not to finish it. After all, there was no guarantee that I would be successful and I didn’t even have any place to put the finished piece. But then I would look at it sitting in a corner of the garage looking so forlorn that I would renew my effort to bring it back to save it's life.

What a job! I agonized over it for almost a year battling between wanting to give up and knowing I could do it if I just tried a little harder. Well, it’s finally finished. With a new fiber board seat stained to look like leather nailed in place and a spot cleared in the family room for it to sit, I can breathe a sigh of relief. It really is a sweet little chair that not only represents my determination, but is a nice little reminder of a time gone by. Oh, you’re welcome little chair.