One of the fun things for us is when we find an antique or vintage piece of furniture that is in rough shape. Our eyes light up because we don't see it as it is but how it can be. This antique pine desk was one of those moments for us.
We found this desk online and were able to pick it up for a decent price after some tough bartering :) It had some very beautiful and unique marks in the wood from wear and tear over the years and simply because it was old.
When we first got it into the shop we didn't know exactly how we wanted to finish it. We knew that we wanted the top and the bottom to contrast each other and since the bottom was looking pretty rough we decided to sand it right down to re-stain it. You never know how easy it will be to strip a piece of furniture until the first few minutes. This desk was so old and dry that the previous finish almost jumped off of it and in about an hour the old finish was removed leaving us with a beautiful antique pine slate. We chose a stain called 'Early America' for the base which is typically lighter in color than it turned out but because the wood was so dry it sucked up the stain pretty good. After the base got 2 good coats of satin varnish.
When we got this table the top was missing so we picked up some rough pine from Century Old Mill in Stouffville and planned it down to 3/4 of an inch. We then got the joints nice and joined all 5 boards together leaving them overnight to dry. In the morning the top was squared up nicely and sanded down then attached to the base. The top was left natural and given 3 coats of satin varnish. The original handle for the drawer was missing but had this cool brass knob in its place, so we just left the knob as we thought it looked good but it also allowed you to see where the other handle once was.
We are so pleased how this desk turned out. The base of it carries years of history and the top adds some fresh new life.
The young and the old = a beauty restoration.
Before & After
