A Sideboard with a Moorish Twist

I've been refinishing furniture for years, many many many pieces, beyond count, and yet I've never come across a true barley twist on a piece, until now. Carl the Furniture Guy gave me this sideboard. It originally had a hutch top, but the top was plain, and didn't do justice to the 'whoa mama' of the base. It has four carved barley twists, one on each corner, massive carved cupboard doors, and equally impressive drawer fronts featuring deep, well formed flower motifs. It's over the top and it's amazing. And also, now that I've finally had a chance to finally refinish something with a barley twist, might I mention they are a real pain in the ass to paint.

          I sanded the top down to reveal the pretty wood under that old sticky finish, then sealed it until it was smooth as glass. I painted the case in the prettiest shade of pale dove gray that I've named Marlborough Gray for a friend who lives a town over in Marlborough, and loves gray best of all colors. For a little pop of color I painted the interior in sky blue. I highlighted the carvings in a darker gray applied lightly with a dry brush, distressed, and waxed the raised surfaces to imitate centuries old surface patina.

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