An Antique Dresser in Gray

Oh I do adore this piece. I love it so much that even though I was losing the light, and my camera battery died, and then as I was editing the photos and realized I didn't take a picture of the newly refinished top, which is possibly the best part, I'm still posting it tonight. Because the hell with it, I'm too excited to wait any longer to show you this dresser!! I'll add another picture of the top tomorrow when my camera is recharged and the sun comes back. On a side note, I'm three days into daylight savings time and already disgusted with the short days. It'll be a miracle if I make it to March with sanity intact.

So I bought this dresser on Sunday and set to work on it as soon as I got home. I refinished the top, which was dark and thick with yucky shellac and I patched a few places the veneer was starting to get disagreeable. Otherwise the dresser was in surprisingly nice condition considering it's age, I'd say right around 100 years. The drawers work beautifully, the case is nice and sturdy, and the mirror has its original glass. Also, those carvings on the top drawer and the mirror crest! And the original cast brass basket of flower drop ring pulls!! This dresser is the cat's pajamas and then some. I painted it in the palest shade of gray and highlighted the pulls and the carvings with just a hint of gold, distressed, and sealed with dark wax.

The Controversial Drop Leaf Table

You know when you ask someone a question and they wince a bit and say 'Well it's a funny story, actually'. And you know it's not actually a funny story, it's just a long boring convoluted story?
Well buckle up.

So I purchased this darling solid cherry six leg drop leaf dining table from a gorgeous estate in Haddam a few weeks ago. The place had the most incredible view of the Connecticut river, it was so good it was a bit distracting. I had been lured there by an adorable vintage (c.1930) mahogany highboy, and ended up buying this drop leaf table and a pair of one drawer stands as well. I spent a little more than I like to but I could tell at first blush that this stuff was all top shelf.

           The one drawer stands were clearly first period c.1820-1835 with delightfully long straight tapered legs and boldly figured crotch mahogany drawer fronts, teetering at the perfect tipping point between Federal and American Empire. I'm giving them to my mother for Christmas.

           The highboy, which you can see here, was without question second period, Colonial Revival
c. 1930, but beautifully built of solid mahogany in an amusingly diminutive take on the Massachussetts Queen Anne highboy of the 1760s. It sold this past weekend to a favorite client of mine- Hi Colleen!

            So then there was the drop leaf table. I was in two minds about it, the furniture refinisher and the antiques dealer, for as you may know, I lead a bit of a double life. The furniture refinisher in me saw water stains and a very tired finish on the top holding back a table of the most spectacular form and the highest quality material. The antiques dealer in me saw a Federal six leg solid cherry drop leaf table c.1790-1815 in the original finish. So I put it to a poll. I asked all my antiques dealer friends on my personal Facebook page, and all the blog followers on the Heir and Space page. The resounding agreement of all parties was to leave the piece as it was.

           And so, here it is refinished. wait WAIT! Here's the funny part of the story. After all that drama (a couple of the blog people said some rather harsh and choice things about painted furniture as a whole), I tucked my tail between my legs and carried the table into my workshop to be stored until gods know when. As I was carrying it, upside down for the first time, what do I behold but the label of the maker... The maker of this fine vintage reproduction. Yes, that's right. It's an excellent, really really excellent, trust me excellent, reproduction solid cherry table made around 1980. And with that in mind I happily restored the top to its original glory. I left the base in the nice old surface since it needed no work and I feared the wrath of the wood defense brigade if I brought brush to it.

And there's the long story, which I'm guessing only about 7% of you read. For the rest of you, here are some pretty pictures.

A Vintage Maple Sideboard in Red

I picked up this stunning vintage solid maple sideboard from one of my favorite antiques shops on Sunday morning. I had planned to go to the Elephant's Trunk flea market with my best friend but it started to rain on the way there and so we made a u-turn and headed to Niantic instead. It was a lovely morning regardless of being a 'plan-b'. We visited the book barn where I bought stacks of wonderful books on interior design and antiques, and then we hit up Past To Present Collectibles, across the street and I scored this sideboard and another darling antique dresser that I'll show you in the next post.
            I loved this piece so much that I got to work on it straight away. I sanded the boring opaque varnish off the top, stained and sealed it in a rich honey color, and then painted the case in multiple layers of varying shades of red. After the final coat I lightly sanded to let the other reds peek through for a nice rich finish. I distressed the case and then sealed with dark wax. I swapped the ugly vintage Chippendale drawer pulls out for simple turned wood knobs. Finally I painted the interior in a crisp custom mixed pale celery.

Vintage Oak and Maple Dining Set in Distressed Black

Sometimes I'll pick up a complete dining set but decide the matching chairs don't compliment the table as well as they could. This gorgeous vintage solid rock maple table came with a set of six chairs, but they didn't fit well around the table. Luckily I had a set of four vintage solid oak Windsor chairs that looks perfect with it. I sanded stained, and sealed the top, which has a clever hidden interior leaf, and painted the chairs and base in a satin black, distressed for a relaxed farmhouse vibe.

A Vintage Hutch in Gray

I picked up this wonderful solid maple Heywood Wakefield hutch with a matching dining set a couple weeks ago. I sanded, stained, and sealed the top in a richer English chestnut and painted the case in a warm medium gray with white interior and polished nickel pulls. I lightly distressed the case and finished it with a dark wax. It's custom for a client and I love the choices she made for the piece. So fresh and pretty!