TBT - Throw Back Thursday - Buffet Restored, Refinished, Encore Creation

I know you've seen people posting old pics on Facebook for Throw Back Thursday, well this is my TBT. I'm still processing most of the information that I pick up at the Haven Conference last week and one of the thoughts that has stuck with me is that I don't want to DIY for the sake of blogging. For me it's the other way around. At least that's how it started! Anyway, while filing away pictures, I realized I had never shared the story of the Buffets and Their Encores.  Well, here goes...

Once the restore, refinish,encore bug bit me I was always on the hunt for likely candidates. Which sounds a lot better than "I brake for curbside furniture"!! Well, I do but that's another story for another time.  My almost weekly runs to the many different Metro Detroit Salvation Army ( they were gold mines and too many to mention) Stores led me to a couple of really sweet pieces. Here's the first one...

She wasn't really in bad shape, she just needed a little "pick me up". I think I paid somewhere around $40-50 for her.  Since she didn't have a shiny surface, I didn't use any stripper, just sanding, My son actually sanded her down to bare wood for me. ( Sorry no pics of that phase).  I knew I wanted her to  have a light finish, one that resembled the Travertine table base shown here...

So I painted her a medium beige from a mis-tint I bought at Home Depot. I wasn't too picky about this color as it was only a base color. I then dry painted an off white satin and immediately wiped it off. I repeated this step with another mis tint in a taupe color. This was just trial and error, but I like the end result. I then sealed this piece with a satin polyurethane.

The final step was to replace these boring drawer pulls. I planned to look at Home Depot but remember finding these at Marshalls. The black and white was just perfect with the black, taupe and white that would finish the room.

  

Buffet # 2

This buffet was also from a Salvation Army store ( Gratiot and 16 Mile) in Metro Detroit. Wasn't in the market for him but for $25.00 and the marble was perfect, well what could I do. I had to buy him .
I remember he hadn't even been priced yet when I inquired and the furniture manager was overloaded with big pieces and just shook her head and said "put $25.00 on it". I tried not to dance right in front of them.

A quick sanding and black paint (flat) and my first lightly distressed piece was done. I did spray paint the metal inert in the doors a Brass colored spray paint that I'd had for ever!. This piece got 2 coats of wax and Done!

I've always invisioned this piece on a covered porch or patio as part of an outdoor living room!

Each piece is totally different but I think they are both great.