24th September 2025
I wanted to get back to normal, no trips to Goodwill, no visits to Menards, I just wanted to do something, and achieve a positive result.
So with that in mind, I wheeled out a piece that we picked up at a house clearance many months ago. It was in a state, but we believed it could look nice again. This was going to be a concentrated effort to remove the old finish and see it differently.
Kelli wanted to do something different as well.
She is into dying clothes, and today, armed with a bottle of green dye she was taking a brave step and change the colour of one of her newest purchases. She wanted me there for moral support, after all what do I know about that?
Setting out the components she found she didn’t have any salt, apparently an essential ingredient needed. I rushed down to the corner shop to buy some plain salt. On the way back I stopped at a stand by the side of the road that sold sourdough bread, I love sourdough, and as it was a local person making it, I shoved the money in the box and chose a cheddar and herb loaf, jum jum.
Now Kelli had all the things needed for the big event.
The dye was in, the salt was in, and the hot water was going in. A good stir to mix everything together, and then the moment came when the garment was submerged into the green liquid.
My job was to set the timer for thirty minutes, it was a tense time, but as it ticked away things were looking positive.
As the alarm erupted, out came the newly green garment ready to be rinsed.
I was very impressed, all the original colours were now more earthy and really nice. Kelli was relieved, and she was keen to do it again. Luckily one had arrived in the post an hour or so earlier, that was number two. That turned out good as well, now with all the excitement done, I could go back outside to continue working on the dresser.
It is an interesting piece, with a wavy front and drawers to match. I scraped off all the old finish, and repaired all the damaged edge banding, to a point when it started to look better all ready.
The drawers are the next big challenge.
When we collected it, it had been stored in a garage and the veneer had started to peel away, there was not much hope of salvaging those.
With a heat gun I removed the damaged veneer, the raw timber will be sanded and painted, but there’s a lot of filling and sanding ahead.
Another Lifetime to go 