Lady Out Of Lizzie

I waited almost a YEAR to tackle this table… and it nearly broke me. 😂

My dad's friend had been waiting patiently for me to refinish their M.F. Co. Strathmore mahogany dining table, so I finally decided to take it on—with one big disclaimer: I'd never refinished a table this size, and I wasn't sure I could recreate the original finish.

And then I discovered the biggest challenge…

They only gave me the tabletop and leaves.

So I had to colour-match the top to the existing base… without actually having the base in my garage. 😳

I stripped away years of cracking lacquer, repaired scratches and imperfections, used Mohawk Blendal Sticks for a few stubborn marks, and mixed a custom stain using Fruitwood, Mahogany and Dark Walnut.

Then came Mohawk sanding sealer, Perfect Brown toner around the edges, and four coats of pre-catalyzed lacquer.
And let's just say… the lacquer stage did NOT go as smoothly as this video makes it look. 😂

I battled some blushing along the way, and 400-grit sandpaper, blush retarder and—most importantly—TIME became my best friends.

The final colour ended up a little brighter and lighter than the original, but once everything came together, it blended beautifully with the existing base—and thankfully, they were thrilled with it. ❤️

And this project reminded me exactly why I've decided not to take on commission work anymore.

I love restoring furniture.

I just don't love having someone else's furniture sitting in my tiny garage while I'm worrying about every single step. 😂

This Antique Chair Was Hiding Something… | Furniture Restoration

My friend sent me the listing for this little antique chair and said, “If you refinish this, I’ll buy it.” ❤️

She’s been such a supporter of my furniture restoration journey, and she has a pretty good eye for antiques… so I couldn't resist the challenge.

Most furniture flippers would probably scroll right past a chair like this. They take SO much time, and this one was hiding a lot underneath that dark finish.

Burn holes. Deep scratches. Cracks. Carvings. Lifting veneer. Missing pieces. And a bentwood arm that was starting to split.

But then I found the wood.

Beautiful elm on the back and ash on the seat — two of my favourite woods — with grain that deserved to be seen again.

So I decided this little chair was worth saving.
I repaired the veneer, rebuilt the missing areas with epoxy, worked on the damaged bentwood arm, and then spent a ridiculous amount of time with Blendal sticks trying to camouflage the damage and recreate the wood grain. 😂

I actually debated leaving the burn marks and carvings as part of its history.

In the end, I decided I didn't want to erase the chair's character — I just didn't want the damage to be the first thing you saw.

This wasn't really a flip.

It was a rescue.

And now I'm curious…

Would you have left the burn marks, scratches and carvings as part of its history, or would you have tried to hide them like I did?

This chair was NOT going to give up without a fight. 😂

Once I stripped away the old finish, I found lifting veneer, missing chunks, a split bentwood arm, cracks, burn marks and scratches everywhere.

So this part of the rescue was all about getting the structure back in shape.

I injected glue underneath the lifting veneer, used floss to work it deep between the panels, and clamped it overnight. I repaired the missing areas with wood epoxy, and tried to coax that split bentwood arm back into its original curve.

Some repairs worked beautifully. Others… well, let’s just say I had to get creative. 😅

This little chair was testing me, but I rarely give up on a piece.

And this was only the beginning…

Most furniture flippers would scroll past this one. 👀

And honestly… I can see why.

This little antique chair was dark, damaged, cracked, lifting, and hiding some pretty serious wear underneath that old finish.

But my friend saw something in it and said, *“If you refinish this, I’ll buy it.”*

So naturally… I had to see what was hiding underneath. 😏

This one turned into much more than a furniture flip. It became a rescue, a challenge, and a chance to try some new restoration techniques.

And wait until you see what was hiding under that dark finish…

These free tables had one big problem… 👀

When these two 1980s oak side tables were gifted to me, I immediately loved the veneer patterns on the tops. I knew they had potential, but they definitely needed some help.

The stripping process was messy, the MDF edges needed a little creative thinking, and those water stains… well, they had a mind of their own. 😩

I treated the tops with oxalic acid, created a faux wood finish on the edges, completely transformed the bases, and finished everything with five coats of water-based poly.

And just when I thought those water stains were finally gone, they decided to make an appearance again under the topcoat. 🤦‍♀️

This one definitely tested my patience, but I was determined to see if I could turn these dated tables into something that would actually work in a modern home.

I think they finally got the second chance they deserved. 🤎

What would you have done differently to modernize these?

I almost couldn’t save these… 😩

These two 1980s oak side tables were gifted to me, and I knew I wanted to see if I could give them a more modern look.

I loved the veneer patterns on the tops, so I stripped them down, treated the stubborn water stains, created a faux wood finish on the edges, and completely transformed the bases.

But just when I thought I had those water stains under control… they came back when I applied the topcoat. 😩

Thankfully, I was able to disguise the worst of them and keep going.

Five coats of poly later, and I think these two finally got the second chance I was hoping for. 🤎

Would you have changed anything more to modernize these?

Morning bike ride with my mom... and somehow I still came home with furniture. 🚲🪑😂

We spotted this lonely chair sitting on the side of the road, and I just couldn’t leave it behind. If you’ve been following me for a while, you already know that’s pretty much impossible!

I’m thinking this little rescue has the perfect bones for a beautiful vanity chair with a fresh finish and some new fabric. What do you think—paint or stain? And what fabric would you choose?

Stay tuned for the transformation!