Project Navy Blue

Well, I finally did it…I have had some older beaten up furniture for some years now and this week marked my disgust at not having refinished it…and my new resolve to get it DONE! So I actually went out and bought paint, brushes, rollers, new handles, etc. all the necessary “stuff”. And then I hauled it all to the basement, along with all the furniture and I got it STARTED.

To begin, I have an old iron bed that belonged to my maternal grandmother. You know the kind…iron rungs, flat panel behind your head and at your feet with that unmistakable decal of swans and flowers. And painted a gawd awful brown. Not even a nice brown, but a dog poop brown. I got it from my cousin who had taken it out of my grandmother’s house when the family sold it a few years ago. But I love the bed so much, and all the memories that come with it. It just didn’t match anything I owned. So I painted it navy blue and I must say, it looks sharp! This is the bed that used to have a bedspring, the kind we used to love to bounce on but got in deep trouble if we were caught. I don’t know where the spring ended up, but the rails are perfect for my Serta box spring and mattress, except it raises my bed to a new height, where I have to have a stool to climb into bed. No kidding, I actually have a stool at my bedside to climb in. Just like the royals.

The next piece of furniture is an old dresser I got from the student housing in Waterloo. Someone had left it behind and while it wasn’t in great shape – handles broken off, some water damage, and the varnish long since vanished, it is all solid wood. No real antique, but I like it well enough. My daughter hates it and I had been promising her since 1997 that I would refinish it and each time we move, she asks me if I am going to get rid of that old thing and my answer is always that I am planning on refinishing it…yeah right says she. Well now I have, and painted it navy blue. It took a little more work than the other pieces. It had single bolt handles that were half-moon shaped and when worked lose, people often spun them around, cutting a circular groove in the wood, so I had to put wood filler in that. As well, the top sheet of veneer (not wood product, but actual wood veneer) was lifting off in a few spots from water damage, so I had to glue that back down. And THEN I could paint it. I bought new handles too, nice polished steel/nickel knobs. I think they’ll look sharp enough.

The last piece of furniture is an old desk/table. I got this from student housing as well, but I think I did pay $20 for it. It is also solid wood, and has two drawers. I didn’t use it often as a desk as it has a sculptured front panel that kind of interferes with your legs sitting under the desk. I think is used to have a mirror or hutch on it as well, as you can see from the back where something had been screwed into it for the top. But who knows where that piece of it is. Anyhow, it had been in Amber’s room for years, being badly abused with candle wax, makeup and nail polish, so I have now painted it navy blue. It will take much more paint as it was originally white, but I think it will look sharp with the other pieces. They are all for my room, and will almost look like they match. I bought matching handles for the desk as well.

So that is my week, sanding, painting, cleaning paint off my body, painting some more. I have a first coat on everything and the final coat on the drawers, and on most of the bed. It is so humid here though that it is taking forever to dry, so I may be in a disorganized bedroom for a few more days yet, but it will be worth it to have it all freshly painted! I’ll be sure to post a pic when its done.

Now its time to relax a bit…