Tuesday, September 25, 2012

Custom Work - Waterfall Revamp

Tuesday, September 25, 2012
This past week I was working on refinishing some pieces for a neighbor of mine.

BEFORE
I get quite a few requests to do custom work for people but I try to steer away from those projects.  Why?  Well for various reasons.  I have a love for thrift shopping and my garage is a good example of that.  It is constantly full and I am constantly trying to make it less full.:)  I'm not sure why I think it's ever going to be empty but I am constantly striving for that although I know that will never happen as long as I continue to shop.

BEFORE
Another reason is the stress.  I love what I do and as I continue to complete more pieces, I gain more confidence, learn and get better with my techniques.  But for some reason when I am working on a piece for someone I lose my confidence and start to over analyze, which becomes stressful.  This is something I need to work on and hope that someday it doesn't bother me quite as much:)

Refinishing furniture is work.  I love the end result but it is sometimes finicky and labor intensive.  Things go wrong that you don't expect.  (Like bleeding from the wood with this project.)  It is also a bit of an art.  You experiment with different techniques, paints, brushes and rollers and you figure out after you have done it enough what works best for you and with the piece.  Although sometimes, something that worked once, doesn't work again.

It's also personal taste.  What one person sees as beautiful patina, might look like a bad paint job to someone else.  lol.  My envision can also change as I go along.  So when I am refinishing for someone else, I have to try and make sure I completely understand their envision and meeting it sometimes becomes a bit tricky due to things you encounter along the way.

But.... despite these factors, when my neighbor asked me to come look at some pieces she was interested in having refinished, I still went.  Of course when I saw them, I fell hook line and sinker.  Yep, I couldn't resist.  I knew they would look great once they were freshened up and I couldn't say no.  Another thing I am working on:)

She had a highboy, one side table and a matching vanity.  She wanted the dresser and side table for her master bedroom and didn't really have a need for the vanity.  I suggested she convert the vanity into two side tables as this was a great way to re-purpose this piece and make it useful again.

BEFORE

AFTER

AFTER
No, this was not my own bright idea.  I had seen Kristy from http://4theloveofwood.blogspot.ca/ do it many times before:)  If you have not seen her work before, be sure to check out her fantastic stuff.  She is super duper talented.

AFTER

When it was all said and done, I'm quite happy with the end result and I think my neighbor is too:)

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