Something For Me

In the course of doing commissioned pieces, I sometimes find myself needing to do a small side project to keep my creative juices flowing - a project that's a little something for me where I can be creative and not follow an exact plan.

That's precisely the purpose of this little washstand.

I bought this from a fellow vendor at the Spring Barn Market at Pheasant Run Antiques back at the end of April. This little washstand had good bones but it needed some massive cleanup and a fresh coat of paint.

I sanded down the top and layered lots of General Finishes products on top. My base coat was Java Gel Stain.

Then I sealed that in with a layer of High Performance Topcoat.

After that, I applied a layer of Gray Gel Stain,

followed by another layer of High Performance Topcoat to seal.

Then I got fancy and did a Winter White Glaze on top and finished with several more coats of High Performance to protect my layered look.

The result is a rather beautiful grayish driftwood top that is a bit different for me.

It was nice to experiment with layering General Finishes products and see what came of it. As the piece progressed, I made design decisions on the fly and it was a nice change of pace.

For the body, I went with Miss Mustard Seed's Farmhouse White Milk Paint.

It freshened everything up in three coats, and I lightly distressed the edges of the piece with 150 grit sandpaper. I sealed the body with Hemp Oil because it won't be receiving the most use. The top is what needed the most protection, so that was taken care of with General Finishes products.

The original handles were quite primitive and one was actually missing, so I opted for these four simple handles with winged edges.

I know they're not original to the piece, but they're a close match to the handle that's on the door. The original handles didn't match that at all, so I figured this was a step in the right direction!

This washstand is the perfect size for a nightstand or bedside table.

It does have a warp along the top, which caused the corner trim not to match up perfectly, but it's got lots of life left in it, and it has the quirk and charm of a true old piece of furniture.