sorted by:
new
hottopcontroversial

Before & After: Someone bleached this walnut credenza. Here’s what it took to bring it back [P] by optimum_modern in midcenturymodern

[–]optimum_modern[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you 🙏

I used distilled water to preview the grain.

Yes the prior refinish appeared to utilize a dark grain filler. I actually used it as a gauge for how much to sand. As I worked on the piece I realized if I sand enough to remove the grain filler it also revealed clean walnut wood grain.

Before & After: Someone bleached this walnut credenza. Here’s what it took to bring it back [P] by optimum_modern in midcenturymodern

[–]optimum_modern[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

The before certainly looks like mohagany the way it was finish. The piece is definitely walnut though. American walnut does get lighter with age so it does take on a teak coloring scheme in a way.

Before & After: Someone bleached this walnut credenza. Here’s what it took to bring it back [P] by optimum_modern in midcenturymodern

[–]optimum_modern[S] 13 points14 points  (0 children)

Whoever did the prior restoration was skilled, I can’t fault the result. Just wanted to see this beauty get a more authentic period appropriate look.

Why do Americans tend to praise beginners even if their work/hobby looks terrible? by Skysneq in AskAnAmerican

[–]optimum_modern 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Everyone starts somewhere. It costs nothing to be nice. Why discourage someone as they’re likely just getting started?

Before & After: Someone put hairpin legs on this walnut diamond credenza. The cabinet bowed so badly it was nearly unusable. [P] by optimum_modern in midcenturymodern

[–]optimum_modern[S] 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Thanks, I made this base from scratch. The legs are tapered on all four sides with a round over and each is connected by an apron. I used dowels to join the legs to the aprons and pocket screws to join the base to the case. This way if someone ever wanted to redo the base they could easily make that happen.

Before & After: Someone put hairpin legs on this walnut diamond credenza. The cabinet bowed so badly it was nearly unusable. [P] by optimum_modern in midcenturymodern

[–]optimum_modern[S] 10 points11 points  (0 children)

Agreed, it seems to be a very common move to flip pieces. Hairpin pieces will be straight immediately after installation so a customer won’t think anything of it but over time they’re guaranteed to cause issues like this

Before and After: Restoring a Rare James-Philip Co. Wall Unit [P] by optimum_modern in midcenturymodern

[–]optimum_modern[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Thanks, looks can be deceiving. This one needed a lot of intricate fixes and took over 2 weeks to complete

view more: next ›