I love hidden potential, kinda like rooting for the underdog, you know? Â I love when I find a piece that has been completely looked over because of it’s obvious outer flaws, but is something that still can have a new life with some good TLC. Â This handmade cabinet was one of those pieces.
I found it tucked away in a garage at an estate sale a few months ago. Â I can’t remember exactly what I paid for it, but it was under $50. And because I am in the business of flipping furniture for profit, under $50 is always music to my ears!
It was not an expertly-crafted primitive piece, but was still sturdy, solid, and would provide fantastic storage. Â I knew a few coats of milk paint would go a long way to transform this into a quality storage piece for someone’s home.
I started by sanding off the marker writings with my orbital sander, and then gave the top a good, all-over sanding as well. Â The top was one solid piece of wood, but was stained in several places and also had a few deep scratches.
I wanted to work with those flaws and keep it very primitive looking, so instead of staining it, I just rubbed on some 3:1 mineral oil and vinegar mix (read more about this process here).
Is that not amazing? Â Something so simple brought out the beauty of the wood and took less than 5 minutes to do. It’s awesome.
Next, I painted the whole body in MMS Milk Paint Shutter Gray, then heavily sanded certain areas to make the finish less smooth and allow some wood to show through. Â When I applied the wax, the wood underneath the milk paint also deepened in color and produced a really beautiful effect.
It had some missing veneer on one side and some that was pulling off on the front door, but I decided to leave those places as they were. Â Those imperfections don’t impact the stability of the piece, so I left them to add to the primitive character of the cabinet. Â I did add new hardware and fixed a broken interior shelf so that it now has maximum storage capacity.
Here it is all finished:
Look at all that potential that’s not so hidden anymore!
It’s a fantastic piece with the milk paint now. Â The uneven coverage of the milk paint and its quality of being easily distressed fit perfectly with a primitive look.
The new knobs are from Hobby Lobby, and add just a little touch of upscale class.
And look at how gorgeous that wood top is!  All with just mineral oil and vinegar 🙂
I can easily see it in a kitchen, holding tableware and cookbooks. Â Or in a child’s room, with books and toys tucked away inside.
This cabinet was definitely the underdog! It was old, ugly, and broken. Â Not anymore though:) Â I hope you like it as much as I do.
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Linking up to:
Furniture Feature Friday, Â Â Fridays Unfolded, Â Feathered Nest Friday,
Silver Pennies Sundays, Â The Best DIY Party, Â Say G’Day Party,
Saturday Sharefest, Â Inspire Me Tuesdays, Â Show & Share Party,
Vintage Inspiration Party, Â Project Inspired, Â Wow Us Wednesdays,
What We Accomplished Wednesdays
Hi!
Lovely. did you use the bonding agent for the milk paint?
thanks!
Good question Stephanie! No, I didn’t use it, and the paint stuck really well this time.
Melanie,
This is one pretty makeover…like how you kept the primitive look.
Blessings,
Linda
Such a lovely finish. Wonderful details. Well done!!
Love the transformation. I was just wondering why you add vinegar to your mineral oil?
Mary @ Orphans With Makeup
Hi Mary. I just copied the recipe that Miss Mustard Seed first used and posted awhile back, which calls for a 3:1 mix of mineral oil to vinegar.
I have seen the use of the mineral and vinegar on a few blogs and I have been wondering if you seal it with anything. Or does it have to be redone at some point? I am not a furniture redoer but have been wondering about this for a few pieces of furniture I have. I love how this cabinet turned out.
Hi Jennifer! I did not seal the top with anything, mainly because it was a very rustic piece and any additional weathering that took place on it would add to its character. In general, I don’t believe the vinegar and oil seals the wood, just revives it and brings back the moisture. I don’t expect it will need to be redone for quite some time, since the wood needs a good bit of time to dry back out again. But I do know people who regularly polish their furniture using this method, so I think it’s mostly your preference on how shiny you want the surface.
Thank you! I will have to try this.
You’re welcome! Let me know how it goes 🙂
Just beautiful! Love the finish and color.
Thank you Suzanne! I so appreciate it, especially since you are a painting expert and always produce beautiful work yourself 🙂
That cabinet was a great find and you made it so beautiful!
Gigi @ Old World Patina
You are so kind Gigi, thank you !
It looks beautiful. I love how the top turned out. Great tip!
Thank you Maureen. I was really happy with the top also.
Looks lovely – what a great find!
Thanks Alice, it was a great find! It’s always fun to find a diamond on the rough.
Well-done with this job. Wish you happy weekend
Thank you so much, happy weekend to you too 🙂
Love it! It turned out so good! I posted about my first refinishing project this week. A roll top desk painted with milk paint. Not an easy first project, but I love how it turned out.
Hi Jenny, I read about your desk and you did a wonderful job!
Gorgeous! Pinned it. So glad to find you on Say G’day Saturday.
Thank you Meredith. I so appreciate you stopping by.
Thanks so much for joining the Say G’Day Saturday linky party this week. I’ve just pinned your post to the Say G’Day Saturday board.
Best wishes for a great week.
Natasha in Oz
Thank you Natasha!!
Wow, this is just gorgeous. I love that you worked with the flaws and used them to add interest to the piece. Thank you so much for linking up at The Handmade Hangout at Redouxinteriors. Sharing at the party tonight and pinning!
Thank you Karen! It was a fun project and I’m so happy too with how it turned out.
Have the exact same cupboard….. Was planning on painting it with chalk paint…thanks for your great ideas…so very nice of you to share.