I LOVE to repurpose things to have a new job so when a good customer asked if I would relove this antique ironing board to become their new entry way table I was ecstatic!
This solid wood beauty is over 100 years old most likely coming west on a covered wagon.
It was given to my good customer on her wedding by her husband's grandmother to save them having to buy an ironing board. It was her mothers! Such amazing history this piece has. It will be the perfect entry table they see every day walking into their new home.
Step 1 was to remove all the hand forged nails around the edge. The latest covering had been removed for the makeover but these remained. I kept all the one of a kind nails for them to perhaps put in a jar to display on the table. It is so amazing to see such wee bits of hsitory.
The next step was a deep cleaning to remove years of wear. I like to add
Fusion's TSP to warm soapy water.
But I wanted to keep the hand written note the Grandma had left on the underside so will wash around it and hand wipe after. The probably date listed has been amended to well before the 30's.
Using a scrub brush everything got a good cleaning then rinsed well and left to dry.
The entire piece was sanded to remove and snags and roughness. I chose
Fusion
Stain & Finishing Oil in natural for the top to keep the wood grain character.
See how it enriches the wood grain? 4 coats in total were applied letting each dry overnight then lightly sanded with a sanding sponge after each coat was dry.
For the base I chose a new color I have yet to try from
Milk Paint by Fusion called London fog. It is a gorgeous warm white.
watch how easy it mixes and how pretty it is
The milk paint soaks right into the wood fibers.
The warm white color pairs so well with the top don't you think?
My shop dog Harley just chilling while I paint.
Once the milk paint dried I hauled it outside and sanded all the painted surfaces to a buttery smooth finish and distressed the edges to give a worn appearance to the paint.
Make sure you get all sides brushed then wipe with a blue shop towel to remove excess.
Wanting to further age in and make it look like this was the original paint from years ago I added
Fusion Furniture
Wax in espresso; a brown wax.
This is the perfect final touch. Apply it in all the areas where dirt would be and around the hardware pieces. Even though it is a new paint job it looks authentic to being done years ago thanks to milk paint and dark wax.
It is going to look amazing in their entry way!
Shared up at these link up parties
I just purchased one almost exactly like it but it's red. I will have to look to see if my treasure has any handwritten notes underneath. How fun would that be?! Love what you did with yours. It turned out beautifully! Thanks for posting it on the Farmhouse Friday LP! Pinned.
ReplyDeleteThis hand written note was from the customers grandmother which makes it even more special for years to come.
DeleteThank you for taking time to comment and leave kind words, appreciated!
Love the history of this project. You did a wonderful job taking care of it and I am sure they will pass it down to their children as well. Thanks for sharing your project with us. #HomeMattersParty
ReplyDeleteThank you Donna, I love giving old things new life esp projects like this :)
DeleteWhat a great idea to use this as an entry table! And I love the note and history behind it!
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing at Sundays on Silverado!
Niky @ The House on Silverado
Thank you Niky, appreciate you hosting and stopping by to share kind words :)
DeleteLove how you preserved the grandmother's note. I have a similar old ironing board I bought at garage sale yrs ago. It also had lots of nails in it. I need to put the wood preservative on it like you did. I just cleaned it really well and use it as plant stand in my kitchen. I'm careful to not spill water on it, though. Thanks for your pictures and great ideas!
ReplyDeleteYou are most welcome, I love to share my projects. Also love hearing others stories as well :)
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