- Brass Tacks
We Ruin Furniture
We've heard it on the regular since we started this journey 5+ years ago..........but we've never let it get to us and here's why!
1. Majority of the furniture we paint has been neglected, damaged, or is seriously outdated.
We make it a point to find those pieces that are diamonds in the ruff
Seriously, like at least 65% of the furniture we paint has damage that prevents us from being able to re-stain it. Giant watermarks that go deep into the wood, multiple holes drilled into it from changing hardware sizes, scratches and gouges that would NEVER sand out..........the list goes on and on and on. We often remark to each other "and WE ruin furniture?!?" while we work on these pieces. The truth of it is that the majority the pieces we are painting are nothing anybody wants to put on display because of the lack of care they received in their previous life. We like to think we are SAVING these pieces and reviving them for future generations to enjoy!
2. Often the steps taken by past generations to "preserve" the integrity of their wood furniture covered up some seriously BEAUTIFUL wood that we get to uncover.
As addicted to white paint as our generation is, past generations seem to have had an infatuation with deep dark red varnish/Old English and the more power to them! Over the years we have uncovered MANY beautiful wood grains from underneath layers and layers of this stuff. We would scoff and say what were they thinking covering up this beauty, but that would be hypocritical of us. Instead we choose to appreciate the fact that those layers of varnish most likely protected the beautiful wood and we're thankful to get to be apart of making it new again!
3. Many golden oak dressers are destined for the burn pile or landfill.
Here's the thing, what is old will be new again. Design and style works in waves. The golden oak that was oh so popular in the 90's is now the stuff many people are itching to get rid of. The catch is.......... for the most part there is nothing wrong with it, outside of the dated finish. If we can make somebody love their old furniture again by giving it a new look with a fantastic paint color you can bet your a$$ we're going to paint it for them. In a world that is constantly buying more and new things, we love that our job is to help them use what they already have! Vogue used the term eco-conscious chic when talking about salvaged furniture and we're digging it.
These pieces were actually all in great shape, but their style was a little dated
4. The wood is STILL there.
As mentioned above, past generations covered wood with red varnishes that seem to have kept said wood in great condition. We like to think that in 10-15 years, we may get to remove some of the white paint we've applied uncovering a beautifully protected wood grain that can be appreciated in the future. Cycle back to reason #3, cause it will all come back around again.
5. We all have our own styles, likes, and dislikes
And that is the truth of it. If you don't like painted furniture the wonderful thing is that you do not have to put it in your home. If you love painted furniture, you can put it EVERYWHERE. Our homes are our sanctuaries and we should all decorate and design them in a way that will make us happy to come home everyday. So have the wood, have the painted, heck have them both in your home. There's no need to impose our furniture beliefs on others.
Whether these pieces fit your personal style of not, we honestly love EVERY single transformation. That's good enough for us.