posted by Lily on homely, thrifted

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Oh this was the saddest wee wardrobe when we rescued it last week!  It was lying, flat on its back, amidst recently mown grass.  There were wet splotches of grass clippings all over it – as if it had been the victim of grassball fight.  And its back was positively soggy with the damp.

And yet, it has some very sweet features.  I think it’s probably a 1950s number?  The top of the drawer section is silky oak – it was this that prompted me to stand her up and take a closer look – I do so love silky oak.  The side props of the mirror are nicely grooved. Instead of a handle, there’s a very neat scoop for the your hand.  And the drawers – their groovy geometric aesthetic is very nice but the knobs do need a bit more knobbiness to be truly useful.  I know a fellow who will really struggle with those flattish wooden bits.

Inside is very clean and crisp, the little hanging rail coming down the middle and pointing towards the front door.  Perfect for hanging our coats!  I like that orientation – you don’t have the problem of there not being enough shoulder room for modern coathangers in old wardrobes – and it pulls out so you can see where your coat is rather than peering and groping amongst the others. There’s plenty of space at the bottom for Abby’s enormous school backpack.  And those three drawers – scarves, gloves and squishy hats.

Unfortunately, the finish required more than just my favourite metho and steel wool.  And whilst the wood is quite soft and the varnish thin, it still needs a good three applications of stripper to get it all off.  Whilst holding that scraping blade as f —- l —- a —- t as possible.  When some varnish comes off in a long, wide ribbon I practically clap my hands with glee.

Now, after two days stripping and scrapping the varnish is off!  Next is a good scrub down with the metho and steel wool and then … why, Danish oil of course!

She’ll be in by the weekend :-)  Sometimes, I do think I should take a photo of my finds in situ and then a photo of them when I’ve brought them back to life, and then pop them in the original owner’s letter box.  tee! hee! hee!  But that might be a bit cheeky :-)

Instead I shall simply relish the thrill of finding something beautiful and useful in the wild and be grateful for the wonderful sharing of goods that hard rubbish affords!  Honestly, it’s my favourite way to “shop”!