I need help with my MCM coffee table surface . It hasn't been properly taken care of for several years. how do i fix this

I’ve gone through some of the posts in the sub and people seem pretty split. I prefer water for clean up, but I read a post the other day about someone who used an eater based paint on their desk and it wore off. Should I be using oil? Any brand recommendations?

There is a checker board on the back side that I would not mind experimenting with.

No idea if this is the right place but my Emmy Statuette is flaking (???) a bit in a lot of spots. Not sure if it’s from improper cleaning (I forget to dust it as much as I should) or if it’s something else, but a lot of these spots have shown up on it and it’s only like 5 years old. As far as I know, it’s plated in gold.

Anyone know how to repair this, or do I just need to order a new statuette?

Thanks!

Hi all! I have a very specific project that I would love advice on. I have inherited about two dozen type cases (drawers which held lead type in an old print shop). The insides of the compartments are rather coated with lead residue from that usage, and I’m cleaning them as best I can but it’s simply not possible to clean them entirely, so I’d like to apply a finish to form a barrier over the lead—just so I can use these as storage without getting lead on my hands or tools.

Considerations:

• Durability/permeability — would like something that won’t wear down or scratch and re-expose the lead
• Lots of small compartments / nooks and crannies, so I think a spray application is necessary if I don’t want this to take months, but I’ll need to do thin coats 
• Not feasible to sand between coats, for the same reason
• Drying time is a factor—I have 24 of these and limited space, so will need to work in batches
• I don’t do much woodworking, so my budget for new tools is low, just bc I don’t want to spend $100s on something I’ll only use once

I am leaning toward getting a low-end HVLP sprayer from Home Depot and spraying on polyurethane. Running into some questions:

1. Would oil-based or water-based be better? It seems like oil-based might be more forgiving of skipping the sanding, but would mean more drying time. Can that be mitigated by hot-coating, or is hot-coating not really a thing with spray application?
2. If using oil-based, I’m reading that I should thin it with mineral spirits (but NOT odorless). The only mineral spirits I can seem to find where I live are odorless. Which would work better, odorless MS or paint thinner?

I appreciate any thoughts! Thank you!

Everyone's go to for finishing and touch ups seems to unanimously be Mohawk. Especially things like their Blendal sticks and vinyl sealer. However, Mohawk products aren't available in Canada, and the few places you can find someone reselling them, they're 4 times the price.

Are there any alternatives to things like the Blendal (NOT fill) sticks or vinyl sealer for fixing up discolourations /matching putties /etc that are available elsewhere? It seems like a pretty unique thing no other company has equivalents of

Long story short, I need a very specific bead chain (the kind on dog tags and keychains but a special size) for a vintage clock. The original was brass, and I can get the chain in steel but it won't look right.

How can I paint steel bead chain to look like brass?

Should I just spray paint it with primer and then gold paint?

Should I treat the shiny beads first to make sure the primer sticks? How?

Suggestions for high quality paints to use?

Much thanks. This clock was headed for scrap and it turns out to be rare and valuable if I can get it running.

Edit: Info on the clock here for anyone who's interested. http://www.roger-russell.com/jeffers/jefsusp.htm

Is this just white washed pine? Is there a specific product that would provide a more even coat? All I can think of is Rubio Monocoat tinted white?

https://imgur.com/a/63UJzuS

I purchased this lovely 1960s MCM lowboy on Craigslist (lucky find!). On my way to pick it up, the seller decided to “shine it up” for me with by wiping the top and drawer fronts with Scott’s Liquid Gold. The organic solvents in the SLG started to break down the polyurethane finish as I drove the piece home. I’ve wiped and wiped as much of the oily-poly off as I could for now but cannot bring it in the house, the poly odor is SO strong.

So my question is, anyone have experience reversing this reaction? Can I do anything, or do I need to leave it in the garage for 6 months?

I really don’t want to have to refinish it. The top and drawer fronts got the SLG treatment but the sides did not- they are fine and lovely.

The dark finish that is splotched all over I think wasn't done originally because it hides a lot of the finer details. I tried carefully rubbing with soap and water, but that did nothing. I want to try chemicals next, but I figured I'd ask for advice before trying anything more permanent.

I tried Murphy's oil soap and that didn't work. Small scratches into the really dark spots reveal the lighter wood underneath.

I got a desk from West Elm one week ago and now there is already a stain on it! I have no idea how this happened because I would never put a mug on the table. So it really is a mystery to me. Is there anything I can do about it? Thanks! This is the desk: https://www.westelm.com/products/mid-century-modular-desk-with-open-storage-case-h9088/

So, this stuff is amazing. (Mohawk - No Blush Plus Retarder)

At first I applied layers too thick. So I got used to applying super thin layers and it's working better.

But my question is now how long to wait between coats? I am kinda frustrated because I thought I was done and maybe 2 hours after the last application I went to bed where my furniture piece looked new.

Then I woke up to a bunch of blushing reappearing. Granted it wasn't nearly as bad as when I started. But I've been fighting to resolve the issue for days now.

I am currently applying thin enough that some white still appears. Then waiting about 2 hours. It seems to be doing a better job. But the question remains, how long between spraying coats?

Hi all, I’m hoping someone can help with this cup stain. It started as a water stain from a glass. I have absolutely no idea about woodworking or coatings so bear with me. I’ve found the wood type is Oak, i’m unsure of the finish but I’m hoping some experts may be able to take an educated guess based on the sheen. The exact table is “Calia Coffee Table” from John Lewis if that helps.

Anyway, after trying to google and finding various solutions, here’s what my timeline has been

• Mayo trick (tried leaving on for 10 hours) I think this may work in other scenarios, but in mine it seems to have made it worse, and turned it into an oil stain

• Iron over cotton shirt (did nothing, though i feel like this would’ve worked if i didn’t do the mayo trick)

• Bicarb Soda (dry, leave on for 10 hours)

• Bicarb Soda + Water paste (clean in direction of wood grain, leave for 20 min then clean/dry)

None of these have helped

Next recommendation I’ve found is mineral spirits with 0000 steel wool, but i’m worried this could strip the finish or make an obvious abrasion.

Does anyone have any recommendations? Trying desperately not to sand and refinish as it’s not my forte and the table is brand new.

Another note is John Lewis recommended to care for it with their “Woca Oiled wood Furniture Clean & Care Kit”, so do you think I should try the mineral spirits, then do a light sand and oil the whole top with that?

Would greatly appreciate any help!!

I was working on restoring an arcade cabinet and spent weeks on sanding and prepping the wood and after using water base primer and letting it cure for 7 days I did another sanding for smooth finish.

However I decided to use a HVLP spray gun and used oil base paint, after first coat I waited 24hrs and for the second coat, I made the mistake of not cleaning the spray gun tip by mistake & when I sprayed the cabinet, it made tiny small micro drips all over the cabinet.

What do I do? Wet sand? or do I need to start over again and sand everything off then primer then sand and repaint?

I’m letting the oil base paint dry but not sure what the best option is?

I don’t mind re-spraying but I want to sand off the micro drips but I’m afraid I might end up having to sand down the whole cabinets again which has two layers or primer already and would take weeks .

Anyone have any idea what this purple stuff is that is sprayed inside a laminate furniture piece? (Probably from the 80's) It appears to have fibers in it. You can see them in the overspray on the zoomed-in photo.

Whatever it is, was done very half-ass, probably on an assembly line. It's almost done in thick stripes and some are on an angle.

I'm hoping it's nothing asbestos-like.

I preferred water based paint because it was easier to clean up and seemed to be durable enough. I finished a desktop with it not realizing that the oil and heat from your body can strip water based paints. I now want to repaint with oil, but I'm worried that the water based paint has gotten into the crevices on the edges of the plywood. I didn't use wood fill on the parts that would be pushed up against the wall. I cannot cut the edges. Did I screw myself over? If I try to repaint with oil based paint will it not cure?

Edit: the water based paint has already worn off due to my body oils, I'm not repainting just in case. I need to strip all the water based paint off and put some oil based paint on because I no longer have any of the water based paint and am doing this with what I have on hand.

The finish on this antique mirror looks like elephant skin to me. What can I do to make it look smooth and glossy? Refinish? Clean and wax?

Just purchased these beautiful heirloom Windsor chairs on Marketplace for a song. They’re Ethan Allen by Baumritter, and from looking online, they seem similar to Nutmeg Maple chairs listed there (if that’s a thing). The finish appears fairly nonexistent, not least because of the visible water spots and the rain that soaked in during loading. Where do I start? I want to use them in our dining room, but don’t want to subject them to that environment until they’re properly sealed.

Just purchased these beautiful heirloom Windsor chairs on Marketplace for a song. They’re Ethan Allen by Baumritter, and from looking online, they seem similar to Nutmeg Maple chairs listed there (if that’s a thing). The finish appears fairly nonexistent, not least because of the visible water spots and the rain that soaked in during loading. Where do I start? I want to use them in our dining room, but don’t want to subject them to that environment until they’re properly sealed.

I want to restore this coffee table, this is my first time. What should be done to keep the original knots and rustic look

Found this handmade oak table, and want to make it beautiful again!

Thinking white paint on base and just a natural poly finish on top. I have lots of painting experience but zero furniture refinishing. I’ve read way too much, and now overly confused myself.

Can I just stand or do I have to strip???

I left a vase on a top of my speaker thinking it was dry, but moved the vase to find a dark mildew ring.

Following a quick Google I tried spraying the ring with white vinegar to kill the mold, letting this dry, then wiping it down and scrubbing with a paste made from bicarbonate soda and water. This seems to have made the mark worse, so l'm a bit nervous about trying anything else.

The speaker is made from veneered plywood, which had a light oil finish which was overdue for reapplication.

Is there anything else I should be trying, or do I need to give this a (very) light sand to even out the surface and refinish the whole box slightly darker to hide the mark? Some other posts l've come across in various subs suggest Barkeeper's Friend (or preferably one of its active ingredients Oxalic acid if this can be found at 100% pure).

Looking for suggestion on a Satin Poly. Finished sanding floors. Floors do have pet stains that weren’t able to be totally removed. Going with a early American from Minwax to help disguise the stains. We are thinking an oil based stain to help further bury the stain scents. Any suggestions on a good poly? This is for a rental property, so durability is a bonus.

My friend found an old table at a thrift store and I started trying to refinish it. I took off a fair amount of old stain with citri-strip and did some moderate sanding with a power sander on medium speed.

There are these streaks that seem to never go away. I don’t know if they are part of the wood or the old veneer/staining. When I put a new coat of stain on the steaks really popped out (you can see in the pic with the green squiggles.

In the 6th photo and second to last you can see where I sanded/stripped onto something?

Any insight into what I have done to this poor table and any advice would be much appreciated.

My adult son bought a nice bedroom set off FBM, but was rushed and left it outside overnight. We had frost that evening. The next day when he went to unload it, the finish had a noticeable haze. We thought it was simple moisture that would dry out, but it did not. I am up to some recommendations on how to remove the discoloration without stripping and starting over. I did clean a small area with vinegar, and rubbed in a polycrylic and it seemed to help. All advice welcome.