Has anyone ever refinished furniture?

Xan921

When Jason and I moved in together we both moved from our parent's/grandparent's houses, so any furniture we have is pretty much hand-me-down so nothing matches except a few pieces here and there.  When we moved in, we bought a cheap TV stand and book shelf from target that is a really dark almost black 'wood' which goes really well with our new tanish brown couch & chair; however, in the middle of the room we have a maple coffee table with the legs painted green (lovely, I know lol).  I've been thinking about refinishing it and getting a wood stain to match the tv stand and book shelf better. 

Have any of you ever refinished a wood piece of furniture before?  Was it hard?  We only have a little balcony that I could work on, so do you think it'd be best to wait until spring time when it's warmer for the stain etc. to dry? 

I'm crafty with little things but have never really taken on a major project.

StaceB2010

I got a hand me down side table, and lucky my neighbor at the time had a power hand-sander, i did that in her little 8x8 shed she had in the back yard, wasn't that hard and then put a few coats of stain on it, as far as drying as long as its not out in the rain/snow/ whatever weather you have i would think it would be okay to do now. Or you can swing by the local hardware store and pick up the supplies and just ask them what would be the best way to do it! Good luck

jena.n.ross

I've redone couple pieces.  It's not hard, it's just time consuming.  The biggest pain is sanding the old stuff off.  

ddumire

I've done it and I'd definitely wait until the spring.  Paint usually comes off best with stripper, then wiped off, allow to dry and finish with sanding.  It requires a respirator.  A power sander is a must if you try to sand any finish off, or it will take you 6 months and a lot of elbow grease.

Good Luck!  by refinishing you can really make the furniture match your style!

hz80408

Yep.  An old oak buffet we got for free from a family friend.

 The first thing I'd do is try to double check that the piece is solid wood through and through (and not just microfiber with a topper).

I definitely agree on the power sander, although if it's a coffee table, you may be able to get by without.

Then just sand, stain, and seal.  The things I needed to redo a large buffet (2'x5'x4') only cost me about $10 and now we get asked all the time where we bought the piece.

christieep

I've only ever been fortunate enough to stain unfinished wood, so I didn't have to deal with sanding.  But staining and finishing is VERY easy.  Use rags not a brush or you will probably end up with visible brush strokes.  I also recommend doing stain and finish separate (not using a stain product that includes finish).

Xan921

Thanks ladies, I really appreciate the tips!