As I love to stage vacant homes I often find myself in furniture stores, which gives me an opportunity to find really inexpensive treasures. By treasures I mean pieces that have been damaged, are old or outdated, or could use a little repurposing and design help. My latest find is this bench.
The side piece is broken, the leather top quite dirty, and the stain has been scratched off completely in places. After further investigation I discover the side piece is particle board but the rest of the wood is solid. Looks like someone tried to repair it but maybe found it too hard to match the stain. Stain is extremely hard to match, but looks deceiving simply. So of course I buy it! I enlist the help of my husband and he cuts me a piece of wood (I have an irrational fear of cutting off my fingers). Since the piece has multiple scratches I’m thinking I’ll need to sand and re-stain the whole thing. But first I pick a stain color that I believe closely matches what is on the bench already. I cover the scratches and it is not an exact match but it is close enough so when I put a coat on the whole piece it blends perfectly. I had planned to buy fabric to recover the seat but I’m feeling lucky, so I clean it with leather cleaner and it looks great! Knowing that it is very doubtful I could match my custom stain on fresh wood, I decide to match the leather top instead. So I sand the wood for the end piece, slightly sand the drawer and spray paint them both. Stain is more forgiving, so before you paint a color on wood make sure to sand imperfections, and fill in holes because they will show.
So for less than $20.00, and a little time – I have a solid retro looking bench I love!
