August Long Weekend Update. Featuring: A Bad Stripper
Tis the Civic Holiday long weekend (BC Day back in Victoria!) here in Saskabush. I thought I'd take the weekend to finish up a few projects and get some things done around the house since Bear and I weren't going 'to the lake' like everyone else in Saskatchewan seems to do.
In November Bear and I purchased a dining set from the ReStore in Lloyd. The chairs were marked up, as was the table. We decided it would be great to refinish the set and stain the wood to match the rest of our living area wood furniture. Again, that was in November. I was gung-ho at the start and sanded one chair. The day I decided to sand was windy and I was not a happy camper. We didn't have access to the garage at our old rental and I didn't want to sand inside the house, so I held off for better weather. Better weather came, as did a new house! I put off this project for so long that I had actually forgotten we were refinishing the set. That is, until I purchased another item for refinishing at the ReStore and remembered I had one project waiting for me!
Now it is August and I'm finally working on sanding the chairs again. Bear is such a sweetie and purchased an electric sander. The sanding goes much faster now! But I'm still not done! The stain/lacquer on the chairs, haven't even touched the table, is tough to get off. Bear reminded me we had a can of paint stripper hiding somewhere and suggested I give it a whirl.
Oh, I gave it a whirl. First off, the "irritant" symbol on the can is an understatement. I opted for a pair of latex gloves, just in case it got a bit messy. Also, I started out in a button down denim shirt, shorts, and flipflops... I ended up in hiking boots, jeans, gloves, a long-sleeved shirt, and if I had one, a hazmat suit. Holy cannoli that stuff BURNS! There was a bit of a breeze when I started spraying and a mist hit my face. Arrrgghhhhghghghgh I cannot type the words I was thinking. Little, tiny spittle spots of intense burning. I run inside to wash the chemicals off my face. Back outside, I change my position so the wind was in my favour. Try spraying again... now the bloody can is clogging (already) and the product is dripping down... onto my foot and leg. HOLYFNNNNNNNNNNNN. Time for shoes and pants!
Outside again. Gave the can a shake and got to it. Dammit! The wind changed. The foamy product is now on my arms. Back inside I go to rinse off my skin... again. By this point I was done with the stripper. I will sand the bloody finish off these chairs. Don't care if it will take me longer. I may not loose a limb this way!
I am now 90% done the chairs and still have the table to conquer. I imagine, hope, and pray, the table will be easier as there are less curvy bits to work around. Please keep your fingers crossed for me!
My second ReStore project should be easier. The unit is an old 50's china cabinet, sans glass doors that I'm going to repurpose into an entertainment unit/bookshelf under the spot where the TV will be, whenever we get a TV. The mount is on the wall! My goal is to sand, prime and paint the unit. Bear is unsure about painting it, but I'm super stoked. We have chartreuse accents in our living room and I want to punch the colour up a little. So, the unit will be 'Viburnum' green! That is, until it is scoffed at enough I cave and stain it the same colour as our dining set.
Colour inspiration:
Hooray for at home DIY!
In November Bear and I purchased a dining set from the ReStore in Lloyd. The chairs were marked up, as was the table. We decided it would be great to refinish the set and stain the wood to match the rest of our living area wood furniture. Again, that was in November. I was gung-ho at the start and sanded one chair. The day I decided to sand was windy and I was not a happy camper. We didn't have access to the garage at our old rental and I didn't want to sand inside the house, so I held off for better weather. Better weather came, as did a new house! I put off this project for so long that I had actually forgotten we were refinishing the set. That is, until I purchased another item for refinishing at the ReStore and remembered I had one project waiting for me!
Now it is August and I'm finally working on sanding the chairs again. Bear is such a sweetie and purchased an electric sander. The sanding goes much faster now! But I'm still not done! The stain/lacquer on the chairs, haven't even touched the table, is tough to get off. Bear reminded me we had a can of paint stripper hiding somewhere and suggested I give it a whirl.
Oh, I gave it a whirl. First off, the "irritant" symbol on the can is an understatement. I opted for a pair of latex gloves, just in case it got a bit messy. Also, I started out in a button down denim shirt, shorts, and flipflops... I ended up in hiking boots, jeans, gloves, a long-sleeved shirt, and if I had one, a hazmat suit. Holy cannoli that stuff BURNS! There was a bit of a breeze when I started spraying and a mist hit my face. Arrrgghhhhghghghgh I cannot type the words I was thinking. Little, tiny spittle spots of intense burning. I run inside to wash the chemicals off my face. Back outside, I change my position so the wind was in my favour. Try spraying again... now the bloody can is clogging (already) and the product is dripping down... onto my foot and leg. HOLYFNNNNNNNNNNNN. Time for shoes and pants!
Outside again. Gave the can a shake and got to it. Dammit! The wind changed. The foamy product is now on my arms. Back inside I go to rinse off my skin... again. By this point I was done with the stripper. I will sand the bloody finish off these chairs. Don't care if it will take me longer. I may not loose a limb this way!
I am now 90% done the chairs and still have the table to conquer. I imagine, hope, and pray, the table will be easier as there are less curvy bits to work around. Please keep your fingers crossed for me!
My second ReStore project should be easier. The unit is an old 50's china cabinet, sans glass doors that I'm going to repurpose into an entertainment unit/bookshelf under the spot where the TV will be, whenever we get a TV. The mount is on the wall! My goal is to sand, prime and paint the unit. Bear is unsure about painting it, but I'm super stoked. We have chartreuse accents in our living room and I want to punch the colour up a little. So, the unit will be 'Viburnum' green! That is, until it is scoffed at enough I cave and stain it the same colour as our dining set.
Colour inspiration:
Hooray for at home DIY!
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