Dresser and Nightstand-Finished

Well, it wasn’t intended to be a Mother’s Day present, but I timed it pretty well.

After letting the lacquer cure for several days, it was time to put the finishing touches on this furniture.

To cut the gloss sheen from the lacquer back, I started with 0000 steel wool, and rubbed the finish until I had an even scratch pattern across the whole piece.

This was easiest working in sections, so first was the drawer fronts, then the night stand, and then the dresser cabinet.

Here you can see the difference in the sheen before and after the steel wool. The rubbed one is on the left. The drawer on the right is still glossy.

If it’s necessary, you can start with a sanding block and some 600 grit wet/dry sandpaper to level the finish. This will get rid of any orange peel or runs before you start with the steel wool. Use a little bit of naphtha or mineral spirits to lubricate the sandpaper.

I was lucky and had a pretty even finish after spraying, so I was able to start with the steel wool.

There are a few tricks to rubbing out a finish like this.

• Lacquer makes it easy. The way it cures means you don’t have to worry about cutting through one coat to the one below it. This is a lot trickier with varnish.
• Always rub with the grain, not across.
• Work in long strokes, from one end of the section to the other.
• Keep even pressure on the steel wool with the palm of your hand if possible.
• After the steel wool, I repeated the process with 0000 synthetic steel wool. It doesn’t seem to work as aggressively, and blends everything in.
• Wipe the dust off with a dry rag, and again with a rag dipped in a little mineral spirits or naphtha. Again, work in the direction of the grain.

Anyone looking to learn more about different wood finishes and how to apply them, should start with Bob Flexner’s Understanding Wood Finishing.

Once I was done with the finish, I had to clean up the hardware. I was going to write a separate post about restoring the hardware, but honestly, it was just back and forth between Brasso polish and a buffing wheel to get everything as clean and shiny as I could. The last thing I did was scrub it all with glass cleaner and a toothbrush.

I couldn’t get it perfectly clean, but I think I like it with some of the old patina. There was a decorative escutcheon on the dresser that turned out to be brass plated, not solid brass ( I found that out via the buffing wheel), so I’ve got a replacement on order.

With the hardware polished and reinstalled, I was done.

I’ll follow up later this week with a post on how the repairs I made before finishing turned out in the end.

I’m real proud of of this project. This furniture spent a long time forgotten in the attic. It holds a lot of meaning to my wife and I’m very glad to give it some new life and put it to use again.