I tend to fall in love with run-down objects. I look right past the chipping paint and wobbly frame and see (with rose-colored glasses) a decorating project. Last week I mentioned how we went on an antique furniture spree at the Old Country Store outside Rhinebeck, NY—and this weekend was the restoration aftermath. Mike and I attempted to refinish nine pieces of furniture in two days. Crazy, but doable. We staked out the common backyard in our shared brownstone with a 20’x15’ tarp, cans of paint, stripper, thinner, saws, drills, tons of sandpaper and set to work. I wish I had all the finished pieces to show you, trust me, but they are still drying in a scattered heap behind our house.

Here is a bit of this work in progress and pieces that inspired a paint-covered weekend.


I adore this desk! I was told it is early Stickley but the clean lines and open sides (they’re bookshelves!) are what sold me. This piece was in pretty good condition, all we had to do to doctor it up was give it a sand down and a new coat of white.

The wood veneers were peeling from all sides of this buffet but I took one look at those legs, the original hardware, and the embossed detailing (see above) and I had to have it. If you sense a theme, I adore French flair in my furniture.

Mike is a fantastic photographer so knowing that photos will be big part of our wall decoration, we had to think of different ways to display them. We saw these 1940s windows and decided to turn them into 12-image picture frames. We bought two, painted them white, and have plans to hang one on each side of our living room-to-kitchen archway.

The lattice work makes this regal piece light and chic. It will go nicely in our living and it only needs a few paint touchups.

This mirror orginally had a decorative wood overlay along the top but when we found it, only a chunk remained. So we pried off what was left, sanded the mirror frame down and painted it a rich red to match the flowers in our guest bedroom wallpaper.

This was the state of my backyard last night as we waited for the paint to dry. Hopefully in a few blogs all the drawers will be back in place and the furniture will be adorning my apartment with as few scuffs as possible.

Anne E. Collins
Editor, PointClickHome