# We used to call it junk



## craftsman on the lake (Dec 27, 2008)

I'm increasingly running into people, mostly young who want what I consider dump furniture.









I grew up in an old drafty house (I'm 56 now so it was awhile ago). The furniture in the 60's was left over from the 1900's to 1930's. Some wood was split or the old bureaus had veneer coming off. It was scratched and some had layers of oddly colored shiny enamel paint that was chipping off. When we moved into another, newer home when I was older we hauled most of the stuff to the dump. Today this stuff is called 'distressed furniture' and is highly coveted if it's got enough layers of chipping enamel.

Today, I love wood furniture made in most any style and to mimic any era from ancient to modern, but I like it new or if old at least looking like when it was made, not modified by someone with a love for treating everything 'faux'. I've seen older furniture, stripped down to it's old beautiful mahogany or cherry and painted with a kit that makes it look like fake striped bamboo. Is it me or what's with these people?

I actually have an unreasonable aversion to painting almost any wood furniture and I tend to finish mostly natural. I'm not even big on stains. To me the wood, oiled, poly'd, or some other see thru finish enhances and protects the wood which is good on it's own. Trying to change it much is a shame. Granted, a nice golden or reddish tint to mahogany for example is just fine for the right item, I'm not totally anal about it but am I going crazy or are a lot of people just not seeing that the wood itself is as much the draw to the furniture as the style and construction?


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## ShaneA (Apr 15, 2011)

You are not crazy as it relates to this topic. I really dont care for stain on most things either. One exception would be oak wood be floors for me. As for paint, it belongs on walls. I am still trying to understand the concept of painting new maple cabnets. I guess to each his own.


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## jusfine (May 22, 2010)

I agree with you as well, stain just doesn't exist in my shop for anything I do. I appreciate the natural look.

I think there should be a law against staining cherry, for instance.


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## Karson (May 9, 2006)

I'm with you. If I want something brown then use Brown wood. There is natural wood in almost every color.

It won't be easy to find blue wood naturally, but go with the natural look.


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## Maverick44spec (Aug 7, 2011)

I have stain in my shop but I never use it. The only woods I would concider using it on are oak, pine, and poplar. (I did it once with maple but didn't like it so I stripped it back down) I like the natural look of wood. There are enough types of wood out there to avoid stain for the most part.


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## StumpyNubs (Sep 25, 2010)

I am a believer of giving people what they want. If people want mahogany painted hot pink, fine.

*BUT*- If people want to paint ANTIQUE furniture, they should be lined up against a wall and beaten with a sock full of nickels. They are destroying history, not just altering wood.

PERSONALLY- I like wood in it's natural state. I wonder why anyone would paint any cabinet, and I cringe when they do. But to each his own…


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## AGriff (Sep 21, 2011)

Fine wood should look like fine wood - including the grain!


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## LeeBarker (Aug 6, 2010)

There is no accounting for taste. If everyone in the world wanted wood finished the way Craftsman on the Lake does it, would we be any better off?

If, as a professional woodworker, one lets one's self talk convince her or him that her or his taste is superior to that of anyone else, the opportunity for true collaboration washes away like spaghetti sauce off a plate.

Kindly,

Lee


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## craftsman on the lake (Dec 27, 2008)

Lee, I'm not talking about quality of workmanship, It's altering the wood after. Not so much staining it's painting. I've had people want something done in walnut then when they get it they paint it black. If I had known I could have made it paint grade, maybe out of poplar, saved them some money and probably not have been nearly so careful thereby cutting down on the cost of assembly. Who looks at heavy grained walnut and paints it?

I understand about staining though. Not my cup of tea but a lot of people like it.


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## Dark_Lightning (Nov 20, 2009)

Maybe they think that since it's old that it is quality? I know, I know, it's crazy. But I see it all the time. My wife likes old c…, I like clean, shiny/satin wood. She likes crud in the corners and paint worn off around the knobs and pulls. I sand and refinish when the things look bad. I don't want to live in a dump. It looks unsanitary to me.


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## chilimac (Jun 19, 2010)

Dunno… Torn on this one. I spent a lot of time as a kid helping my dad restore antiques. Barn finds, garage sales, estate sales, flea markets. These were the bane of my summer vacation, we'd always find something that dad would task me with. I was working for free damnit (didn't realize I was getting an education in woodworking at the time). Spent a lot of time applying and removing chemical strippers, rubbing steel wool and various scrapers on surfaces, burning my fingers on the hot stripper gun ("dad, it's basically a hair dryer of course I'm caref- ow ow ow, damn hot blade!"). Other times we were repairing broken panels or chair legs… and making that new part match the rest by 'antiquing'. These would then be sold in their antique store, to whit I'd have to carry said heavy furniture to someone's car and good riddance.

What I like in furniture or any woodcraft has been mentioned above, bringing out the superior qualities or characteristics of the wood and how they accentuate a piece. I don't mind a stain as long as it complements the wood, not a huge fan of paint, but if done well it can look good. I will hunt around my boards to find a complimentary piece but I'm not above adjusting the plan if I don't find something I like.

Looking back now I think about some of the stuff in my parent's house. It has been in the family a while, the repairs aren't great, there are probably a few layers of paint on top. We bought some of them, and they look good, if old, but someone's grandpa did the best he could and painted it the color grandma wanted. Before that it came from their cousin who had a different favorite color. I guess I'm thinking about the history involved in those layers of paint. And maybe a little about the aversion I have to the work involved in removing said layers of paint.


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## Alster (Aug 7, 2009)

The Shakers used a lot of beautiful wood. And they also used a lot of paint. In bright colors. Some of the paint went on top of beautiful wood.

Paint has its place. It must, if incredible craftsmen and designers like the Shakers were using it so liberally.


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## gfadvm (Jan 13, 2011)

I think the yuppies call that style "shabby chic". Not to my taste but if they buy it, more power to 'em.


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## thedude50 (Aug 13, 2011)

shabby sheik is just shabby ******************** to me i have made a bunch of softwood furniture through the years when i couldn't afford nice store bought stuff i made a really nice version of norms trestle table Christ like 15 years ago and i made it out of heart redwood it was from a managed Forrest so it was not the old growth stuff i used to make my Adirondack furniture out of but the sides and feet were old growth i think from some old cabin this guy was sawing into planks it was cheep cost me 65 dollars to build i used a cherry colored poly finish my wife loves she still uses it today and we pull it out every thanks giving for a serving table ill never toss it out it was some of the most fun i have had in the shop i will be making her one exactly like it only out of cherry or mahogany for her birthday but it wont be the same piece my kids grew up doing their homework on while i was attending college and working full time ya those were the days i sure hope my kids don't paint this when i am dead ya sorry the photo is not perfect this is in a kind of tight space my master closet


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## TopamaxSurvivor (May 2, 2008)

Just goes to show you there really isn't any junk. Throw it in the attic for a few years and it will be worth a fortune ;-)


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## ArlinEastman (May 22, 2011)

I remember my Grandmother, it seemed everything is the house was painted every year to look new and clean including the furniture. Not that the wood was bad just to have a nice look with plain wood. I do like the fresh clean look of newly make anything in wood and keep it natural. I even been thinking on my wood turning on just finishing the outside and leaving the inside sanded and no finish at all. Just so people can see what the wood looked like before it was finished.
Arlin


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## Flyin636 (Jul 29, 2011)

We're about 50-50 here…..paint vs natural.They both have their place.Traditionally,millwork….most of the time gets painted.Certain period pcs of furniture gets painted.And have grown to love paint.The Hitchcock stuff really lites my fire…...its the blend.Also some of the Black laquer'd stuff is nice.636


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## Gary_Roberts (Feb 15, 2010)

sort of like Mid Century Modern furniture. Meaning, that ugly stuff I grew up with (I'm 59)


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## Manitario (Jul 4, 2010)

trends come and go; the current "retro" look I agree is in vogue. I don't mind the look; it beats the plastic veneered particle board that is most furniture these days.


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## Dusty56 (Apr 20, 2008)

I'm with you , Dan….make mine with the natural look : )
I have had to paint or stain a few customer items , but the money was green and I don't have to look at the items in my house : )


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## Dark_Lightning (Nov 20, 2009)

Heh…another thought. My father-in-law bought a redwood slab over 50 years ago, along with a piece of redwood…branch assembly, I guess I'd call it, to make one of those redwood-treated-with-resin coffee tables. My wife insisted we take it home when her dad got tired of it, so it sat in the family room until she got tired of it. So, I put it up in the rafters in the garage (which is where the F.I.L. stored it). If'n the house doesn't burn down before I die, that's where it will remain. Or, MAYBE, I'll break down and make it into a coffee table after all. It's gonna be a sight nicer looking than that old WW2 vintage footlocker that she's got in the family room, now (it was her father's in the great war). I don't go out there much, that's where the creepy TV that I almost never watch is.


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## thedude50 (Aug 13, 2011)

atom jack would you sell the slab i am ready to buy it if your selling


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## aturnis (Jun 20, 2011)

What do you think of things like this?










Personally I REALLY like this stuff. A lot of the wooden cabinets and shelve Restoration Hardware sells I'd REALLY like to learn how to replicate their finish.

You can find it here

I don't understand the finishing technique exactly. I know it's reclaimed pine, but if you cut old wood, you get new, fresh surfaces. How do they distress this so convincingly and consistently? Short of leaving it out in the rain, I don't have a clue. Any ideas? The zooms are pretty high resolution if that helps. I don't think there is any kind of finish on this at all. Correct me if I'm wrong.


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## aturnis (Jun 20, 2011)

Also, they make a lot of stuff in a "weathered oak drifted finish". Which I also like quite a bit.










Or the webpage here

This one seems a little easier to me. build your piece out of oak, sand, then sand blast and wire brush the softer summer wood out. Then maybe some more sanding to finish. I really don't think it looks as though there is any kind of finish on this whatsoever. Some people might not like this b/c of how the piece would take hand oils and spills etc., but the type of people who like the piece, like myself, just think of those things as character. I'm an old beat up pickup kind of guy. There is a "sample swatch" picture towards the bottom of the page. If you zoom in on it you can see what I mean by clearing out the summer wood.


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## rsdowdy (Aug 25, 2009)

I have some white oak powderpost beetle damaged wood that kinda looks like that…..

Royal


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## roman (Sep 28, 2007)

I tend to agree but quickly get over my anal aversion to stains and paint as this isnt a hobby.

I see profit…….I'm on it : ))


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## aturnis (Jun 20, 2011)

Moron,

Don't know if you already did, but take a look at of the site. I personally like the Shelving and Cabinets section. A lot of good stuff in that section.


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## Dusty56 (Apr 20, 2008)

aturnis , thanks for the link…there are a lot of cool items /ideas pictured there : )


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## Dark_Lightning (Nov 20, 2009)

I just spotted your reply, thedude50. Sorry, I'm working major overtime in real life. I'll look into offloading this redwood, but I suspect the wife is going to throw stuff at me if I ask.


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