On the job training - Problems with a wood grained top

Happy New Year!  It’s be awhile since I’ve added a post here.  The holidays kept me busy with family and painting….but I couldn’t squeeze in writing blog posts.  There are only so many hours in the day, and writing a post or two was what I chose to give up.  I’ve seen a lot of New Year’s Resolution from folks vowing to find balance in their lives.  It’s a hard thing to find, but as you get older, your priorities become clearer and that helps you to find your balance.  Being overwhelmed is what creates the ‘fog’, so when you’re feeling  that way, perhaps that is a clue to step back, re-evaluate, re-prioritize, and then take the necessary actions to ‘clear the fog’ which will help find the balance.  I’ve also found it is okay for the priorities to fluctuate.  Perhaps missing a soccer practice is okay, but not the match.  Or how many nights a week do I spend on the computer or in the shop, instead of reading a good night story to my little one or connecting with my significant other?  These are questions we can only answer for ourselves.  What works for me may not be the right thing for you and your family.  But when you realize you may have lost your balance, let that be your signal to look for it…

Enough of my two cents about life…Let’s talk about OJT.  Oh yea…I learn something new with every project.  Rarely do I start and complete a project that is completely smooth sailing.  This lovely French dresser was no exception.

It had an unusual finish…looked like a colored stain.  I could see the grain of the wood, but the color was a wash of a yellowish, grayish, speckled, something!  Ha!  There were some very faint gold hightlights on the high ridges of her curvy parts. 

I got busy stripping her top…As I always say, “Let’s see what’s under the hood”.  Oh my goodness….pure as the driven snow!  

Is that the most gorgeous wood grain you’ve ever seen!  Yea baby!  I hit the jackpot!  My vision is clear…French Linen, Dark Walnut Stained Top.  Very French Country look!

I generally stop working on the top, flip the piece over and start painting.  But for some unknown reason (and thank heavens!) I decided to stain the top first.  I applied the Minwax wood conditioner (as I always do) and then the Dark Walnut Stain. 

Panic starts to set in!

What are those cloudy spots??  Oh no!  I reached out to a few sources and received some wonderful input from my FB page (please feel free to follow me along on FB at RPKInteriors).  I also found The Wood Whisperer who was kind enough to respond to a flustered note.  His thoughts were "If it's still noticeable after stripping and sanding, the outlook isn't great.  That's an indicator that the oil stain is quite deep.  Only thing you can really do is sand/plane/scrape the surface until you get below the discoloration."

Yea...that's not happening.  I have already devoted a lot of energy to this top.  It is now time for me to "know when to hold 'em and when to fold 'em" (singing along with Kenny Rogers!).  

I painted her in ASCP Old White.  A little light distressing and lots of waxing.  

If you have ever run into this issue before and have some thoughts on how to overcome the cloudiness in the finish, I would be most appreciative of your input.  My guess is I will see this again one of these days.  There was no way for me to foresee it after I stripped it, but unless I have some new ideas on how to overcome it, I'll move to Plan B and paint it.  My first option is generally to 'save the top', but sometimes we have to know when to move along!  :)

Thanks for stopping by!

Robin

Linking to:

Finding Silver Pennies

Elizabeth and Co.

Miss Mustard Seed