Suburban Renewal: Chest Diaries, Part 4

The Chest Diaries are back! 
Last time, I left you guys with one newly stained, naked-no-more chest.

Today, we're going to: 

1. Re-paint all the brass hardware with a fresh coat of black paint 

2. Give it 3 good coats of gloss to add some shine back into her! 

I used a basic acrylic based black paint for the hardware...

Paint, paint, paint away...

Loving how much more even the finish looks here for both the wood and the hardware parts...

As you can see, a lot of the paint had been chipped off and bruised before the refinishing. The acrylic paint that I used didn't have a glossy finish, but that's where our trusty Minwax Polycrylic Protective Finish comes in... 

I used this clear gloss to coat the entire chest - three healthy coats!

I love how the gloss brings out the natural warmth of the wood and softens up the whole appearance of the chest! It's like airbrushing for wood! 

And the tally: 

Exterior

1. Wipe down and clean all surface area

2. Sand wood to remove all leftover stain and varnish

3. Restain to a dark walnut

4. Repaint all brass hardware

5. Apply varnish to seal and protect

Interior

1. Vacuum thoroughly

2. Strip away all remaining paper / fabric bits

3. Sand wood 

4. Get rid of musty smell 

5. Line completely with fabric

So at the end of Day 3, we are pretty much done with the exterior of the chest! I'm loving how it turned out...the darkness and richness of the wood really shines through, and the repainted brass hardware gives it a cleaned up but still vintage feel!

Next time, we'll tackle the interior...I'm thinking a deep rich red to line the inside! 
What do you think? 

To follow the Chest Diaries from the Beginning, see below!

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3