Today I’m sharing the dark side of DIY. It’s not often that a project completely fails to the point that it can’t be salvaged, so when it does it’s pretty upsetting.
As you can tell by now, I’m eliminating all of the turquoise in this house. I had this console table in the studio because it was the perfect size and just deep enough to hold my supplies but not take up too much room in the small space:
My dad built this piece for us years ago—here’s a glimpse of it in our first home (on the right):
A couple years ago I painted it blue for our Florida house…
And now I wanted it a natural wood color. Problem is, the surface was veneered, and once stained and painted there’s no way it can return to its natural wood color.
I really wanted to keep the table, so the only way to get what I wanted was to cover the surface with wood.
Enter veneer. Veneer isn’t cheap. The best deal I found was this on Amazon. And I had to buy two sheets so it ended up costing $70.
The material itself is like a really thick, sturdy paper. Seemed easy enough to install.
You can buy stick and peel veneer but it’s quite a bit more expensive, so I decided to just use contact cement.
After lightly sanding the table, I opened my can of contact cement and read the instructions…
It said to apply it to both surfaces and let it dry for 15-20 minutes, which seemed long to me.
My first mistake was not applying enough (you can see the thicker areas above where it’s yellowish and shinier—the entire surface should have looked like that).
The veneer just soaked it right up so it dried up real fast.
I figured that just meant I didn’t need to let it dry any longer, so I applied the veneer way too soon.
I didn’t notice there was a problem at first—it seemed to hold okay. The most challenging part of it all was trying to cut my piece to exactly the right size and apply it perfectly straight so it lined up evenly everywhere. That was my third mistake—you’re supposed to cut the veneer larger, apply it, and then trim the edges off. I didn’t have the proper tools to do this, just a dull utility knife.
I tried setting the table on top of the veneer after both sides had the glue applied, and then cutting the excess off on the ground, but the table is very heavy so it was near impossible for me to lift it up and set it down while lining it up perfectly. This is definitely a two person job.
Still, I managed to make it work as best as I could and I thought it was coming along pretty well.
It was a lot of work and very time consuming, though. I worked on it over the course of 3 afternoons.
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JoAnn says
How did uou apply the stains. Did you apply one color then applied the other. Tia
cameron says
DIY is always a challenge especially if you are trying something new. But nothing beats the challenge you will undergo if you create and made great looking storage solutions that are simple and chic. I love the pastel colors and designs of the first few images of the storage solutions made. My wife loves it for her working space at home.
Jenna Sue says
I've been trying to think of somewhere else we could use it if I were to salvage it but that wall was the best spot for it. I haven't decided what to do with it yet, not sure if I'll keep it or not!
Anonymous says
I have been following your blog since just before you moved. You are so clever and talented! I love the crate shelves. They are my favourite so far 🙂 Michelle … Sydney Australia
Melbourne Girl says
Love the look of the crates…but sad about your console, especially seeing it was made by your dad…have you thought of trying to resurrect it by covering it in hessian – or burlap as you call it? You could sand it back, give it a clean and try the fabric covering with the timber edge. At least you'd still have an item made by your dad
The house is looking amazing though. Well done!