Firewood Part Deux

After the freebies from last time, I also got a trunk-full of old lumber that my boss had set aside from the burn pile. The stock has a lot of useful pieces, such as thin pine backboards and drawer bottoms (which are useful for clock repairs), as well as several large pieces of lumber (armoire pieces?)

Initially I had no room for it anywhere, so it was piled in the front hallway (I didn't want it left in the cold porch).





The top board on this pile is actually a broken headboard from an old pine bed.



This second batch of firewood wasn't just boring wood planks. There were also a few fun pieces. Among them was this gorgeous gesso-decorated mirror frame. I was amazed that it was still in good shape, because I literally dug it out of the back of a pickup truck full of scrap wood. It was half buried, but it has almost no breaks. it will just need a few touch-ups. The frame has already been repaired with wooden dowels drilled diagonally and glued into the corners.

You can see it here in front of the previous mirror (which needs a lot more work), and 2 of my other old frames behind it. You can also make out the love seat on the right. The frame is pretty large at ~16" x 57". I'd date the frame to around 1900, but it has a similar style to earlier 1800's over-mantle mirrors. I plan to just touch up the frame, and install repro wavy mirrors.

Also note that large Victorian carved table leg on the floor. I have no idea what I'll do with it, but it's solid walnut, so sadly I may just use the lumber. Otherwise it's just a giant (and very random) decoration.



I also salvaged some interesting fretwork pieces. The large one is likely from a gramophone or radio cabinet, while the smaller one is from some sort of decorative wall shelf. The piece at the front is the top of an old mirror. It's ruined, but the pressed/carving can be removed and reused.



The desk has been brought upstairs into the "L Room" for storage until I can work on it.



The rest of this post is just a few random bits.

Here are two shots of the restored finish on the mahogany serving piece. I think it turned out awesome for so little work.



The colours are wonky in this one, but you can see the top better. It's not 100% perfect (since the top had a LOT of stains and blotches), but it's pretty good, and I prefer imperfections on antiques.



Lastly, here's a half finished project. I've started working on some of the grates. This one has been cleaned, scrubbed free of excess rust, and painted. The interior (and back sides) are flat black, and the front is gloss white. I used spray paint for a beautiful smooth finish. The screw was also cleaned-up with a metal file (to remove burrs and marks), and painted.



The reason it's only half finished is because the latch hasn't been stripped and painted, and neither has the interior flap. These will be worked on at the same time as I do the second one for the living room.

I also took advantage of this past week's sale on paint at the Home Depot. I spent over 200$ on 3 1/2 cans of paint. I bought green for the upstairs "L Room", and blue and light grey for the main hallway (it will be blue on the main floor, and grey going up the stairs).