A couple of weeks a go I warned everyone that I was going to be refurbishing my china cabinet.  The fabric was ordered and we were just waiting for an opportunity where I could work some magic on that baby.

Labor Day weekend seemed the best time to do it (considering we have something planned for almost every other weekend).  We headed out Saturday, got the paint and scored some knobs for 99 cents each.  They weren’t the vintage glass knobs I was hoping for but they were 99 cents.  And that is cheap!

Oh, oh, and I also got a palm sander for my very own!  I’m so excited!  My next big projects are going to include sanding down the spots on the kitchen table and chairs that is peeling AND sanding the front door and repainting it.  The bumpy front door is the result of Mark and I realizing that we can not successfully strip paint.  We have neither the patience or the skillz and we totally could not stand the chemical smells.

Anyway, here’s the project.  I didn’t do a step by step but would it help if I said I thought about it several times throughout working on it?

This is what it looked like before.

A big brown beast looming on the wall by our kitchen table.

Here’s the after-minus the drawers and stuff.

It’s no secret that our home is not formal in any way shape or form.  So, painting it white really toned down the formal of having a china cabinet.  Well, it’s not really white, it’s winter’s mood.  And it’s my favorite white look alike.  I knew I didn’t need nor want a bright white so I actually had the paint guys mix up paint that was, well, okay let’s face it, it’s white. 

We tried out the new Olympic One from Lowe’s (and I paid for it…wish they would have given it to me to review…but they didn’t…that’s my disclaimer).  It’s supposed to have primer and paint in one.  Of course trying it out on a china cabinet covered in veneer that was mostly sanded off probably wasn’t the best way to test it.  It took three coats plus some touch up.  There was still some peeling on places I couldn’t quite get the sander.  We’ve used Olympic paint on pretty much every wall of our house because it’s cheap and for the price it fairs pretty well against our crew.  I’d like to see the Olympic One match whits with one of our colorful walls.  But, that’s for another time.

I basically sanded down every inch I could of the cabinet.  That means that veneer dust was all over the house.  I’ve made a mental note to purchase a mask to do the door. The most challenging part was trying to paint the shelves which, for a veneer covered cabinet built in the 1950s was solidly stuck in there.  I didn’t want to mess with the integrity by trying to pull them out.  These shelves are holding some precious stuff.

Anyway, the backing is the fabric I purchased online.  The pattern is a little bigger than I originally thought, but I think it worked well.  To get it in, I purchased the heavy duty adhesive spray from JoAnns.  My super duper engineering husband got the exact measurements of what I would need for the back and cut it out of some trifold board that had seen better days.  Originally, I was just going to put the fabric directly on the back.  But, the more I thought about it, I realized that it could get messy, smelly, and look a bit ragged.  The trifold board was perfect because it folded making it easy to pop in.  I did the spray adhesive thing (outside) and wrapped the edges around the board.  I also sprayed the back of the board before bringing it in and wedging it in place.  If it decides to start falling (not sure how it can with the tight fit I had on it), we’ll just put in a couple of nail brads in the corners and it should hold.

And, here’s what it looks like with all our stuff in it:

Pretend that the knob on the drawer is painted. I had to run out and get another one and hadn’t gotten it painted yet.  It’s on the list to do tonight.

That china is over 40 years old.  It was my mom’s wedding china.  When Mark and I were engaged, mom had mentioned that I would get their wedding china.  So, I never bothered to register.  Of course, we lived in a tiny one bedroom apartment on a social worker’s income when we first got married so china was the farthest thing from my mind when we registered for wedding gifts.  But, it still felt good knowing that one day I would have this beautiful china. 

Mom surprised me a year after my wedding.  They were moving and she was trying to scale down so she sent her china….now my china home with me.  The design is beautiful and so different than other wedding china out there (meaning it’s totally me).  It’s got a silver rim and the black edging has roses etched in to it.  I think it’s gorgeous and the fact that it belonged to my parents who are still married makes it even more gorgeous. 

And now, I think this new(ly re-done) china cabinet just helps to accent the beauty of it!