furniture restoration

Of all the family pieces we have in our home, my Grandfather’s butcher block is my favorite.

Our butcher block is a piece of family and local history. My Grandfather was a butcher at our local A&P grocery store during the 1960’s and this very butcher block was his work space. The store closed in the late ’60s and they allowed him to take it with him!

He passed it along to my mother and my mother gave it to me. I’m not sure if she didn’t really want it or just didn’t feel like moving it anymore. It’s super heavy.

It took three people to carry it in here but it makes the perfect kitchen island! Not only do we have this cool and unique family piece in our kitchen, it is a wonderful space to prepare or serve food.

Every so often, the wood needs to be treated using mineral oil. The iron stand also needed painting, so I decided to get it done at the same time.

You can see the wood was really dry. I disinfect it after every use, so it takes the finish away after a while.

I decided to share the process of restoring the finish because these older pieces often need to be prepared carefully. These older butcher blocks are not easy to replace because you don’t come across them too often and they can be pricey. Luckily, that wasn’t the case for me since this was inherited, but I can definitely appreciate the rarity and value it has!

The preparation is quite a process because I sand it by hand. I don’t use a sander because I want to avoid causing dips or grooves in the wood.

It’s worth the hard work! I started by cleaning it with bleach water to disinfect it. Once it was dry, I sanded it with 120 grit sandpaper, going in the direction of the grain. I prefer not to use sandpaper more course than that.

After that, I went over it with a degreaser. The reason I did that is because the block gets a small amount of build-up that’s sometimes hard to see on the outer edges. I can see it better when I wipe it with the degreaser and it helps remove that build-up.

Once that step was done and the block was dry, I went back over it with a 220 sanding sponge. This step smoothes out the surface before applying the finish.

The mineral oil brand I use is Watco Mineral Oil, made by the Rustoleum Company. I’ve always had a good experience with this particular brand and have used it for several different wood surfaces. Mineral oil is also food-safe, which is a must for butcher blocks.

You can see a huge difference with just the first brush of mineral oil!

I could not refresh the top this time without painting the stand. I used Benjamin Moore’s Direct to Metal paint on our wrought iron porch scrolls and it had great coverage and has lasted well being exposed to the weather! I felt confident it would hold up well for the stand.

It took two coats and it’s so fluid that you can barely see any brush marks! Here’s a side-by-side comparison- obviously, the left side with the fresh coat of paint!

I couldn’t believe how beautiful the stand looked! It looks brand new!

It had many years of wear and tear but the DTM paint gave it a whole new look!

I ended up applying three coats of mineral oil, lightly sanding with 220 grit sandpaper in between coats.

I’m so happy with this refresh!

The kitchen cabinets are original to the house, which was built in 1961. I painted the cabinets years ago and I’m so glad I did- especially since the butcher block really stands out in front of them!

The block has a lot of flaws but they add character. So many stories to tell!

Those knife marks on the side are a result of the time my brother thought it would be funny to act like a professional knife-thrower when he was a kid and put gashes in the corner of the block. I remember how upset my mom was and the serious consequences he had for that. It was the first and only time that happened and it’s definitely one of those do-not-try-at-home stories. There was nothing funny about it at the time but I can’t help but laugh now when he says “I gave it character.”

Not only do we use it for food preparation, we use it for storage! We keep our cereal boxes, paper towels, pot holders, and grilling utensils inside the stand.

I allowed the surface to sit for 72 hours before preparing food on it again.

The Watco Butcher Block Oil doesn’t disappoint!

This type of project takes some work and patience but a very special piece like this is worth it. I’m so proud of my Grandaddy’s butcher block and how we have used it. I hope he would be proud of it, too!

An unplanned visit to our local Habitat ReStore lead to my discovery of this wonderful mid-century dresser! It was a random weekday afternoon and I went inside just to look around. As soon as I saw it I knew I had to have it. I noticed the damage but was able to look beyond that because I could see that it had so much potential. I loved the design and was thinking about how I could restore it as I walked over to it. It was priced at $40 and for a solid furniture piece like this, it was worth it!

I was pleasantly surprised when I opened the top drawer to find that it was made right here in town! This Basic Witz dresser was built right here in Waynesboro, Virginia. This was a real treasure with local history!

Basic Witz Furniture Company Waynesboro, Virginia

I felt really connected to this piece. Not only because it was made locally, but because I have family history at the Basic Witz Furniture Company. My Grandfather worked at the Waynesboro plant for a while and his father retired from the Staunton Basic Witz Company.

The Basic Witz Furniture company was in operation from the late 1800’s until the 1970’s when Stanley Furniture bought the company. I do not remember Basic Witz, but I do remember Stanley Furniture. I did hear a little about the company from my Grandfather. He is the reason I enjoy restoring old furniture.

My Grandfather was a skilled woodworker, restoring and building many furniture pieces. He did this as a hobby and I spent some time in his workshop. Because he worked at Basic Witz and inspired me to restore furniture, it’s easy to see why taking this project on was important to me.

Removing the damage might look daunting, but I want to share how I carefully removed it and brought this dresser back to life. It wouldn’t exactly match its original state and would not be perfect in the end, but this restoration really brought out it’s beauty.

I usually begin by stripping the old finish using CitriStrip. I like CitriStip because it doesn’t have harsh fumes like other furniture strippers I’ve used. It does a great job!

I usually let it sit on the surface for about 30-45 minutes. I want to give it time to work but don’t want to wait so long that it dries out.

I gently scraped it off using a plastic scraper, then follow that with mineral spirits. I use #0000-steel wool with the mineral spirits to scrub what’s left of the finish that’s been removed, along with the remaining CitriStrip from the surface. Then I allow it to dry and gently sand the dresser using 220 sandpaper.

How to carefully strip antique furniture.

For larger surfaces, like the top and sides, you can use a palm sander. I would recommend taking your time sanding it with the 220 grit sandpaper. 220 grit is a smoothing sandpaper and not harsh enough to really tear into the surface. You’ll be glad you had the patience to do that and my advice is to trust the process! I sanded an old Bassett buffet many years ago using a harsher sandpaper meant for stripping surfaces and I saw the sanding marks and small dips in the surface after finishing. I still regret that decision.

For the raised sections that were built as the handles on the drawers, I carefully sanded by hand. That revealed a different type of wood beneath the old finish. I don’t know what kind of wood it was.

The main surface appeared to be walnut. I am not really an expert on wood types, so that was just a guess after seeing the grain and the dark color when it was wet from the mineral spirits.

I wanted to keep this piece looking as natural as possible, so I decided to finish it with Shellac.

I’m a big fan of shellac for pieces like this because it’s a natural finish that is non-toxic and really brings out the wood grain. Shellac dries fast with a nice protective finish and makes it easy to repair scratches.

Shellac is good for a decorative piece like this one, but I would not recommend it for furniture that is exposed to a lot of wear and tear and everyday use, like a dining table. Water and heat can cause damage in a shellacked surface, so I would caution against sitting drinks or hot dishes on it. If we serve food on this dresser (it’s in our den) we always use trivets that raise the dish off the surface.

Furniture refinished with Zinsser Shellac

You can see how beautiful the finish was looking with just one coat! I decided to go with an amber-tinted Shellac from the Zinsser company. I wanted it to have a little color, especially since the handle pieces were so light.

I simply followed the directions on the can and applied three coats! It’s so beautiful!

We are very happy with our dresser, which is now used as a storage console and decorative piece in our basement family room. The family room is decorated with mid-century furniture, so the Basic Witz dresser was a perfect fit!

Basic-Witz mid-century dresser restoration

I decided to decorate it with some mid-century vases I found at a local antique mall. They added some color! And how can you go wrong with books? The brass bookends were made by Virginia Metalcrafters, which was another company in Waynesboro, not far from the Basic Witz Furniture Company!

Styling a mid-century dresser with books.

I hung a few picture frames to create a small gallery wall and hung this gold plugin pendant to complete the look. I’ll admit I went into the family room just to stare at this the first few days. I was just so proud of my hard work. I feel it really paid off!

Styling mid-century furniture with a mix of vintage and modern.

How to properly restore a mid-century dresser.

We are really enjoying our Basic Witz dresser and I look forward to the day we can entertain guests and serve food and drinks (with protective trivets!) after we are past this pandemic.

How to Carefully Restore an Old Butcher Block

Basic Witz Dresser Restoration