So, I bought this great harvest table with awesome pink legs and apron last week at the Collector's Eye show at Hawkeye Down's in Cedar Rapids. It had "great bones" as the legs are solid oak and it has a nice drawer with glass pulls, BUT... it had a gnarly (not good gnarly) linoleum top on it. It was all dry and rotting and no one I know would have wanted to serve dinner to anyone on that top... SO...
...today I tore that gross top off of it, only to find another layer of linoleum covered by a piece of really tacky (dual meaning there) contact paper. Under the three layers was the usual felt paper backing that I had to use stripper to get off. I wish that would have been it, but it wasn't... there was this strange, thin layer that I have no idea about... it was a blue grid pattern on grey... it wasn't paper, it wasn't paint and no stripper I tried touched it... SO...
... I got out the good ol' trusty orbital sander with some heavy duty sand paper and I went to town... FOR THREE HOURS... sanding the darn thing. I haven't gone over the fine grained fir/southern yellow pine top with fine sandpaper yet... my arms are like noodles and I just couldn't do anymore today. It's coming, though... it's coming.
Look for me, the table and more great stuff at the Antique Spectacular this coming Friday night, Saturday and Sunday at the QCCA Expo Center in Rock Island, IL. Daddy and I will be there with all kinds of great finds. It's a really fun show with 70 dealers and we'll be in the way back corner, opposite the entrance.
COME SEE US and make sure you say hello and introduce yourself... see you there!
Wow - your determination paid off - it's a beauty!
ReplyDeleteJan