Some more redo's for me!

It's been so nice taking some time to do some things for my house for a change!  When I bought the dresser for my new TV cabinet, I also found a great Lane Cedar Chest and a side table that look like an EXACT match for the chest.  This really wasn't the direction I was planning, but I thought the cedar chest would make a really cool coffee table.  Plus, the more pieces I bought, the more the seller was willing to let me haggle with the price.

The chest and the side table were already painted the same black, which I really liked although they were very dirty and it was obvious there was no kind of protective topcoat at all, they were very dull in color.  The only major change I wanted to make was to strip the tops and restain a dark walnut color.  I just love that look, but you all already know that!

Here are some before shots:

Normally, I would have also filled in drawer pull holes and replaced them with a simple knob or an easier pull.  These are spaced 2 1/2 inches instead of the standard 3.  However, I didn't want to repaint them, I wanted to keep the black.  So, after thinking it over for a while, I decided I kinda like these, so I just sprayed them with my hammered black spray.

Here is the chest with the Citristip slathered all over:

And, look how easily the black paint on top just slid off:

The key to this is letting it sit for a day or so and let it dry completely before doing any sanding.  I did that on both the chest and side table.

I put 3 coats of stain on top and it really made a huge difference.  Not to mention, I cleaned the body of the both pieces, I mean, seriously, you can see how dirty they are.  After cleaning, I put a coat of wax on them to brighten them up and protect from a little monster that runs through my house.  I put the painted pulls back on and 1-2-3 done!

A wider view so you can see them both together:

By the way, dontcha just love, love, love my new couch??  To the right is the matching chair and 1/2 plus the ottoman.  I need new lamps, the ones I have are too big for side tables and I need to hang curtains.  I was planning to make my own curtains even though I've never even attempted anything like that, but I found some this weekend at Target that I just loved.  And, at $16.99 a panel I couldn't resist.  Also, I'm going back and forth about our rug.  This rug probably cost a few thousand bucks, I ended up with it after my mom could no longer use it.  I love it, it's the perfect size, it isn't all shaggy or thick, but I'm afraid the colors don't work.  So, I'm gonna live with it for a while, then decide.

How cool is this chest opened:

Shelf with compartments on top and a huge storage area below.  The two big bonuses are that the lock is still in tact, it needs to be fully pressed down while lifting the top, so again little monsters can't get in it, AND can you notice the original tags are all still there.  Isn't that amazing?  It is stamped made in February, 1961. 

And, once again I suprised my husband!  The look on his face when I told him that this dirty Cedar Chest was going to become our new coffee table was definately one of doubt.  Once in placed, even he talked about how cool it looks.  Score.