RESCUING AND UP-CYCLING OLD FURNITURE

It is not a secret that when it comes to decorating and designing I like mixing old with new. I am always looking for old pieces of furniture that I can bring home and give a new life purpose. I like simple pieces with character, not very ornamented but elegant at the same time. London is full of shops and carboot sales where you can find treasures at a very reasonable price. If I had more space at home or a bigger studio outside the house and more time I will be restoring more pieces. 

I was looking for and old chest to display the NEW wooden knobs collection for the trade show and the photo shoot, and found this very old and almost destroyed piece near home, only costed £25.

I choose a dark grey colour paint as a neutral background for the NEW knobs, I think it works well.

(below) This is how it was looking before all the hard work and countless hours we put in. I started by cleaning it with some soap and water, to then start stripping the varnish and dirt with a special product (found in DYI shops). Once I got rid of most of the varnish I sanded it and Gassy started to fill holes and scratches with wood paste to leave the surface as even as possible. He then restored the inside and drawers, to later give it a few good layers of matt water based paint, we used eggshell paint as I don't like the glossy finish and it is hard wearing enough to protect the wood.

Restoring old furniture is a process of love, you must enjoy it otherwise you will give up as soon as a few days and some sore arms and hands hadn't been enough to bring it to life, but it is very rewarding to see the final result. I wish I had a bigger space where to work, maybe in the future...

The inside was the worse, the chest has seen a lot of rain, dust and lived a long life, 

possibly over 100 years old??