Built my first piece of furniture


sorabji.com: What have you done?: Built my first piece of furniture
THIS IS A READ-ONLY ARCHIVE FROM THE SORABJI.COM MESSAGE BOARDS (1995-2016).

By eri on Tuesday, May 6, 2003 - 03:41 pm:

    OK, it's a coffee table, so it isn't a huge deal, but I loved it. Finding the wood and matching it to an antique piece I inherited. Now, as I would be done with it, I find that the top of it isn't as smooth and shiny as I want it to be.

    Ideas on a relatively inexpensive way to get a clear coat on top of the stain that will protect the wood and stain (remember I have kids here so it has to be durable) and will also give it a gloss finish?

    It's a good thing that I don't have a workshop with all of the equipment I want or I would be buiding furniture constantly!!!!!


By Nate on Tuesday, May 6, 2003 - 03:56 pm:

    sweet, eri. get a picture posted somewhere.

    there are several products that will give you the finish you want. it's just a matter of careful sanding and several coats.


By Nate on Tuesday, May 6, 2003 - 04:09 pm:

    oops.

    basically you're looking at varnish or some sort of urethane product. urethane will turn out clear and hard, and probably be good choice. i think varnish tends to yellow, which some people like. depends on what you want.

    i think urethane has a dry time of like 30 minutes. or, at least, 30 minutes to second coat. you should be able to get plenty of coats in a day's time.

    then you wet sand the final coat with a fine grit paper to take the dust off, and then polish up the finish. should look good.


By Spider on Tuesday, May 6, 2003 - 04:24 pm:

    You can start by brushing on a spit coat, or wash coat, which is one part shellac to 4 parts denatured alcohol. Then sand the wood, and then do another spit coat, sand, spit coat, sand, and spit coat.


By Spider on Tuesday, May 6, 2003 - 04:25 pm:

    (It's a lot of work, but it looks nice.)


By eri on Tuesday, May 6, 2003 - 04:31 pm:

    OK guys, I am going to start the sanding now. I should forwarn you guys that I got creative cheap when I made this piece, so it might look a little odd.

    I wanted it to match, but be different. For example, instead of putting a trim around the edge, I put old pennies. So, it isn't something that is going to look "normal" and it isn't something you would find in a furniture store. It is a creation straight from my own insanity.

    OK, I am off to start working on it again. I will try to get spunky to take a picture of the finished product and post it here, along with the piece that inspired it.


By eri on Tuesday, May 6, 2003 - 04:49 pm:

    OK next question. I got a clear polyurethane coat to put on top of it, in a gloss finish. Do I have to sand it in between each coat to keep the glossy finish? Or do I just have to sand and clean it good before I apply it? Amazing how much sanding it and cleaning it off made a huge difference on the finish, but it still needs the clear coats.


By Nate on Tuesday, May 6, 2003 - 04:57 pm:

    between coats you just need to sand to level the surface. you probably don't need to sand between every coat.


By Bigkev on Tuesday, May 6, 2003 - 05:23 pm:

    you want to wet sand with a 400 or 600 grit sandpaper. and make sure that after sanding you clean the surface completely


By eri on Tuesday, May 6, 2003 - 05:33 pm:

    What is wet sand?


By spunky on Tuesday, May 6, 2003 - 05:41 pm:

    you wet the sandpaper, honey


By spunky on Wednesday, May 7, 2003 - 09:38 pm:


By Platypus on Thursday, May 8, 2003 - 12:18 am:

    damn, eri, you so fine....hold on to that woman, trace.

    nice coffeetable, too. all of my building projects resemble deck chairs from the Titanic.


By kazoo on Thursday, May 8, 2003 - 12:51 am:

    awesome! there is nothing better than homemade furniture. my stepfather made my coffee table. i


By Platypus on Thursday, May 8, 2003 - 01:59 am:

    yes...?

    i made my couch. it's pretty cool. i mean, for a home made couch. and all. i like the cover, which i fashioned out of curtains and a bedsheet, yet manages to look all professional and stuff, like "I am a couch cover" instead of "I am curtains and a bedsheet masquerading as a couch cover." Yes.

    Good times.


By spunky on Thursday, May 8, 2003 - 12:01 pm:

    "hold on to that woman, trace. "

    I do as often as I can..........


By eri on Thursday, May 8, 2003 - 12:41 pm:

    That was so much fun. I loved it. I am going to figure out how to design an entertainment center next. We have too many electronics and speakers floating around our living room.

    I also want to build nightstands and an armoire for the master bedroom, so that we have matching nightstands and the television stand doesn't totally clash with the entire room. I want to have room for books inside of the armoire too so that we don't have random books floating all over the bedroom.

    I need more power tools!


By eri on Thursday, May 8, 2003 - 12:43 pm:

    I think that is the first pic ever where my legs didn't look totally thick!!!! Yeah!!!!

    Gotta love an "everybody look at my ass and legs" shot, like spunky loves to take!!!


By Spider on Thursday, May 8, 2003 - 12:46 pm:

    Eri, did you carve the legs on the table?


By Spider on Thursday, May 8, 2003 - 12:47 pm:

    PS. The gloss finish looks good!


By spunky on Thursday, May 8, 2003 - 12:50 pm:

    did you notice what was on the TV?


By eri on Thursday, May 8, 2003 - 01:53 pm:

    I wasn't paying attention to the tv, cute.

    I didn't carve the legs myself. I found pieces of a broken coffee table by the trash. I took them and that is what started this whole thing. I don't have the equipment to carve things like that myself. One day, though. One day.

    My friend Contradixion showed up today out of the blue. She sat down and said I got a bad ass coffee table. I said I made it myself and she didn't believe me at first. She loved it.

    I am just really happy with it. I loved doing it and am going to have to fight doing more!!!!


By semillama on Thursday, May 8, 2003 - 06:28 pm:

    Was that the DVD or just the tv show?

    I finished disc one of Family guy last night, laughed like crazy. I had never seen teh episode where Peter builds a bar in his basement - fantastic.

    Eri - how are you going to keep your kids from trying to pick off the pennies?


By spunky on Thursday, May 8, 2003 - 06:43 pm:

    that was just the show......
    I have started to burn south park to vcd, but not futurama yet.


By wisper on Thursday, May 8, 2003 - 06:57 pm:

    i can't believe i just clicked (with intense interest) on a link with pics of someone's coffee table.


    the internet man, it's fucked up.


By Rowlf on Thursday, May 8, 2003 - 07:01 pm:

    did you see the most recent South Park, spunk?

    I cant believe Cartman jerked off Ben Affleck.


By spunky on Thursday, May 8, 2003 - 08:10 pm:

    Ewww
    Ben Affleck's spuge


By eri on Thursday, May 8, 2003 - 08:53 pm:

    Micki took a penny off of it, so I made all of this drama of how hard it was to put it back on and she thought it was so difficult that she appears deterred from removing future pennies. Hehe. Drama, works wonders with unsuspecting kids. Hayley won't touch it cuz she saw how hard I worked on it, and thinks that when mommy works on furniture it's something special, so I don't have to worry about her. I am going to start to refinish her bedroom furniture as soon as possible. But it won't be easy. Thank God I have power tools!!!!! I also have one more lamp to finish painting. Ugh. I have a few really busy weeks ahead of me.


By kazoo on Thursday, May 8, 2003 - 10:27 pm:

    I wish I could make stuff.


By eri on Thursday, May 8, 2003 - 10:59 pm:

    I bet you could make stuff and just don't know it yet.


By Rowlf on Friday, May 9, 2003 - 05:56 pm:

    I thought the correct spelling was "spooge"


By patrick on Friday, May 9, 2003 - 06:01 pm:

    its splooge people. splooge


By Rowlf on Friday, May 9, 2003 - 06:14 pm:

    "splooge" is when you blow a bunch of money, not your wad


By patrick on Friday, May 9, 2003 - 06:25 pm:

    thats splurge knucklehead


By Rowlf on Friday, May 9, 2003 - 06:32 pm:

    touche.

    the urbandictionary.com has splooge and spooge as the same...

    however if you do a google search, you'll find that Splooge is a piece of software, and you have to search a bit more to find the sex stuff. and if you type in spooge you get nothin but porn..

    I say spooge wins.


By patrick on Friday, May 9, 2003 - 06:50 pm:

    fuck google.

    i think the 'l' in splooge adds to the effect of the slang. i like it better. spooge sounds like something you find on the floor after the fact. splooge has action to it.


    besides, i work in porn and live in the porn capital. my authority is unmatched.....possibly.











    hey lets ask spider what she thinks?


By Rowlf on Friday, May 9, 2003 - 07:52 pm:

    "besides, i work in porn and live in the porn capital. my authority is unmatched.....possibly"

    well anyways on South Park, like spunky quoted, it was "spooge"

    Spooge sounds grosser, like a wad, sticky. Splooge sounds more liquid, like its no big deal if you got some on yah. You dont want no spooge on yah


By Platypus on Saturday, May 10, 2003 - 02:31 am:

    We say "squigged" round these parts, as in "oh, dude, you squigged in my eye!"

    I love Futarama. You know what else I like? Clone High. That show is great. I didn't realize what it was until friends forced me to watch it, and I'm addicted now.


By The Watcher on Monday, May 12, 2003 - 02:27 pm:

    Wish I had read this earlier.

    There is a product, I believe it's called "Envirotex". It is used to make very thick hard surfaces on furniture.

    People who make Model Railroad layouts use it to simulate water. I have seen it in hobby shops. It is very clear and very shiny. And, looks like it would stand up to almost anything.


By eri on Monday, May 12, 2003 - 02:56 pm:

    I might keep that in mind as I re-do the girls rooms. Suprise redecoration for them this year. Hayley mentioned she wanted a butterfly room, so she's getting that. I repainted her bookcase and put little butterflies and dragonflies on it and her dresser is next. She's tough on things still, even though she is soon to be 9, she is a kid and plays hard and wears stuff out, so her furniture needs protection from her active life. And her messiness!!!!


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