Meet my latest mid-century piece. It sat in my garage for some time as I hesitated to work on it, operating under the wrong assumption that the top was covered with formica (I don’t like to paint formica).
Design
Sketchbook in hand, I imagined a fluid asymmetrical design washing across this piece in analogous shades of muted reds and oranges. The plan changed when I sat in front of the piece, staring at its lines. A decision was made. Instead of contrasting its modular design with curvy fluid shapes, I embraced what was already there and simply emphasized the original design with three neutral colors.
Design revised
The original idea was to balance dark and light stain in an asymmetrical design. I numbered the drawers and placed them on the floor for staining. After the piece was completed, I inserted them into the dresser only to find out that the middle left and right drawers were switched by mistake! Here’s the design as I intended it with the two drawer switched:
It’s important to be flexible and roll with our mistakes so instead of stubbornly holding to my original design (which would have meant sanding both drawers again), I switched the drawers and stepped back to take a look.
Yeah. This was better. Mistakes are good, aren’t they?
Here’s a before shot:
Anyone who shoots their own work probably understands the benefits of apps that help correct lighting and color. I use Adobe Photoshop. Here’s a raw photo before it was corrected and cropped.
It’s headed to Peg Leg Vintage this weekend and will be available for sale.
Last week was a favorite work week because I thrive when I’m surrounded by variety and contrasts. While working on this piece I was also working on its opposite: a custom french provencal chest of drawers. Here’s a sneak peek of that piece. I’ll share more photos next week.
Linking up to these fine parties: Mod Vintage Life • Stone Gable • City Farmhouse/Inspiration Exchange
Beth H said:
Love your vision Martha! I would have never thought to do this. Curious tho, on the lighter, right side, did you scrape off the top veneer wood to get down to the underlying wood? I notice the wood is completely different than on the left side. I’m asking because I have a dresser that has burl wood in different shades on the drawers and am having a hard time deciding what to do with it. Can I email you a pic to see what you think?? Thanks. Beth, Makemeprettyagain
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martha at MarthaLeoneDesign.com said:
Hi Beth: Thanks for the comment. I sanded the white paint off and to reveal the wood veneers. So, I didn’t scrape or remove a top veneer. I’m not sure why the wood veneer colors vary so much but for me, that’s part of the beauty of these types of dressers. One of my favorite things is to sand away the original top coat to reveal the natural beauty of a veneer.
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Judi said:
Yes, love happy mistakes!
I’m curious to know what you do with Formica topped MCM pieces. I have a desk that I’m working on and can leave the top as is with drawer fronts stained to match or try and paint the Formica top. Any suggestions?
Judi
inspiredvhd@gmail.com
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martha at MarthaLeoneDesign.com said:
Hi Judi,
For formica tops, I sand them with an orbital sander using 60 grit paper. Then I prime with oil although I’m sure a good quality water based primer would be fine. Any water based paint would work on top of the oil primer but I tend to use Benjamin Moore Advance paints for these types of pieces. Hope that helps!
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