I Bought a Cabinet for $2 and Made it Over

About six months ago, we picked up this cabinet for $2 at auction. Gavin bid on it because he felt sorry for it. I think and when you look at photos of how it looked, you can see why. After we brought it home, the cabinet sat in the back of the garage for a long time. The veneer was peeling around the edges and gone in other spots. A previous owner had painted the bits to hide the missing veneer. the keyholes were painted over too. One of the feet had also fallen off, been screwed on and had split. Overall, it was in pretty bad shape and possibly not worth the two bucks we paid. But never one to let a challenge pass by, (and because I had a spare afternoon on my hands), I decided to see if I could do a cabinet makeover on it.

The First Steps of the Cabinet Makeover

The first step in this cabinet makeover was to repair the two broken back legs. The legs had split along the length of each one. Someone had attempted to mend them by screwing the pieces but this had made the split worse.

We took the screws out and glued the pieces back together using PVA glue. Gavin was skeptical the legs would hold but Aquadhere is amazing stuff!

While the legs were drying, I used a paint scraper to scrape the packing tape off the doors. This had been holding them shut for a long time. The actual tape peeled away easily but the residue needed thinners to remove it.

I originally hoped I could repair the veneer but found it was not fixable. So, I decided to strip it off completely and leave the bare plywood. I wedged the paint scraper under the loose bits and peeled.

The curved edges of the cabinet were solid timber. I left this alone and it became something of a feature on the finished piece.

Sanding the Cabinet

Once the veneer was removed, the plywood underneath was revealed. It was such a pretty colour, not the yellow of normal plywood. I gave the whole cabinet a light sand with 120 grit sandpaper using my detail sander. I cleaned the layer of old shellac/varnish off the curved parts and tidied up the plywood. The little keyholes were cleaned with paint stripper to reveal the brass below, which I love.

At this point, it was time to reattach the legs. We glued and screwed these into place.

Finishing the Piece

To completer the cabinet makeover I gave it a coat of Cabot’s Stain & Varnish in the colour New Maple. I have to say I was in two minds about using varnish and stain in one after my last efforts (a VERY LONG time ago). The results back then were very patchy and it was hard to get an even finish. Since then, the product has definitely improved. I was impressed with how easily this product went on and the look it gave after two coats. So much so, that I used the remainder to refinish our hall buffet.

The little cabinet now has in pride of place in my office. It’s the perfect pop of colour in my neutral space.

Why I Love this Cabinet Makeover

There are many reasons why I love this cabinet makeover.

• Firstly, the cabinet cost almost nothing and took me an afternoon to refurbish
• It has a hidden drawer in the bottom that slides out. I’ve put little boxes in there to house all my stationery supplies.
• the glass doors on the top provide a space to show off my old books but keep the dust at bay
• it’s small enough to fit in a nook in my attic office. It’s so hard to find furniture for the sloped ceiling!
• The cabinet could be used for so many types of storage: drinks, books or even linen!