For my first post, I’ve chosen one of my all time favorites. This type of cabinet, known as a spool cabinet, could be found in just about any general store back in the day – I’m going to guess between 1910’s and 1940’s – and are a desirable item for any antique collector who is searching for a great looking and functional piece that can easily serve as an end table or even a coffee table in some cases. Spool cabinets in good condition usually start at $300 and the sky is basically the limit. This particular cabinet was a craigslist find and I believe I paid $150, which was a huge commitment considering it’s condition.
For any ‘good’ wood restoration, complete disassembly is required, evidenced by the picture below. The difficulty for me in this case was keeping track of what piece went where. Between each of the 4 drawers were internal dividers which were of all different shapes and sizes and fit together like puzzle pieces. Each individual piece was sanded starting at 60 and working my way to 120. It was evident that someone before me had tried to refinish the cabinet before due to massive finish nails (not original) that were driven in to certain areas.
I did not take a picture of the cabinet sanded and reassembled but the below picture is taken after several coats of poly were applied. Between each coat were the standard steel wool/paint thinner applications.
The below picture is the final product. The labels are reproduction and were tremendously hard to find on the Internet in the size I needed. The labels cost about $40 total, which I was happy to pay rather than trying to produce my own.
This is one of my favorite pieces and one of the ‘finished products’ I’m most satisfied with. The cabinet remains in my collection. Total Cost: $200
Restoration on a Shoestring 