Say what you want about people making good looking decorative pieces out of cheap pine. I know they are not walnut, cherry, or oak -- but hey they come out spectacularly good looking and will last forever as compared to particle board/mdf/osb.
I've seen alot of older furniture & mid century modern also made with particularly board too. But has lasted for many years. This new furniture they make today is so cheaply made. It's like it's made from saw dust, ugh. I'll buy older furniture & repair.
I admire your tenacity. I would have told the client that the desk was a lost cause and moved on. Sometimes it's the easiest. Wow, what a job you painted yourself into the corner of doing. Admiration!
Agree with you there...That is one ugly piece of 70s rubbish and in a horrible colour...YUK!.. Total waste of someone's time and skills. For the cost of that repair they could have found themself a nice solid made desk.
@@ngarber Can't believe she wasted her time on this one. I would have told the customer give me $40 and I'll chop it for kindle wood and bag it for you. I hope she got lots of coffees or ad revenue or something extra like the client gave her more to repair the water damage. In the end she made a silk purse out of a sow's ear, but I don't think this is possible without additional patronage.
@@PreservationEnthusiast I have to assume the piece had sentimental value. Trena is a highly skilled artisan, and I'm sure charges well for this kind of work.
@@ngarber That's what I don't understand. It must have taken her at least 20 hours. Even if she charges $400, it's only $20 an hour. Not great for a skilled person. I don't see how it all stacks up. Unless the customer wants to pay $800 or $1000 for refurbing particle board junk, I don't see how it all stacks up to give her a decent return.
I presume the owner thought it was an antique 99% of people are under the illusion they have antique furniture and so forth alas not true 99% is rubbish
A lot of work to beautify bonfire fodder. It had to have great sentimental value to the customer. As usual, excellent work. What is sad is to see particle board furniture and cabinets peddled at prices that, just a few years ago, would have been equivalent for solid hardwood.
Just when I thought you could not out do yourself you take a piece of low quality furniture and turn it into a work of art. It’s actually more impressive than the intense work you did on that clock because of the condition of that piece. Wow amazing as always thank you
You are so funny...you go from your serious, no nonsense side to joking and showing your hiccups. Just one of the reasons I love watching your content.
That looks better than what would come from the factory. Your customer must have had a sentimental attachment to this unit. Great job. Your skill set is beyond belief.
I love the attitude and your work ethics. You took this very low quality desk, wich most of wood workers would send directly to the trash, and you treated it like if it was the most precious piece of furniture. Loved it!
I like a challenge too- but having YOU restore a press board / veneer piece is like asking Dega to paint your family room. Respect for sticking with it.
Your skill with toners never ceases to amaze me ! It finished up stronger and more beautiful than before. Thanks for all the wonderful videos and knowledge in 2022. Have a good New Year.
You have a delightful sense of humor. If one does not see the transformation from the effort, skill and care you put into these projeccts, one would find it difficult to beleive the before and after are the same piece. I really liked this video. Also, belated happy new year to you and your family from me and mine.
Beautiful job . . . again. Even the junkiest, most cheap-looking furniture can be given a look of wealth and dignity. Well done, Trena. As usual, your skills and instincts combine to produce an AMAZING result!
This is a great restoration! I especially like the finish choices -- the darkness of the color really goes with the design of the piece, as well as the amount of gloss. The repairs are superb and strong, and the execution showed a real love for the craftsmanship required to bring the piece back to its former glory, and beyond. I hope it was a profitable restoration for you, seeing as how it involved some hidden 'extras'. Sure looks nice!
This desk is a perfect example of WHY I have my house furnished with antiques or at least pre WW2 vintage furniture. You just can't buy newly made furniture that is made as well as the old furniture.
Oh you can, just be willing to shell out a LOT of money. Even into the early 60's companies still made some good stuff. But particleboard which started being a big thing in the late 60's early 70's onward is just ugh.
I feel your pain with the PB, I usually turned down that work but you did a magnificent job as usual. I think the worst thing to encounter is the plastic used on some cheap furniture. I was helping a friend in his shop once in trhe 1970s and he put a bureau in a strip tank before we went to lunch. When we returned, we found just a few pieces of wood floating in the tank as it was mostly plastic and melted! that was a difficult explanation to say the least.
I just experienced the plastic thing with a TV cabinet I modified. Fortunately I wasn't reusing the plastic pieces and they went into the garbage after I removed them from the cabinet.
Trina, you are indeed a Master Woodworker!!! You took a hopeless case and turned it into a like new product! I agree with Trunt49, Friends don't let friends buy particle board! It should NEVER be used in building furniture!
I think the only way I'd have considered (as an owner) paying for this desk to be refinished, it would have to be a family heirloom of some kind, something with fond memories attached. Having said that, Trena saved an old wreck and gave it new life! It's quite handsome, actually.
Happy New Year! That desk was lucky to find a determmined, skilled restorer like you, or it would have been destined for the skip. As always, great job!
Fifty years ago, someone's eye fell in love with this piece on the showroom floor. And now, you have turned what had become a "piece of work" into a work of art! Great job, Trena 😁
I have recently just discovered you on TH-cam. My grandfather was from Quebec and a master carpenter. So perhaps this fascination I have with the beautiful work you do is genetic. I have refinished and restored a few pieces of family furniture in the past and wish I could have had access to the great information you have available in your podcasts. I truly enjoy and appreciate your creativity both in the restorations and the hard work involved in editing and producing your videos.
Happy New Year Trena! I love how your videos are evolving - you are not simply filming your restoration process any more - you are becoming a film maker and story teller! And didn't this piece have some lovely surprises🤕 It was great to see your approach with some (arguably) sub-optimal materials; this table will now be stronger and have a long family life
Trena does it again!... yet another silk purse from a sow's ear. Or since it's particle board, maybe better said: you made a silk purse out of a (rotted) pork sausage. Heroic work.
You are most honest restorer, I really hope the client had the decency to compensate you for the structural work you did, it seems you can make a silk purse from a sows ear - you had garbadge material to work with. Respect.
My grandpa was into this profession, I enjoy watching brought memories from a distant time. Thank you for keep those ancient jobs alive. You deserve a cappuccino 😊
from the scrap pile, to Trena's shop, to an amazing restoration . the most attention it has ever had, even the original build didn't have the dedication you just gave it
Wow! You did a fantastic job of repairing and finishing! I love the finished colour with what looks like a tiny touch of red! I prefer the slight red tones to the tobacco colour. I must admit though my pet hate is MDF (fibre board) and would prefer if manufacturers use a cheaper type of solid wood with their veneer. Of course it comes down to profit these days and unfortunately we have a lot of this rubbish in land fills emitting toxic chemicals and glue. Anyway I absolutely love your channel and each video keeps me spellbound. 🤗🇦🇺
Yup, pushed pause instead of record far too many times. What is worse is when I record several minutes of video with the mic unplugged... Really nice job rescuing this piece.
My observation of the work you did in this video is another project that proved difficult rather than easy. Regardless, it turned stunning. The mark of an expert / professional in my view is, when the piece looks this good before applying the finish, the work is excellent.
Oh Treena. What an incredible transformation. Now this is the desk nightmare far beyond that other desk. Particle board...ugh! It is so worthless on furniture. You performed a miracle on it. And what patience and dedication you put forth. You went over and above on this one. It truly looks wonderful with your gifted hands and artful eye. Perfect color blend, repairs and stability you gave it. Well done!! That was a very challenging piece.
As a furniture designer for 46 years, I would say that there was quite a few design flaws that would suggest the original designer was an amateur. However, you made it look a million dollars. Your a super woman! I bet you were in tears trying to fix the base. Particle board is the invention of the devil!...It's good for only one thing...the bonfire. If there is one thing in this world that I would be happy to see de-invented it would be particle board.
One of the things I like to see on your videos is when you stain the furniture but it takes the stain unevenly so you "color correct" it. Yes, you repair and finish furniture and you are amazing at it , but when it scomes to the new finish, you do that with an artists eye, and it is always beautiful. You have remarkable work ethic and remarkable talent.
Hi! Thank you! After watching/enjoying so many of your project videos, I had the confidence to attempt to repair a drawer to my sister's drink cart she's had for many years. And, I succeeded!! I even took pix throughout the process and typed step-by-step and by pic how I repaired it! :-)
I have never, ever, seen anyone put sawdust together so well as you Trena. Great tip Trena. I will definitely flip over any piece I intend to buy to see if it is particle board. You really did a great job. It looks like it just came out of a 1970'S furniture showroom. I mean that as an honest compliment.
Really love to watch your videos. My I recommend that you look up Methyl chloride, or Methylene chloride, Dichloromethane. The ingredient you said was in your paint stripper. Vapor filters, organic filters, face masks Do Not filter methylene chloride the way you would expect. You'll learn that you are slowly
Thanks for responding to my post. I just showed your site to my wife she agrees with me when you find something is not what you expected you explain why and your solution that part is not edited it’s very educational! I’m going to try some intarsare the things I learned from your work with veneer will be a help,
Many of the desks from the 70's and 80's office furniture manufacturers were built like tanks - and seemed to weigh as much. The better ones used HDF (high density fiberboard) instead of MDF (medium density fiberboard). Solid wood/upper end residential desks at the time rarely could survive the rigors of an actual office life. Water is to fiberboard what kryptonite is to Superman. My house was built in 1976. I bought it in '97. The kitchen cabinets are made of plywood and HDF. They still have no structural damage at all, though they're about to get their second paint job. Even items made from cheaper products during those years are of more durable quality than what is available today. This desk looks great and is ready for the next 50 years of its life!
Love your videos. What you do is a lost art. It's amazing. You should teach classes. I'm going to take a wild guess and say the staining process is your least favorite job to do. 🤣
Wow, this desk *must* hold an enormous amount of sentimental value! I mean, the new wood you put on, costs more than the entire desk is when it was new. The end result is amazing though!
I would have taken one look at the veneered particle board and told the owner to burn it. You did a great job with a heap of garbage, I look forward to seeing what you do with some decent furniture. Thank you for the video.
I learned a lesson when I was young of which you've reminded me. I crocheted a bedspread for a friend and it took forever. Her dog would get on the bed and turn and dig to nest. She brought it back destroyed and asked if I could fix it. I realized that people don't get it. They have no concept of what goes in to your creation. It happened a couple more times and now I do nothing for others. I do for myself and they can admire it from afar. Only a handful of people would have attempted what you did. Stunning success.
I am amazed at how you can repair even particle board damage and make it sturdy and beautiful at that the same time! That's no easy thing to salvage. I have come to name anything with particle board 'Patsy Cline' furniture. (I Fall to Pieces)
You did an amazing job at repairing something that had so much water damage to particle board. I'm surprised it was built with the deep drawers in the middle and a sort drawer on the bottom
again . another fantastic effort... where you excel is in the ability to blend in to the original colouring of the original piece of furniture .. that takes a lot of skill .. i think your femininity helps as you have a real eye for detail and creativity too xx
There is a time and place for particle board/wood. and this was not one of them. Years ago I worked for an Elevator co and we put an elevator in Cujshman Furniture Factory in North Bennington Vt. and the one thing that impressed me was the quality wood used in every type of furniture they built. no particle board crap there. just quality wood and workmanship. I'm afraid those days of quality manufacture are lost for ever. Thanks to excellant craftspeople like you that keep the old quality and the not so good stuff like this pro-ject going thanks for sharing. ECF
I would never use a desk like this myself as it is just not "my style" tbh......but I surely envy and respect your craftmanship (or craftwomanship....is that even a word ???) in restoring this piece of firewood into the desk it used to be (or even better...... :-) ) Kudo's !!
Watching your videos, I get so inspired to want to restore some of my pieces but then I remember, I have no talent and it takes years to learn and I have no tools! Haha. This is why we pay for artists like yourself to do it instead. Unfortunately I don’t believe there is anyone with your talent near to where I live in Australia. There may be people that have similar talent to yourself in our capital cities but am nowhere near them either. So I just have to enjoy my old pieces as they are. Love your work. 🇦🇺🦘🇦🇺
Johns daughter, you are great and you have two things I don't, the patience of Job and a fathers legacy to continue and expand. Love watching you show off both. //ji
Another one! I never realized I used to have so many antique pieces, which I collected (free) during 1968-1975. I was so poor & could not afford buying new or decent-used furniture. Whatever I could get free, I brought back to the old rundown house in the San Francisco Mission District in California USA. They were stored in the street level garage hallway. The downstairs tenant had dogs, & he frequently water-hosed the concrete slab floor. Temp repairs were done by the former landlord who did not have your expertise! Fantastic work you are doing 👏👌👍🥰😃💖 I wish your shop was not so far away from Calif. It was my dream to someday have a shop like you have, or have my brother, John, do the repairs. He is a talented carpenter, busy building custom homes. Instead he moved, "borrowed" & kept my quality tools, etc & I never did get them back. The man I was engaged to (a successful, wealthy man) wanted me to draw up the plans for a "dream house" I envisioned. When I told him I desired a full mill shop as part of it...love wood, stone, & glass views, he didn't flinch! But I "Dear John-ed" him; my daughter couldn't relate to him (she was my priority, not the$$$). I ended up marrying a man from Mill Valley. The teak dining table you repaired, along with other furniture came from a Scandinavian country. My now ex-husband turned out to be much like Donald Trump (charming until you marry). I lasted 10+yrs "too long with Mr. Long!" He kept all the fine rosewood, teak, & oak furnishings, apparently along with what he said was "junked" (all the pieces you so expertly restored)! Since I am in the latter years of my life, seeing your TH-cam posts blesses me tremendously to see each them so lovingly restored for others' enjoyment & use!" Thank you (& your Dad) so very much!
Particle board........ the proof that there are no trees left! As a framer doing remodels I cant tell you how much solid mohagany base I ripped out of houses only to be replaced with "fancy" particle board base. What a joke. Now "quality furniture" comes from IKEA. lol Keep up the great work! Its a lost art.
Friends don't let friends buy particle board.Lol
Great job Trina.
Lol
Say what you want about people making good looking decorative pieces out of cheap pine. I know they are not walnut, cherry, or oak -- but hey they come out spectacularly good looking and will last forever as compared to particle board/mdf/osb.
The diecast hardware was enough of a clue as to the low quality materials used in the rest of the piece
thats costco furniture..
I've seen alot of older furniture & mid century modern also made with particularly board too. But has lasted for many years. This new furniture they make today is so cheaply made. It's like it's made from saw dust, ugh. I'll buy older furniture & repair.
I admire your tenacity. I would have told the client that the desk was a lost cause and moved on. Sometimes it's the easiest. Wow, what a job you painted yourself into the corner of doing. Admiration!
Agree with you there...That is one ugly piece of 70s rubbish and in a horrible colour...YUK!.. Total waste of someone's time and skills. For the cost of that repair they could have found themself a nice solid made desk.
@@jharris947 Agreed. The only thing that makes sense is if it has sentimental value OR John's works dirt cheap.
@@ngarber Can't believe she wasted her time on this one. I would have told the customer give me $40 and I'll chop it for kindle wood and bag it for you.
I hope she got lots of coffees or ad revenue or something extra like the client gave her more to repair the water damage.
In the end she made a silk purse out of a sow's ear, but I don't think this is possible without additional patronage.
@@PreservationEnthusiast I have to assume the piece had sentimental value. Trena is a highly skilled artisan, and I'm sure charges well for this kind of work.
@@ngarber That's what I don't understand. It must have taken her at least 20 hours. Even if she charges $400, it's only $20 an hour. Not great for a skilled person. I don't see how it all stacks up. Unless the customer wants to pay $800 or $1000 for refurbing particle board junk, I don't see how it all stacks up to give her a decent return.
This desk never looked this good when it was brand new!
That's for sure!
I presume the owner thought it was an antique 99% of people are under the illusion they have antique furniture and so forth alas not true 99% is rubbish
Holy smokes, is that the same desk? It’s so beautiful. Love the dark stain.
A lot of work to beautify bonfire fodder. It had to have great sentimental value to the customer. As usual, excellent work. What is sad is to see particle board furniture and cabinets peddled at prices that, just a few years ago, would have been equivalent for solid hardwood.
I’d have burned it for sure. And bought a quality piece to replace it.
What is sad is when the piece was new the salesperson touted this as a solid wood desk.
Brilliant my love
Alan Brett
Congratulations. You have accomplished the Alchemist's feat of turning a sow's ear into a silk purse. Hope the client appreciates it!
@@viriato8566 exactly. I was thinking it was lipstick on a pig.
Just when I thought you could not out do yourself you take a piece of low quality furniture and turn it into a work of art. It’s actually more impressive than the intense work you did on that clock because of the condition of that piece. Wow amazing as always thank you
You are so funny...you go from your serious, no nonsense side to joking and showing your hiccups. Just one of the reasons I love watching your content.
I loved the "welcome" -- it had me chuckling for a long time afterwards.
Great work on bringing another piece from "yuck" to "better than new!"
That looks better than what would come from the factory. Your customer must have had a sentimental attachment to this unit. Great job. Your skill set is beyond belief.
I love the attitude and your work ethics. You took this very low quality desk, wich most of wood workers would send directly to the trash, and you treated it like if it was the most precious piece of furniture. Loved it!
I like a challenge too- but having YOU restore a press board / veneer piece is like asking Dega to paint your family room. Respect for sticking with it.
The opening had me LOLing!❤
a daughter worthy of her father, hardworking and also pretty !!!
Your skill with toners never ceases to amaze me ! It finished up stronger and more beautiful than before.
Thanks for all the wonderful videos and knowledge in 2022. Have a good New Year.
She amazes me. Never saw a finish that uniform on cheap veneer. She knows what she's doing. A lot of people (including me) would learn from her. 🙂
Hey trena you're the best refinished I've ever seen in my 66years keep it up girl we all love you God bless you always Mel from seattl
Wow, thank you
You have a delightful sense of humor. If one does not see the transformation from the effort, skill and care you put into these projeccts, one would find it difficult to beleive the before and after are the same piece. I really liked this video. Also, belated happy new year to you and your family from me and mine.
WOW!!! Nothing more to say - just WOW!
Thanks, Trena. Always interesting and a pleasure to watch how you analyze and plan your your solutions.
Beautiful job . . . again. Even the junkiest, most cheap-looking furniture can be given a look of wealth and dignity. Well done, Trena. As usual, your skills and instincts combine to produce an AMAZING result!
Thank you very much!
This is a great restoration! I especially like the finish choices -- the darkness of the color really goes with the design of the piece, as well as the amount of gloss. The repairs are superb and strong, and the execution showed a real love for the craftsmanship required to bring the piece back to its former glory, and beyond. I hope it was a profitable restoration for you, seeing as how it involved some hidden 'extras'. Sure looks nice!
Thank you! Cheers!
This desk is a perfect example of WHY I have my house furnished with antiques or at least pre WW2 vintage furniture. You just can't buy newly made furniture that is made as well as the old furniture.
Oh you can, just be willing to shell out a LOT of money. Even into the early 60's companies still made some good stuff. But particleboard which started being a big thing in the late 60's early 70's onward is just ugh.
There are many fine furniture builders out there but the masses want cheap so that's what industry gives them
The work that brings old furniture back to new is wonderful.
I would love to see the reactions of some of your customers when they pick up their pieces!
An absolutely amazing transformation. Well done Trena
I give you credit here. I HATE particle board. I too would have passed on this one. Your talent really shines here.
I feel your pain with the PB, I usually turned down that work but you did a magnificent job as usual. I think the worst thing to encounter is the plastic used on some cheap furniture. I was helping a friend in his shop once in trhe 1970s and he put a bureau in a strip tank before we went to lunch. When we returned, we found just a few pieces of wood floating in the tank as it was mostly plastic and melted! that was a difficult explanation to say the least.
😮
I just experienced the plastic thing with a TV cabinet I modified. Fortunately I wasn't reusing the plastic pieces and they went into the garbage after I removed them from the cabinet.
Trina, you are indeed a Master Woodworker!!! You took a hopeless case and turned it into a like new product! I agree with Trunt49, Friends don't let friends buy particle board! It should NEVER be used in building furniture!
Lol
I think the only way I'd have considered (as an owner) paying for this desk to be refinished, it would have to be a family heirloom of some kind, something with fond memories attached. Having said that, Trena saved an old wreck and gave it new life! It's quite handsome, actually.
Yes, but it could not be an antique with all that particle board.
@@henryD9363 Spoke before I didbut yeah, wouldn't be an heirloom with that rubbish in it.
Happy New Year! That desk was lucky to find a determmined, skilled restorer like you, or it would have been destined for the skip. As always, great job!
This job turned out to be such a marathon, but as always, your tenacity & skill saved the day ...
Great job! It looks So much better ...
Thanks so much!
This desk must mean a lot to the owner. Great job. Loved the opening lol.
Or, perhaps to their untrained eye they thought the desk was of better quality.
@@karodora I like to think Trena contacted them once the amount of damage and work to do got more clear.
Great intro, by the way! 😉
@@karodora grievous sentimental value.
Particle board + water = disaster.
Tough project, but great work.
Thanks for the video.
The desk is now better than when it was new. 👍👍
Fifty years ago, someone's eye fell in love with this piece on the showroom floor. And now, you have turned what had become a "piece of work" into a work of art! Great job, Trena 😁
I have recently just discovered you on TH-cam. My grandfather was from Quebec and a master carpenter. So perhaps this fascination I have with the beautiful work you do is genetic. I have refinished and restored a few pieces of family furniture in the past and wish I could have had access to the great information you have available in your podcasts. I truly enjoy and appreciate your creativity both in the restorations and the hard work involved in editing and producing your videos.
Thankyou and welcome!
Happy New Year Trena! I love how your videos are evolving - you are not simply filming your restoration process any more - you are becoming a film maker and story teller!
And didn't this piece have some lovely surprises🤕 It was great to see your approach with some (arguably) sub-optimal materials; this table will now be stronger and have a long family life
Trena-your attention to detail makes my heart so happy!! Thanks!
I'm so glad!
Restorer Beware no more particleboard,never mind you turned it around in you're usual superb way,regards👍🏴🇬🇧
Watching you cut that base off was soooo satisfying.. though I know it was super frustrating. What an incredible turn around for this piece.
Thanks friend!
4:41 Oh well HELLO!!! Look at the beautiful wood popping out!!
Trena does it again!... yet another silk purse from a sow's ear. Or since it's particle board, maybe better said: you made a silk purse out of a (rotted) pork sausage. Heroic work.
Lol
Another win! My morning coffee is all the better watching you make all things good. 👍🏼
You put more care into restoring this desk than what was put into building it. Nice work!
What a fabulous job. Particle board usually only looks good when it’s on fire. 🔥🔥
lol
You are most honest restorer, I really hope the client had the decency to compensate you for the structural work you did, it seems you can make a silk purse from a sows ear - you had garbadge material to work with. Respect.
Soooo much work but what a difference 😉!! Bravo 👏🏽 👏🏽
I see your tiny new kitten has taken over shop dog's bed. Very cute.
My grandpa was into this profession, I enjoy watching brought memories from a distant time. Thank you for keep those ancient jobs alive. You deserve a cappuccino 😊
Thankyou!
from the scrap pile, to Trena's shop, to an amazing restoration . the most attention it has ever had, even the original build didn't have the dedication you just gave it
Wow that went from a dumpster fire to a beautiful piece. It was the touch of the masters hand.
The kitty and the puppy are getting along so well, huh?
Yep
Love the sounds of the crickets, so relaxing! You remind me of a plastic surgeon, except you operate on furniture!
Saved from the dump,,,what a mess,,,,,,wonderful ,,beautiful results,,what a lot of work,,,
Wow! You did a fantastic job of repairing and finishing! I love the finished colour with what looks like a tiny touch of red! I prefer the slight red tones to the tobacco colour. I must admit though my pet hate is MDF (fibre board) and would prefer if manufacturers use a cheaper type of solid wood with their veneer. Of course it comes down to profit these days and unfortunately we have a lot of this rubbish in land fills emitting toxic chemicals and glue. Anyway I absolutely love your channel and each video keeps me spellbound. 🤗🇦🇺
❤️
The grain on that top is amazing, when the stripping process began it really popped right out! Just beautiful.
Yup, pushed pause instead of record far too many times. What is worse is when I record several minutes of video with the mic unplugged... Really nice job rescuing this piece.
John sure taught you well. You are quite the wood master.
The end result is the appearance is better than the day this desk was manufactured. Sincerely a marvelous job!
Thankyou!
You are true to your word: “I pour my heart into every piece.”
I'm here to watch and learn,
My observation of the work you did in this video is another project that proved difficult rather than easy. Regardless, it turned stunning. The mark of an expert / professional in my view is, when the piece looks this good before applying the finish, the work is excellent.
🥰
Oh Treena. What an incredible transformation.
Now this is the desk nightmare far beyond that other desk.
Particle board...ugh! It is so worthless on furniture.
You performed a miracle on it. And what patience and dedication you put forth.
You went over and above on this one.
It truly looks wonderful with your gifted hands and artful eye.
Perfect color blend, repairs and stability you gave it.
Well done!!
That was a very challenging piece.
Thank you for sharing and allowing us to be in your shop!!
I LAUGHED out loud when I saw the finished result - absolutely astonishing. Damn good job.
As a furniture designer for 46 years, I would say that there was quite a few design flaws that would suggest the original designer was an amateur. However, you made it look a million dollars. Your a super woman! I bet you were in tears trying to fix the base. Particle board is the invention of the devil!...It's good for only one thing...the bonfire. If there is one thing in this world that I would be happy to see de-invented it would be particle board.
Well said!
One of the things I like to see on your videos is when you stain the furniture but it takes the stain unevenly so you "color correct" it. Yes, you repair and finish furniture and you are amazing at it , but when it scomes to the new finish, you do that with an artists eye, and it is always beautiful. You have remarkable work ethic and remarkable talent.
Thankyou!
Hi! Thank you! After watching/enjoying so many of your project videos, I had the confidence to attempt to repair a drawer to my sister's drink cart she's had for many years. And, I succeeded!! I even took pix throughout the process and typed step-by-step and by pic how I repaired it! :-)
Wonderful!
I have never, ever, seen anyone put sawdust together so well as you Trena. Great tip Trena. I will definitely flip over any piece I intend to buy to see if it is particle board. You really did a great job. It looks like it just came out of a 1970'S furniture showroom. I mean that as an honest compliment.
Amazing transformation! That’s why I keep coming back for more!!
Expert at stripping, hardening wood, and anything else you may want done to your wood. Absolute legend.
Really love to watch your videos. My I recommend that you look up Methyl chloride, or Methylene chloride, Dichloromethane. The ingredient you said was in your paint stripper.
Vapor filters, organic filters, face masks Do Not filter methylene chloride the way you would expect. You'll learn that you are slowly
I love ❤️ your sense of humor 😂🤗
Ole particle board a! Another beautiful resto Trena. Love your dry quirky humour too. Stay beautiful.
😊 thank you
I loved the dead rocker head humor!
A really cool restoration! Its time for me to also find a new item to fix and flip!!
Thanks for responding to my post. I just showed your site to my wife she agrees with me when you find something is not what you expected you explain why and your solution that part is not edited it’s very educational! I’m going to try some intarsare the things I learned from your work with veneer will be a help,
HA! Love that intro! And no, it wasn't recording. Love the faces you were making.
It's almost identical to the first homework desk I had as a kid.
All that beautiful wood and they had to ruin it with particle board.
I think you need about 6 more clamps. hehe
Many of the desks from the 70's and 80's office furniture manufacturers were built like tanks - and seemed to weigh as much. The better ones used HDF (high density fiberboard) instead of MDF (medium density fiberboard). Solid wood/upper end residential desks at the time rarely could survive the rigors of an actual office life.
Water is to fiberboard what kryptonite is to Superman. My house was built in 1976. I bought it in '97. The kitchen cabinets are made of plywood and HDF. They still have no structural damage at all, though they're about to get their second paint job.
Even items made from cheaper products during those years are of more durable quality than what is available today.
This desk looks great and is ready for the next 50 years of its life!
Love your videos. What you do is a lost art. It's amazing. You should teach classes. I'm going to take a wild guess and say the staining process is your least favorite job to do. 🤣
It looks like a top of the line solid oak desk. Nobody would know it’s fibre and particle board. I love the dark finish. Just beautiful.
Wow, this desk *must* hold an enormous amount of sentimental value! I mean, the new wood you put on, costs more than the entire desk is when it was new. The end result is amazing though!
You are so talented, and I like your sense of humor. 😊
What a nightmare! Well done as usual. Hope the owners watch this video👍 Best wishes for 2023 from down under 🦘
I just subscibed and this is the second video I've watched. I admire your talent and perseverance. Also the dog. Lol
Welcome!!
I would have taken one look at the veneered particle board and told the owner to burn it. You did a great job with a heap of garbage, I look forward to seeing what you do with some decent furniture. Thank you for the video.
Check out the other vids
Lovely job, partical board is my pet hate, me it would have been on the bonfire! 🤣😂
Nice work! You gave this battered desk a new life.
I learned a lesson when I was young of which you've reminded me. I crocheted a bedspread for a friend and it took forever. Her dog would get on the bed and turn and dig to nest. She brought it back destroyed and asked if I could fix it. I realized that people don't get it. They have no concept of what goes in to your creation. It happened a couple more times and now I do nothing for others. I do for myself and they can admire it from afar. Only a handful of people would have attempted what you did. Stunning success.
I am amazed at how you can repair even particle board damage and make it sturdy and beautiful at that the same time! That's no easy thing to salvage. I have come to name anything with particle board 'Patsy Cline' furniture. (I Fall to Pieces)
You did an amazing job at repairing something that had so much water damage to particle board. I'm surprised it was built with the deep drawers in the middle and a sort drawer on the bottom
Well beyond my patience level. You do seem to have super powers in several categories!!
Lol
again . another fantastic effort... where you excel is in the ability to blend in to the original colouring of the original piece of furniture .. that takes a lot of skill .. i think your femininity helps as you have a real eye for detail and creativity too xx
All from my father
There is a time and place for particle board/wood. and this was not one of them. Years ago I worked for an Elevator co and we put an elevator in Cujshman Furniture Factory in North Bennington Vt. and the one thing that impressed me was the quality wood used in every type of furniture they built. no particle board crap there. just quality wood and workmanship. I'm afraid those days of quality manufacture are lost for ever. Thanks to excellant craftspeople like you that keep the old quality and the not so good stuff like this pro-ject going thanks for sharing. ECF
Thanks!
I would never use a desk like this myself as it is just not "my style" tbh......but I surely envy and respect your craftmanship (or craftwomanship....is that even a word ???) in restoring this piece of firewood into the desk it used to be (or even better...... :-) ) Kudo's !!
This was supposed to be an easy one!! That made me chuckle.
The welcome was hilarious. I watched it twice. Great job bringing the desk back from the dead.
Watching your videos, I get so inspired to want to restore some of my pieces but then I remember, I have no talent and it takes years to learn and I have no tools! Haha. This is why we pay for artists like yourself to do it instead. Unfortunately I don’t believe there is anyone with your talent near to where I live in Australia. There may be people that have similar talent to yourself in our capital cities but am nowhere near them either. So I just have to enjoy my old pieces as they are. Love your work. 🇦🇺🦘🇦🇺
Thanks Julie!
Johns daughter, you are great and you have two things I don't, the patience of Job and a fathers legacy to continue and expand.
Love watching you show off both. //ji
Yes, I love your welcome shot! It gives all of us insight into your sense of humour!
Another one! I never realized I used to have so many antique pieces, which I collected (free) during 1968-1975. I was so poor & could not afford buying new or decent-used furniture. Whatever I could get free, I brought back to the old rundown house in the San Francisco Mission District in California USA. They were stored in the street level garage hallway. The downstairs tenant had dogs, & he frequently water-hosed the concrete slab floor. Temp repairs were done by the former landlord who did not have your expertise! Fantastic work you are doing 👏👌👍🥰😃💖 I wish your shop was not so far away from Calif. It was my dream to someday have a shop like you have, or have my brother, John, do the repairs. He is a talented carpenter, busy building custom homes. Instead he moved, "borrowed" & kept my quality tools, etc & I never did get them back. The man I was engaged to (a successful, wealthy man) wanted me to draw up the plans for a "dream house" I envisioned. When I told him I desired a full mill shop as part of it...love wood, stone, & glass views, he didn't flinch! But I "Dear John-ed" him; my daughter couldn't relate to him (she was my priority, not the$$$). I ended up marrying a man from Mill Valley. The teak dining table you repaired, along with other furniture came from a Scandinavian country. My now ex-husband turned out to be much like Donald Trump (charming until you marry). I lasted 10+yrs "too long with Mr. Long!" He kept all the fine rosewood, teak, & oak furnishings, apparently along with what he said was "junked" (all the pieces you so expertly restored)! Since I am in the latter years of my life, seeing your TH-cam posts blesses me tremendously to see each them so lovingly restored for others' enjoyment & use!" Thank you (& your Dad) so very much!
wow, thanks for shareing!
Particle board........ the proof that there are no trees left!
As a framer doing remodels I cant tell you how much solid mohagany base I ripped out of houses only to be replaced with "fancy" particle board base. What a joke. Now "quality furniture" comes from IKEA. lol
Keep up the great work! Its a lost art.
The transformation of these furniture pieces are impressive. Keep up the very professional and caring craftsmanship!
Thank you very much!