Isn't that inlaid mahogany woodwork just stunning?
The original owner would never believe this is the same piece he sold me. Take a look at the before...
Obviously this piece is forgotten in some basement with broken pulls, damage to the top, and missing veneer.
When I agree to purchase this piece having not seen it in person, I am pleasantly surprised to find this desk - hence the bureau name. The cubbies are so fun!
Cue the Mighty Mouse theme song... "Here I come to save the day!" (I know that dates me, but I don't care. Everything gets better with age. tsk.)
DIY TIME
I hit this bad boy with my sander like none other, and it totally paid off.
Just swoon-worthy...sigh...
My original intent is to stain the top and faces of the drawers and doors. However, the top is peeling veneer at the one edge and too thin.
DAMAGE
I even tried some linseed oil to see how it would draw it out and it was just too much. Although it didn't work for the top, it really emphasized the woodwork on the doors and drawers.
Not only did the linseed oil draw out the imperfection, but it just didn't jive with the faces being made of a different wood.
So...I paint the top. I am so happy because it really sets off that mahogany and now draws your eye to the faces instead.
Take note of the smaller drawers pictured above. Also, two of the pulls are missing or broken. However, I don't want to replace the entire set. They are the real deal - nice, heavy brass swag pulls that are irreplaceable.
It took me a while to wrap my brain around what to do with those small drawers. I searched over 4,000 listings on different sites trying to find a similar style or something that would coordinate. Nothing appealed to me.
A FIX
Then bingo, it came to me what to do (gave myself a head-smack for not thinking of it sooner). I found a couple of antique pulls with back-plates that were the same length as the width of the hole spacing. Score! To fill the holes, I cut some wooden dowel plugs and glued them in, making sure to drill the pull hole before nailing the back-plate on. 
Simple enough, right?
Love it? It has sold from my online store, but there's always more on the way! *Just a little note about my shop: We do ship and typically are able to give you a rate close to half of what it costs to freight furniture elsewhere.
Pin and share the bureau makeover love! ♥
Now I can at least say I'm a partial wood purist. Being strictly one or the other is just too boring. Which are you, painter or purist?
Stay tuned to my next project by signing up for my newsletter either in the side bar or at the bottom of this post. Let's get our DIY on!
More makeover goodness like my bureau:
