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Sebastian Leon-Velarde Task 1 Caught your Attention 

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Sebastian Leon-Velarde Task 1 Caught your Attention 

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What caught my attention was how the wood was cutted correctly and how was the wood cutted so perfectly and how they put the woods together. Then how they sand the woods so that it is like if there were no joints.

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Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links, which means we receive a commission if you click a link and purchase something that we have recommended. Please check out our disclosure policy for more details.

I don't claim to be a handyman (or a handy woman!). However, I sure do love a good DIY project (especially if it saves money). This past weekend, I redid some furniture for my fiancé's new apartment. We didn't want to buy brand new furniture since we'll probably buy new furniture when we buy a house in a few years. So, we decided to furnish his apartment on the cheap.

One of the easiest ways to fill your space is by purchasing secondhand treasures from garage sales, estate sales, and thrift and antique stores. You could even pick up furniture pieces found on a neighbor's curb. I have to admit, my fiancé's side table that will be sitting next to his armchair was found on the curb. One man's trash is another man's treasure, right?

Most of the time, secondhand wooden furniture might need a little refinishing, but there's nothing like watching the old turn new like the way antique wooden furniture looks after receiving a little TLC.

That said, I thought I'd share with you a step-by-step guide to refinishing wooden furniture.

How to Refinish Furniture

It might seem simple, but refinishing wood requires the proper tools, time and patience to get the job done right. While it's possible to turn the task into an easy weekend project, make sure you give yourself enough time and space to follow through on all the steps.

The process of refinishing wood includes these steps:

Removing the old finish

Filling the grain (optional)

Applying sanding sealer (optional)

Staining the wood

Appling a clear coat

Removing the Old Finish

The first step when refinishing wooden furniture - removing the old finish - is likely the most tiresome and messy. There are two ways to go about this task: chemical stripping and sanding.

Chemical Strippers

Chemical strippers, also known as paint and finish strippers, are the most efficient products for removing paint and varnish from wooden furniture.

Before you begin stripping the old paint and varnish, here are some recommended supplies:

Be sure you have adequate ventilation in whatever space you're working in. Chemicals can be harmful when inhaled.

Also, note that for most purposes, you'll want a thicker formula, like a gel or paste. Liquid paint strippers will run and can only be used on horizontal surfaces. For smaller projects, an aerosol spray stripper is a quicker and easier alternative.

Follow manufacturer instructions for using the paint stripper, but in general, apply a thick coat of the stripper and wait for the amount of time noted on the container. Remove as much paint and varnish as possible with a putty knife or scraper tool, wiping the blade of your tool between scrapes. Follow up with steel wool for tougher spots if you need to.

Then allow the wood to dry thoroughly before continuing on to the next step.

Sanding

Even after using the chemical stripper, you'll still need to sand the wood.

While sanding doesn't emit harmful chemical fumes, make sure you still have enough ventilation in whatever space you're working in, as sanding does release dust and debris into the air.

Recommended supplies include:

Always make sure to sand in the same direction as the grain, rather than against the grain. The quality of your final work is really going to depend on how much care you take with this step. Taking enough time to sand the piece thoroughly will make a big difference.

Use a palm sander (80 - 150 grit) to remove most of the finish

Repeat step one until you see bare wood

Use the palm sander (150 - 200+ grit) to get rid of any remaining stain or paint until the whole piece is bare

For areas that are awkward or impossible to reach with the sander, you might need to use a sanding block or a small piece of sandpaper to finish the job.

Remove any sanding residue when finished.

Fill the Grain

This is an optional step, and whether you choose to do this step depends largely on the type of grain in your furniture. Woods with a tight grain will not require grain filler, but if your furniture has a more open grain, like oak or mahogany, you may want to apply filler.

Recommended supplies:

Be sure to choose the right pigment for the filler. To emphasize the grain of the wood, select a color that contrasts with the natural color of the wood or the color you intend to stain it. To de-emphasize the wood grain, select a color that closely matches the anticipated finished color of the wood.

Use a rag or stiff paintbrush to apply the filler and work it into the grain

Remove excess filler with a plastic scraper or putty knife

Once the filler dries completely, lightly sand the furniture, making sure to sand with the grain

Apply Sanding Sealer

Applying a sanding sealer is another optional step when refinishing wood. It helps your wood absorb the stain more evenly.

Recommended supplies include:

It's a pretty simple process that often produces worthwhile results:

Apply a heavy coat of sanding sealer and allow it to soak into the wood

Wipe off any excess sealer with a clean rag

Let the sealer dry

Lightly sand the surface for a more even application

Stain

There are several options when it comes to staining wood. You can choose from water-based stains, oil-based ones, gel stains and one-step stains/finishes.

Recommended supplies:

When applying stain, follow the manufacturer's recommendations for the product. Stain is easiest to apply with a staining pad, but a paintbrush is also a good option. Just follow these steps:

Apply a generous coat of stain to the wood

Remove any excess stain with a clean cloth and wipe lightly with the grain to avoid streaking

Apply another coat of stain to the surface of the wood

You might need to apply multiple coats until the desired color is achieved. Be sure to let the stain dry between coats.

Apply a Clear Coat

You should consider many factors when determining the type of finish to use. Consider what look you're going for, your skill level, how durable you need the finish to be and how the item will be used.

Recommended supplies:

For easy application, use a clear coat and apply evenly, following the natural lines of the wood.

Apply a layer of clear coat directly to the wood

Lightly sand the surface

Apply the final layer

After applying the final layer, you'll need to allow the wood to fully cure for 24 hours before use.

Whether you're an experienced handyman or a rookie like me, following these easy steps will reap a professional-looking refinishing job, giving your furniture new life.

So if you'relooking to buy a fixer-upperor just refreshing your garage-sale-picking treasures in your current home, follow this guide for a seamless and successful project.

Do you have your own tips and tricks for refinishing wooden furniture? Let us know in the comments!

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The Idiot's Guide to Refinishing Wood Furniture

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Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links, which means we receive a commission if you click a link and purchase something that we have recommended. Please check out our disclosure policy for more details. I don't claim to be a handyman (or a handy woman!).

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Vasco Espejo / 2) What did I know, What don't you know.

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Vasco Espejo / 2) What did I know, What don't you know.

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Before watching the video I knew how the cutting machine the carpenter was using worked (not how to manipulate it in my own hands), but what I didn't knew was how did the carpenter connected the pieces together to form the tables and shelfs.

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I am interested in learning how this tool is used and how to use it properly because as it is a simple tool, it can have many different uses and can be the root of learning how to use more developed and more advanced tools that can lead us to success in our product.

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What I like about this desk is that it provides a lot of space for anything that you want to use it for.

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I know how to cut wood with certain tools although I haven't had much experience with them.

I do not know how to use all of the tools demonstrated or how to manage them properly

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A wood skill that I thought was very impressive in the video was the making of the holes in the table using hydraulic machine.

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What caught my attention was the tools and the techniques that they used to cut the wool and put everything together

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I am most interested in learning how to use this tool in specific. This tool seems like it is very useful because of its power but because of that you would have to ver very careful while operating it too. It can cut trough the largest and thickest pieces even.

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I like that this desk has drawers and doors for storage and functionality.
Also I like that this desk has two areas to work and can be more useful in the moment when you are working.

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Task 2- what I know and what I don't know

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Task 2- what I know and what I don't know

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I know how to have patience with cutting and forming the furniture.
I don't know how to make sure the furniture looks good and how to make designs for the furniture

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When they put the pieces of wood together with the joints and hammer.

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I would like to learn about the dovetail joint technique.

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Circular saws are an electric blade with teeth to easily cut through wood with minimal effort. There are also right handed and left handed saws, depending on the side in which the handle is on. The circular saw can also be used to cut sheet materials, like a metal sheet.

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Vasco Espejo / 3) Analysis of existing products

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Vasco Espejo / 3) Analysis of existing products

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What I like about this piece of furniture is not only its beauty and fineness. But what this desk really shows is to be a practical place not only to study with lots of space, but also with comfortability.

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What I like about this product is it's minimalistic design. They dont have anything extra but there is still a cabinet where you can have privacy

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Task 2- what I know and what I dont know

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Task 2- what I know and what I dont know

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I dont know how to make precise cuts and create joints. I do know how to make big cuts and handle some of the machinery.

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What caught my attention was they way they created joints to join the woods.

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Vasco Espejo / 5) Name a skill I'd like to learn

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Vasco Espejo / 5) Name a skill I'd like to learn

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While watching the video I was really impressed by the amount of work the carpenter needs to do for a single piece of furniture. If I would be given the chance to learn a skill, I would choose to learn how to cut the woods correctly with the machinery, making the sides equal.

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This tool is called a "plane". I would like to know how does it work and why is it used so often by carpenters.

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I would like to learn how to join the woods with my hands and with the hydraulic press machine.

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ISHITANI - Making a Walnut Trestle Table

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This Machine is called an hydraulic press. I would like to know more about this machine because it is really big and interesting to see how it joins the woods.

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What I can see in this table are the perfect joints. I have seen that very often because it is something that shines on this type of furnitures. This perfect joints were made with the machine that Mr. Velasquez showed us. In addition, in the analysis of this piece of furniture we see how the different materials fulfill different functions. In the case of the wooden structure, we can see how one wood is stapled with another to achieve the stability of this chair and that the legs fulfill their function and achieve the perfect angles, in the case of the moorings, they work with holes in the wood and ropes are tied.

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 Sebastian Leon-Velarde Task 2 What did you Know and what didn't you know

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 Sebastian Leon-Velarde Task 2 What did you Know and what didn't you know

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What I knew was how to use the machines. What I didn't know was how to get those cuts so perfect.

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Something that really caught my attention while watching the video was that while hammering or pasting the woodworks, the carpenter didn't necessarily used force to work, he just applies technical movements.