Here's the before:
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And the after:
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I like it so much better! I don't know why I put this off for months, it wasn't nearly as involved as I imagined it would be.
All I did is sand it lightly (very lightly) and then masked off the area around it so I didn't end up with walnut blobs on my walls. And then stained away. I used Minwax Dark Walnut as the stain. It took like a week to dry, so I probably should have sanded it more before staining so it could soak in better (according to my husband) but I'm impatient and just wanted to see the result. :)
An hour or so of actual work and 7 days of drying later, this is what we ended up with. I'm happy with it. Stain isn't nearly as intimidating as I thought it was!
7 comments:
Oh, I love the new mantle color! I don't really care as much for lighter woods, either. :-)
I am all about restaining. I did it in on our bathroom cupboards. I would LOVE to restain my kitchen cupboards, but I don't know if I'm that brave.
I'm also a walnut stain type person- it looks great. Also (and maybe you've already thought of this), I was thinking you could add a ruffle to the bottom of your slipcovered rocker.
The new color on the mantel looks great!
I see the paint you're testing on the walls. We have a dark leather sofa (and loveseat) and a black armoir in our living room as well -- try Benjamin Moore - Muslin in eggshell and see if you like it. We love it!!
Wow, it looks SO much better now with the darker stained wood!
-Desiree
BEAUTIFUL! We've been looking for a walnut stain for the front door of our house, might have to look into this one. It has just the right amount of richness and warmth. I also really like how it brings out the darker rock in the fireplace.
Thanks, everyone! I'm pretty happy with how it turned out. Now onto the next project, eh?
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