Tuesday, June 22, 2010

mantle: walnut-ified.

I felt like something just wasn't right with the fireplace from the first time we saw this house. Pretty sure it's just a matter of personal preference, but the Hubbs and I just don't love the light wood so much... I don't really know why, and it doesn't bug me when other people use light wood, I just don't like it for us. That's okay, I think.


Here's the before:


And the after:






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!
at

7 comments:

  1. JessicaJune 22, 2010 at 5:29 PM

    Oh, I love the new mantle color! I don't really care as much for lighter woods, either. :-)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Frank, Heidi and FamilyJune 22, 2010 at 7:20 PM

    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.

    ReplyDelete
  3. KasiaJJune 22, 2010 at 9:30 PM

    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.

    ReplyDelete
  4. OliviaBJune 23, 2010 at 6:54 AM

    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!!

    ReplyDelete
  5. DesireeJune 23, 2010 at 7:14 AM

    Wow, it looks SO much better now with the darker stained wood!

    -Desiree

    ReplyDelete
  6. HollyJune 23, 2010 at 4:55 PM

    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.

    ReplyDelete
  7. MindyJune 24, 2010 at 3:28 PM

    Thanks, everyone! I'm pretty happy with how it turned out. Now onto the next project, eh?

    ReplyDelete