In the workshop – the Milk Paint Washstand

by | Nov 13, 2019 | Decorating, Farmhouse Finds, Farmhouse Furniture, Refurbishing Furniture | 0 comments

 

Technically, this piece of furniture was not in the workshop for very long.  I found this beautiful piece on a recent trip to Maine.   The work I put into it consisted of a good cleaning with Murphys Oil Soap, lubricating the cutest little wooden wheels, coating the entire piece with hemp oil and changing out the hardware to these glass knobs.

As an aside – does anyone else love furniture with little wheels?  Little wheels always make my heart melt.  Especially when they are wooden wheels.

As I cleaned it, I realized that it was painted using milk paint.  Unlike most modern paints, milk paint soaks into the grain of wood rather than sitting on top of the wood. You can’t scrape milk paint off of furniture.  It soaks into the pores of the wood.  Also, if you remove the protective coat over the paint – milk paint has a chalky texture.

You can see in this photo all the character that the piece has.

 

 

It is such a functional piece.  It has storage with three drawers and a cupboard.  It would make an excellent night stand.  If you live in an apartment or home with limited square footage, a piece like this can be such a workhorse.  It can function as a mini-bar.  It can be used in the bathroom to store towels, soaps, cotton balls, and toileteries.  It can be used in a child’s room to store toys and books. It could be used in a kitchen too!

 

 

The dealer whom I purchased it from told me it was from a home in Massachusetts and that he just set it out that morning.  It’s the perfect piece of furniture to use around Thanksgiving.

Here is one more photo for you.

 

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