A New Find

What do you think of my new chair?  I got up at 5:15 to meet my mom at an estate sale, where we didn't find much, but I did come home with this:

I've only done minor upholstery jobs previously and I've never made welting, so I'm excited to learn some new skills with this project.

When we got back in the car to leave, my mom noticed that my blouse was on inside out!  I wish that was a rare occurrence, but it's not.  Zac has been teasing me for years because I get dressed too fast or in the dark and something is on backwards or inside out :/  At least I'm quick, right?

Have a great weekend!  We only have two left before school starts.  Wow, time flies!

Working with Veneer Furniture

I'm deep in the throes of a great transformation this week.  In the furniture refinishing world, "great transformation" usually means a lot of work, although that work can be rewarding as well!  A client dropped off an old buffet that is full of potential; unfortunately, though, it appears that the previous owner sanded it down with the intention of staining it and soon realized that the condition of the veneer prohibited it.  Well, since I've been doing more than my fair share of fighting them this week, I thought I'd take a moment to go over some veneer-related tips and guidelines.

What is a veneer?

A veneer is a thin piece of wood glued down to another, usually less expensive, piece of wood.  Because hardwood is more costly and sometimes less readily available, many pieces, both old and new, are made using veneers.  What's more, I'm convinced that the quality of veneered furniture has deteriorated as, in my experience, vintage and antique furniture made with veneers seem much more durable than comparable modern furniture.  For example, I have a Crate and Barrel table that is made with "hardwood and veneers" that can't even be sanded down to the fork marks my kids have left so that I can refinish it!

Why veneer?

Years ago veneers were used to bring more variation and pattern to furniture by cutting the veneer from a more decorative part of the tree or on an angle.  That's the case with the pictured buffet but after years of use the veneer is bubbling, cracking and pulling away from the "base" wood.

How to tell if you're working with a veneer:


"It isn't always obvious what's veneered and what's not. Sometimes the veneer is visible at the edge of the wood surface, a thin layer glued over the base wood. If you can't see a joint at the edge, look at an unfinished area under the piece of furniture. If the unfinished wood looks the same as the finished surface, the piece of furniture is probably solid wood. If there's a considerable difference, it's probably veneered."



-TLC.com

Veneers are not necessarily a bad thing, but I still try to avoid them because the possibility for damage is much higher than with a solid hardwood piece, especially if the veneer is bubbling, as this is sometimes impossible to fix.

If you find something for a great price or with a shape you love and just can't pass up, keep in mind you'll be doing a lot of filling, gluing, clamping and nailing.  Even with all these things, though, you'll still likely succeed in merely masking the veneer problems, not fixing them.

If you have any questions on this post or have any suggestions for furniture-related posts you'd like me to go over, please feel free to leave a comment and I'll do my best to cover it in the weeks to come.  If this post was boring and uneducational, go ahead and leave a comment about that too (although I reserve the right to block meanies!)  :)

The Cabin: Part 2

Charlotte is truly in full-fledged terrible twos mode.  She reduces me to a frazzled mess on a daily basis.  But who can't love that little face?

One of the kids' favorite activities is sliding down this hill on an old snowboard.  Did I mention there's no technology at the cabin?

Another favorite is the tire zip line.

And rock sliding.

Can you tell those are my sisters?

If you made it through - thank you for indulging me and giving me an opportunity to share our good times :)

The Cabin: Part 1 of 2

We're back from the cabin :)  Yesterday was spent washing load after load of laundry!  I'm a chronic over-packer and when everything used or unused smells like campfire - it's all gotta be washed.

I took 700 photos over the four days we were there.  Something about being outdoors makes me want to take photo after photo.  It has been quite the chore pairing down my favorite to share.  Unfortunately, I'm not very judicious when it comes to picking good photos of my kids - I think they all are!  So consider yourself lucky that I'm doing this in only two parts.

Hanging out:

Motorcycle rides :

Hiking:   Zac resembles a mother duck and her little ducklings waddling through the forest here, don't you think?

Bubble blowing:

Why is nothing as exciting as playing in the rain?

Thanks for stopping by :)

R and R

I was sick last weekend and couldn't figure out why I wasn't getting much better.  We had a trip scheduled for the weekend and I started to worry that I wasn't going to feel well enough to go.  I hightailed it to the Dr. only to find out I wasn't going to get better.  Not for a while, anyway.

All of the wonderful "Haboobs" we've been having here in Arizona the last month have kicked up a fungi found in desert soils that causes acute coccidioidomycosis - know to Arizonans as Valley Fever.

Much to my dismay, the Dr. informed me that this Valley Fever will most likely keep me feeling yucky for a few more weeks, but that it could last up to six months!  I'm not gonna lie, I cried the whole drive home.

We're headed to our family cabin for a long weekend and I plan to use this as my excuse to sit around and do nothing…maybe there is a silver lining :)

Changes

This week Zac started his MBA program at ASU.  We've been wanting to move on with this next step in his schooling for quite some time but haven't felt like we had enough emotional strength left over after taking care of the necessities of life to do so…until now.

Two years ago when we had our fourth child, our oldest was not yet five - that's four kids, 4 and under!  It took us a solid year and half to adjust to life as parents to four youngin's.  Three was doable for us, so it was surprising when four was so difficult.  However, now that our baby is two and in full-fledged, daily tantrum throwing mode things have actually become more manageable and now seemed as good a time as any for us to grit our teeth and get through two more years of school.


(Love this photo taken by Amy Clark Photography)

It's been exciting to watch Zac and I grow and mature, and our ability to handle the rigors of life expand.  Of course there's plenty of room for us to continue to grow, but that's what makes us excited to see where we'll be next year and the year after that.  Having Zac in school in addition to everything else that's going on now is going to be difficult, there's no doubt about it.  But I'm hoping that we'll be able to handle this next step in our lives gracefully and learn a few things along the way, then become better versions of ourselves in the end.