I win!

I did it! Take that, you stinky nightstand! You done been reconditioned! After sanding, puttying, bleaching (twice!), priming every single inch of that blasted thing, and two coats of paint, I have won. No longer smelly, and exceedingly gorgeous, this piece now rests in my bedroom. Stay tuned for the rest of the bedroom makeover. Some teasers? Eggplant, wainscotting, vintage green damask, and pillows.

Reminder of where we started.

Oh how far we've come.

DIY FYI

My creative juices have brought me to home decor as of late. I have a door in my porch waiting to become a head board, a pile of ancient curtains in the basement waiting to become dramatic new ones, and a night stand in the shed waiting to become a brighter-coloured nightstand.

All of the above was acquired for a grand total of $13, thanks to generous friends, building centre sales, and our neighbourhood thrift store. Now, usually you can trust your friends will not give you anything ridiculously disgusting, (Depending on your friends, I guess!) and the building centre should be trusted to sell only quality controlled items......but the thrift store? I've never had a problem. UNTIL NOW!!!

I purchased the most beautiful of night stands the other day for a whopping $8. What a find! What exactly did I find?

I'm pretty sure this night stand served as the birth place, home, and final resting place for an entire family of rodents as well as the fire-hydrant-esque powder room for an entire pack of dogs.

The smell was not immediately apparent in the store. It IS a thrift store, after all. I DID find an unusually large amount of small rodent excrement in it for being indoors, but I figured that was a quick clean up. Without much further examination, I paid the man and proceeded to carry out my newest treasure. Upon moving the piece away from the neighbouring ones, I noticed the dried on, orangish drips in years of layers down the hidden side. Oh well! Another easy wipe down.

I proudly unloaded my invaluable treasure and placed it on the grass to wipe it down. This went well, aside from the overwhelming men's-bathroom-at-a-truckstop smell as I wiped the canine bathroom side.

Luckily, there was no project space available in the house, so I placed the piece in the porch to await sanding and painting. When my husband left for work the following morning he was assaulted (and I mean completely slapped in the face) by the smell of death, urine, and general old furniture that had taken up residence in our porch. He was ready to throw it out, right then and there. But I am me. NO WAY! I am going to win this battle.

Well. The thing has been sanded, puttied, bleached twice, and the smell remains. It is fainter and mixed with the smell of bleach and Febreeze. (not the best idea.) And still, I am not ready to give up! I will use an odour and stain blocking primer and I WILL beat this thing.

What did I learn?

If it is $8 in a room full of $40, there is a reason. Find it.