Thursday, July 10, 2014

A Busy Week

This week, I've been busily working away on something at my folks' house.  I've been refurbishing my late-Grandmother's Glory Box.  Now, these are boxes you had packed with linen and sheets for when you got married and moved into a house back in the early to mid-20th Century.  But they go back beyond those times too.

But my Grandma's Glory Box was famous in my family.  I remember seeing it at the end of her bed at Tarragindi when I was a child and never knowing what was inside it.  After she passed away, Mum said Grandma kept all her letters and papers inside it... but then, the house was sold and the box went into storage for a long time.

This past Sunday, I asked my folks if we could get it out of storage and I'd work on it to get it looking good so it would be able to fit into my bedroom.
So, now, it's halfway there to being finished.  So far, I've sanded back the black paint it had on it, shellacked it, sanded it back again, used 0000 steel wool and shellac on it for 3 coats... and this all took 3 days.  Then?  Today, I burnished it - or French Polished it.  This meant I used soft sand paper - barely touching it - and then, using a fabric rubber, I rubbed watered down shellac (with metho), rubbed in circles all over the box and lid... I did 4 coats by around 3:30pm!  What a long day.  I'll wait a week before I put in the polish and then we can start looking at putting in the nap, fabric and tacking on the lid.  Mum will help me with that part.

It's all very exciting to have this done.  I'm looking at doing another box - kind of like a suitcase - but I won't need so much help next time.  Once I have it apart, and the veneer off the box, I'll  be able to work on it better.  I'm hoping to have it up and fixed up in time for the August or October Creative Markets.  But then, there's my Great-Grandmother's Singer Sewing Machine... but that's another story.  Until my next post, take care, stay safe and remember, I'm always here. 

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