I always have my eyes peeled for Victorian-style furniture and mid-century modern pieces made with sturdy wood. Recently, I stumbled upon a hidden gem at Goodwill that I knew I could breathe new life into. To start, I cleaned and smoothed out any rough areas. While I initially planned to refinish the top, I decided to tackle the body first before settling on a stain for the top. I carefully painted a fresh vanilla shade all over the body, making sure to mask off the top to avoid any mistakes. Once it dried, I added a touch of bronze to the raised areas and a hint of rose gold to other parts, creating a subtle variation in color. 

After completing the front, I dedicated time to finishing the legs as well. This step proved to be the most time-consuming, as the transparent color required multiple coats. Whenever I made a mistake, I had to go back and fix the edges with paint, which led to a few frustrating weeks. To add some extra flair, I incorporated stencil embellishments in the corners, which turned out to be quite a hassle. Forgetting that the paint was transparent, I ended up with a messy outline. To salvage the situation, I colored it in freehand style, once again having to touch up the edges with paint. 

Initially, I attempted to sand the top by hand, but soon realized it was not efficient. Borrowing an electric sander, I powered through the task. At that point, I began to regret my decision to sand, as it took much longer than anticipated and required a significant amount of physical effort to maintain a steady rhythm. Finally, after breaking through the layers of stain and clear coat, I was pleasantly surprised by the dramatic contrast in the colored wood. While the brown hinted at it, the final result exceeded my expectations. Seeking advice from a few friends, I ultimately settled on a red stain for the top. I applied multiple coats and patiently waited for each one to dry before finally adding the clear coat. 

During the process, I happened to notice some discoloration on the sides of the top. I wasn't quite sure what to do at first, but then I remembered that we have paint pens in various colors for wood trim at my workplace. I decided to borrow a brown pen that was almost a perfect match and used it to touch up the areas that were lacking the brown color. Once I finished that, I noticed a couple of spots on the bottom where I wanted to add some extra details, so I drew a few lines by hand. This particular project was quite challenging, especially with all the sanding involved, but I'm really pleased with how it turned out in the end.