Hutch Redo

Mihaela Parker
by Mihaela Parker
4 Materials
$150
5 Days
Advanced

This one was hard. Not gonna lie! But, in the end I'm happy with the outcome. It still needs some work, but for now this is how this is gonna be! Feel free to share any pointers.....


Got this beautiful piece at a garage sale 3 years ago. It sat in my office till I moved, then I had to deal with it. I decided to use it in my dining room that I'm redoing (well gonna redo the whole house but that's another post!) and wanted it in a pop of color so she gets the recognition she deserves!

Unfortunately the picture I took is being cut off on here so I can't show the whole piece. Maybe it will change once it's posted. Also, my phone seems to take really bad pics!


First things first, remove all the hardware and doors. For this one, I kept the top doors on simply because in past projects when I put them back on they never go on the same and don't sit properly. I'm sure this is exclusive to me! Turns out, it was a good choice. Will elaborate later.


I gave this piece a good clean with dish soap and water. Once cleaned, I then wiped it down with just water to remove any soap residue.


On to primer. I use this oil base shellac, it is wicked for giving great coverage. As mentioned in previous posts, this is the only reason I use it. I need to find an alternative as I hate the smell.


This is after one coat. No need for a second one!

I painted the back wall of it even though I knew I was wallpapering it. I didn't want to take the chance to have the dark show through.


I let it dry overnight just to make sure the primer was fully cured.

I actually found the color for this in the mistint section. I had a color in my mind but could not find it on a swatch. It had to be fate! The paint cost me $10. I only used 1/3 of the quart as well so it was a great find!


I gave the top portion a quick coat, let it dry and took a long look to decide if this was what I had in my mind. It was better then what I imagined. Gotta love when that happens!


I also hung up a piece of the wallpaper I wanted to use, just to get an idea of how it would look.

Happy with the result, I finished painting the rest of the hutch. I gave it two coats. I also gave the inside back wall a coat of white paint I already had on hand.

Once dry, it was time for wallpaper. Now, I'm not sure if this is correct but this is how I did it. Feel free to not follow this advice if you know the correct way lol


I first measured the back wall. The width of the wallpaper was too small so I had to do two pieces.

I cut the piece a bit bigger then the size needed so I had room for error. I picked up some wallpaper paste at Lowe's and used a paint brush to put a coat on just the side I was pasting.

I then used a drywall putty thingie to flatten the paper down and get out all the air bubbles. There was excess paper of course, so I just trimmed it with a utility knife.


For the second piece, I first lined up the pattern with the piece that was hung. Fortunately the pattern wasn't too difficult and only wasted a few inches to line it up. Once I had the match up figured out, I folded over the section not needed so I could then measure out what size I needed for the whole piece to fit the back.

Again, I cut the piece a little bigger on the bottom so I could trim it perfectly once hung. The second piece was too wide of course so I cut off a bit and left a lot of overhang for the same reason.


I put another coat of glue on the last section and flattened it down as much as possible up to the over lap.

I then used the end of the putty thingie to trim the end. It was very easy, just keep the sharp end against the other side not papered and slide it down to make sure the cut was straight.

Once trimmed, I took a step back and admired the work!

On to the shelves.

I just primed and painted, two coats on each.

Now here is where the problems started. The bottom doors that I took off. So same thing, I primed and painted the inside door white and the outside blue. I had to get new hinges as the old ones were bent. Once on, one door did not close properly. I removed it and tried a different hinge. No dice. Ugh. So I removed it and sanded it down. I got it to fit (and lets just say I won't ever open it again!) but once opened, the top of one door is the old brown color. And this is how she will stay. For now. This is the reason why I hate to remove doors. I know in order to do the job properly, they need to be removed but it's a total pain! I'm assuming the wood swells when painted maybe??? Feel free to weigh in here!


Like most of the pieces I like in this style, I usually keep the handles and reuse them since I love the way they look.

Also, I didn't put the glass back in yet and I'm not sure I will. As I mentioned, this piece isn't fully done but since it's for me, I'm ok with that. Sometimes we need to accept our limitations and move on lol.


Cheers!

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  • Kristen Varnum Earp Kristen Varnum Earp on Aug 08, 2021

    I know you said the paint was a mistint but was the color name/number on the can? I love it!

  • Doreen Doreen on Aug 13, 2022

    Love it, but why was the bottom inside not done?

  • Colleen Colleen on Aug 14, 2022

    I have an old cabinet I'd like to use and brighten. Thank you so much for the very detailed instructions as I am definitely not a make over furniture kind of gal!

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  • Black Hills Rosie Black Hills Rosie on Aug 15, 2022

    That piece was beautiful before and after. Great find. Good for you and good work, too

  • Michele Michele on Aug 16, 2022

    This is GORGEOUS .The color is BEAUTIFUL. NICE JOB

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