General Finishes

I imagine these were the kind of pieces that were in the fanciest state rooms on the Titanic. I can see Rose sitting at this on a dainty chair with ormolu details. In it you'll find exquisite stationary & envelopes all beautifully stamped with the Titanic's signature. She sets down her silver pen that also shimmers with abalone accents from the sea. Rose's desk was Restored and Refinished with an Artisan Finish. The wood was stripped & stained with a rich layer of General Finishes Java Gel Stain. I brushed & wiped with a cloth to reveal the beautiful grain. Then protected the wood with a beautiful Satin Gel topcoat. My style of finish is very unique & has a textural quality which creates alot of depth & dimension to the color. Along with that, my special finish was necessary due to the peeling of the damaged veneer. Once I covered all the damage & the crackle did it's thing & was dry, I painted a coat of GF buttermilk yellow as my basecoat. I then did my hand-painted "doodles"! Its the scrolly-vine artwork that accents the piece. I used GF burnt umber glaze & mixed with paints to create a translucency in the artwork. Both ends of Rose's desk are highlighted with a neoclassic angel. This was initially stenciled & then hand-painted over the stencil to enhance the details. An all-over GF burnt-umber glaze was applied for its Titanic-period look. To protect the painted finish & artwork I sealed this with High Performance Topcoat in Flat. Since the inside of the desk was in nice condition, I added a touch of color to the little drawers with some Java-color gel stain. I also topcoated all the inside wood in this area with satin gel topcoat. It enhanced & freshened up the finish & gave it a nice look & feel. These old pieces usually have an "old furniture" smell so I wiped the inside of the piece with GF satin finishing wax. It instantly revives the old wood along with giving it a nice new smell. I love adding a bit of sparkle & shimmer so I changed out the drawer pulls to stunning bronze pulls with rhinestones!