# Refinishing Mid-century pieces



## Mlarc807 (Jul 31, 2012)

Hello everyone!

I am a brand new user here, and have stumbled upon the site finding spectacular advice on here! 

I have several pieces of Mid-century Heywood Wakefield furniture that I think could use refinishing. Now since I bought these pieces of craigslist for (luckily) next to nothing, you can correctly assume that my budget for professional refinishing is next to nothing. I originally planned to sell these and just get rid of them...but now I think I'd rather fix them up. 

All of the pieces I need to refinish are marked as the "Teak" stain Heywood Wakefield used back in the day. Unfortunately, when I went to clean these pieces (which were grimy from sitting in a shed for the last 5 years) I intelligently used water and dish soap, which unfortunately peeled some of the finish right off. 

I have found some folks who do reproduction staining kits for Heywood Wakefield furniture, but not in the color (Topaz) that I need. 

I am looking to reproduce that "opaque", glossy look that the furniture once had when it was first produced. 

With that being said I am a complete staining novice and have never stained a piece of furniture in my life. 

I've seen things on other posts here about using oil paints from the art store mixed with japan drier. Is that in reference to creating a stain color? Could I do that and then add a coat of polyurethane or something? What about Miniwax? Any products that could work for this? 

Here's a few links so you know what the heck I'm talking about:

My dining room set:
http://instagram.com/p/NkKP8qLnoL/?ref=nf
Reproduction Stain kits:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/reproductio...=990369590271326387&pid=100015&prg=1006&rk=1&
----They say this is a "Stain coloring, opaque additive, & oil based polyurethane in one" 

http://werefinish.com/heywood_wakefield_furniture_refi.htm

This is an example of what I'm looking to achieve:
http://www.etsy.com/listing/1052848...=sr_gallery_11&ga_search_type=all&ga_includes[]=tags_exact&ga_search_query=heywood&ga_view_type=gallery



Any advice would be...seriously appreciated!


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## cabinetman (Jul 5, 2007)

Finishes can be copied/reproduced if you have the knowledge and skills/equipment to do so. From their website is an interesting statement:
_
You also have probably__ found out by now that this finish was somewhat sophisticated for it's time and nothing at your local hardware super store will even come close to matching the original finishes._

A finish shouldn't "wipe off" when cleaned with just soap and water. A basic method would be to use a dye/stain for the coloring, but keep it as translucent as possible. When you apply a clear coat, you incorporate a tint. If you have the ability to spray, you can tint lacquer that's used as a misting coat to even out the coloring, while leaving the grain to show.



 





 







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## Steve Neul (Sep 2, 2011)

That is very peculiar that soap and water damaged the finish. I think more than likely it was storing the furniture in a non climate controlled shed damaged the finish and washing it just removed what was loose. Wood exposed to extreme weather conditions are normally finished with a spar varnish and the finish on the furniture was formulated for interior use and couldn't take it. 

I'm very nervous about refinishing furniture that modern. I had a modern piece one time which I don't remember the brand which I stripped only to find out it had a cardboard core like a hollow core door. Of course it disintegrated and I ended up having to rebuild the piece. Now I will only use a flammable liquid remover on such a piece just to be sure.

I think if you are going to refinish the furniture you should use products formulated for that purpose and not start off trying to make your own. When it comes to stain I would buy a wood stain. I use Sherwin Williams oil stains. I don't care for Minwax as I discovered it doesn't retain the color as well over time. For a finish for interior furniture I use Wood Classics polyurethane varnish from Sherwin Williams.


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## Mlarc807 (Jul 31, 2012)

Hmm. From what I know all Heywood Wakefield furniture from the 50's , 60's and now is 100% Northern Yellow Birch. So I'm not concerned about any cardboard innards. These pieces are solid, quality pieces.


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## Mlarc807 (Jul 31, 2012)

Cabinetman -

So would I likely end up needing to mix stains to get the color I'm looking for? Do you know anything about the idea I mentioned with using oil paints to create a stain? 
By clear coat do you mean polyurethane? If I could rent a sprayer I would most definitely use one if it would give me a better result.


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## cabinetman (Jul 5, 2007)

Mlarc807 said:


> Cabinetman -
> 
> So would I likely end up needing to mix stains to get the color I'm looking for? Do you know anything about the idea I mentioned with using oil paints to create a stain?
> By clear coat do you mean polyurethane? If I could rent a sprayer I would most definitely use one if it would give me a better result.


You can make a stain with using an oil base paint thinned with mineral spirits. Part of the trick here is to make up a mix that doesn't drown out the grain. Depending on the topcoat type, it's best to stay with compatible chemicals. 

If you are spraying a topcoat, and you decide to use lacquer, I would choose stains/dyes that are lacquer based, compatible with acetone. Once dry, many stains can be sealed and then topcoated successfully.

I don't know how that kit works, whether it's a wipe on finish, but if the price is right, and it's as foolproof as they say, it may be worth using.









 







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## Mlarc807 (Jul 31, 2012)

cabinetman said:


> You can make a stain with using an oil base paint thinned with mineral spirits. Part of the trick here is to make up a mix that doesn't drown out the grain. Depending on the topcoat type, it's best to stay with compatible chemicals.
> 
> If you are spraying a topcoat, and you decide to use lacquer, I would choose stains/dyes that are lacquer based, compatible with acetone. Once dry, many stains can be sealed and then topcoated successfully.
> 
> ...


Ok so an oil based stain isn't going to be compatible with a lacquer based top coat? Is a lacquer based topcoat what you would recommend for this 'glossy-tinted' look I am going for?

You said to use a tinted lacquer for the topcoat, correct?


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## Mlarc807 (Jul 31, 2012)

oh and the reason I am not buying their products....as 'simple' as it would be, sigh...is because the specific finish of these pieces is what really drew me to them and makes them special. You see the other colors all the time and quite frankly they're a little boring looking and a lot of the reason the market for these pieces is no longer what it used to be. A piece like this refinished (well) is a lot more valuable and aesthetically pleasing than the other colors they sell. Also I have tried e-mailing them and calling them to ask them if they could make this specific color I am looking for and they have never returned any of my messages. That kind of speaks for itself!


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## Bill White 2 (Jun 23, 2012)

NO MW products. HW furniture was/is a classic. Probably a lacquer finish over the stain. I would use a wiping alcohol or water based dye. Seal with shellac sanding sealer (Seal Coat), spray with NC lacquer.
The HW dining set in our home (as a kid) was the "Champagne" color, and was not glossy. Had a nice semi-gloss finish.
Bill


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## Mlarc807 (Jul 31, 2012)

Bill White said:


> NO MW products. HW furniture was/is a classic. Probably a lacquer finish over the stain. I would use a wiping alcohol or water based dye. Seal with shellac sanding sealer (Seal Coat), spray with NC lacquer.
> The HW dining set in our home (as a kid) was the "Champagne" color, and was not glossy. Had a nice semi-gloss finish.
> Bill


Thanks for your input Bill. What is an "NC" lacquer? I'm sorry I'm completely new to refinishing but hopefully my skills as a painter will help me a little! 

Will this technique you described give me the opaque, semi-gloss finish I'm looking for that is synonymous with Heywood Wakefield?


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## Bill White 2 (Jun 23, 2012)

Nitrocellulose lacquer. Remember. That's just my guess. :blink:
Bill


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## Mlarc807 (Jul 31, 2012)

Bill White said:


> Nitrocellulose lacquer. Remember. That's just my guess. :blink:
> Bill


Thanks, I appreciate the guess:no:...seems like it could definitely work in theory.

What about an aerosol NC lacquer? like the kind they use for guitars?


Tinted or untinted? 

if untinted should i just use a clear gloss?


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