As soon as I saw this piece at the auction, I knew I could make it pretty again. I didn't want to lose it so I made sure I stayed in the ring offering this little treasure. I brought this home for a mere $10.
This is a lid to an antique camelback trunk. Just the lid. No trunk. It was in really rough condition.
I wanted to even out the color. The bottom half had glue from the leather or fabric that once covered this trunk. It came off easily with a little sanding.
I used a 1 x 4 to reinforce the back. I wanted it to be hung on the wall so I didn't want it to come apart with the weight of it hanging.
I wanted to add a little richness in the wood color. I chose Varathane Chestnut wood stain.
I really like how it added depth to the piece.
I created a stencil with my Silhouette Cameo.
I painted the stencil with a bronze metallic paint. I think it complemented the stain color well.
I used Varathane Ultimate Polyurethane in the Crystal Clear Satin to seal the trunk lid. I used two coats.
This is the final piece. I ordered some ornate corner pieces from a vintage trunk repair web site. I had intended to spray paint them in a bronze color to match the stenciling, but I didn't like them when added to the corners. I preferred the more rustic look without them. I added hardware to the back to be able to hang on the wall. This is intended to go in the shop so I didn't hang it up to stage it for the photo. I love how this piece turned out.
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