Spring Cleaning, Dealer Style

Ah, the glamour of the antique business....Thought I'd show you the sum total of my work day last Wednesday. I spent 9 hours cleaning 4 "items," 3 of which are pictured. Okay, some of the items were multiples, but still! This type of cleaning is why my hands always look like I just finished changing the oil in my car.

These shuttle boxes (used to move textiles in a mill) were actually quite clean, compared to the nest of drawers pictured below. A little sanding, removal of some stray nails and a coat of wax were all that was needed. However, the nest of drawers was a mess!

Two hours of sanding, bleaching and varnishing were needed before a new back was added. But the piece looked great when we were finished. Had a lovely, primitive patina and would be terrific for storage and organizing.

Now this piece, along with some vintage factory bins, were the true bad guys Wednesday. This is the popcorn machine I mentioned in the Bright Spot a couple of weeks ago. It is adorable -- the top is glass and metal while the bottom is enameled and full of drawers. It would make a great display piece or a terrific cabinet. But what a greasy mess! Joe removed the popping mechanism and other wiring, then I went to work -- vacuuming, scraping, sanding and washing with Awesome (the world's greatest cleaner for oily dirt). Yikes. But by Thursday at 11, we were ready to add a wooden floor to the top and replace the one missing handle on the front. It really looked terrific -- and was one of the first pieces Joe sold Saturday when he made our April delivery to Midland (www.midlandathome.com). Which is what makes all that cleaning worthwhile!