How to fix furniture painting and refinishing mistakes: Twilight Geranium to the Rescue

When we started blogging about our furniture refinishing adventures we had a clear vision that we’d share not only our best furniture makeovers but also things that didn’t work so well for us. We’ve made, and continue to make our fair share of furniture painting mistakes. This week’s project is a great example of a furniture makeover fail.

The before

We picked up this mid century modern buffet for only $25 from an older couple downsizing. I love the look of mcm pieces that are two toned with stained wood and paint. Unfortunately, this piece didn’t have any real wood to work with. We thought, no big deal, we’ll pick up some veneer and add it to the piece and it’ll be gorgeous.

What went wrong

Off we went to the local exotic wood store where we ogled some gorgeous woods before finally settling on a nice (affordable) maple veneer. We got the veneer home and stained it with Fusion’s Staining and Finishing Oil in Cappuccino. So far, so good. The veneer looked lovely and I was pretty excited for the finished buffet.

Next we needed to apply the veneer to the buffet. This is where things started to go sideways. We used a roller to roll wood glue along the back of the veneer and, once in place, weighed down the veneer while it dried.

And this is what we woke up to the next day:

The veneer had warped and was bubbling up all over the place. Not good. In truth this probably could have been avoided if we’d taken the time to research the proper method for applying wood veneers. Hint: contact cement would have been a better choice than wood glue!

So tip #1 for the day is always research the proper way to do something before you try it for the first time.

How to fix furniture makeover mistakes

One good thing about DIY furniture painting and refinishing it that you can always try again. If something doesn’t work out, it only takes a little elbow grease to get back on track.

In this case we peeled off the veneer, sanded down the glue and painted the inside of the cabinet with Fusion’s new color, Twilight Geranium. Mineral paint is so easy to use, which was refreshing at this point in the project!

In situations where you’ve chosen the wrong color or a painting technique hasn’t worked out, try just painting over it before you sand it down and go back to square one. You might find you love the look, even if it’s not what you set out to achieve.

If you get really frustrated, take a break for a few days. Sometimes a little time away will help you get a fresh perspective on the possibilities for a piece that has “gone wrong”.

If all else fails, sand or strip your piece down and try again.

I must admit, I’m still a little disappointed the veneer didn’t work out for this piece. However, Twilight Geranium, is a stunning color and paired with Casement, certainly gives this mid century modern buffet a fresh and modern look.

Have you applied veneer before? How did it go? Do you have any tips or tricks for furniture painting mistakes? We’d love for you to share your thoughts in the comments below.