Do you have an old piece of furniture that needs a little love? Let me know you how to repair wood veneer and bring it back to life.
That’s exactly what I did to my grandmother’s hope chest!
We all love to be gifted with furniture that holds meaning for us.
That’s why I jumped at the chance to use my Grandmother’s Hope Chest in our daughter’s room makeover.
But before the piece could be ready for her room I had to learn How To Repair Wood Veneer that was chipped on each side of the chest.
I’m so thankful that a little bit of elbow grease worked to repair and revive this heirloom into a creamy white hope chest for Tootsie to fill with treasures.
A creamy white would be perfect but before the piece could be repainted all the missing and chipping wood veneer had to be repaired.
Let me show you how I did it!
How to Repair Wood Veneer
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All-Purpose Putty (Click here to Buy)
Bondo Putty Filler Spreaders (click here to buy)
Painters Tape
Paper Plates and Plastic Spoons for Mixing
Protective Gloves (click here to buy)
Rubber Sanding Block (click here to buy)
I’m a lazy easy fix it kind of girl so I decided to follow use All-Purpose Putty to repair the missing veneer.
Before you mix up the All-Purpose Putty, tape off all the areas you need to repair. After that it’s time to prepare the putty.
Start with a about 2- 3 tablespoons of filler then add hardening agent and mix according to instructions. Wear gloves to protect your hands and open windows if you can.
This stuff made my entire house stink.
Apply the putty to the taped off areas. Work quickly! The putty hardens fast.
Apply enough putty to fill the space left by the missing veneer but not so much that you leave gobs of putty that must be sanded off. Use a Bondo Putty Filler Spreaders
Filling the spots was tricky for me. I either applied so much that it was overflowing or not enough to fill the space.
Allow the putty to dry for a few minutes (should be hard to the touch) and remove the tape from each section. Do this now before the tape becomes adhered to the filler.
Not that I would know anything about that. Yeah – right!
Once everything has dried, break out the sandpaper and get ready to work it! I sanded and sanded and sanded. Using a metal knife to scrape off the extra putty would have been super helpful with this part.
After all that repair work and sanding, the hope chest was painted a creamy white. So much better than green!
Okay. I’ve got to be honest. My skills as a repair girl are seriously limited. But each time I tackle a project I learn something.
Tips for How to Repair Wood Veneer using All Purpose Putty:
- Take your time! Do not try to squeeze furniture repair during errand running and preschool pick-up. {yes, I should have known better}
- Remove as much filler as you can before it dries completely.
- Even if it takes days – sand until each area is smooth.
Of course, I couldn’t resist adding Tootsie’s monogram to the chest’s corner.
Creating decals with washi tape is super simple! {Go here for the Washi Tape Wall Decals tutorial}
The Hope Chest blends wonderfully with the other pieces in Tootsie’s bedroom. It makes me smile to know my Grandmother requested it to be given to her.
Want to see the other projects that turned her bedroom from Grandma Frumpy to Little Girl Sweet? {Click here} to see the entire Adorable Little Girl’s Bedroom makeover!
Adorable Little Girl’s Bedroom
Visit Ashley @ 3 Little Greenwoods’s profile on Pinterest.
I link up with these fun parties!
Full Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links and/or is a sponsored post. I may receive compensation in the form of monetary compensation or product compensation in exchange for my review. I take pride in reviewing only products that fit my brand and will be beneficial to my readers. And while this post is sponsored or contains affiliate links, all the opinions are my own. Why do I do this? It will help me keep this DIY’ing Mama crafting for another day! For more on my disclosure policy click here.
Fabulous job! The chest looks beautiful! What a great treasure for her room. And props for tackling such a project! I am hoping to get crafty over spring break!
Thank you Robyn! I’m so happy with how it turned out. Send me some pictures of your Spring Break craftiness!
xoxo,
Ashley
Wow!! What a great tip about the putty! I had no idea! I’m true to the definition of lazy (mostly because i didnt know this stuff existed!) I would have just sanded down that part a little to make it blend, then painted it. haha (yup, I’ve done that… darn!) I’m pinning this so I don’t make the same mistake again! Thanks Ashley!
Darn! I wish I had just sanded down the bad spots! Smart idea for us Lazy Girls! 😉
Gorgeous! What a transformation!
Thanks so much for leaving me some blogging love, Tracy!
I love your hope chest re-do and your room redo collage. I’ve pinned this because I have both to consider. The little granddaughter’s room is higher on my to-do list but I have been thinking about how to refurbish my mom’s ’50’s hope chest. Right now it’s hidden in a closet. Thank you for sharing and the inspiration.
So excited that I have inspired you today with Tootsie’s bedroom makeover and my grandmother’s hope chest. I would love for you to follow along! There’s going to be a complete bedroom reveal next week! 😉
This turned out so well, Ashley! And the monogram letters were the perfect touch! Are you going to do a reveal of the completed room? I can’t wait to see it all put together!
Why how nice of you to ask about a complete room reveal… yes I am! It only took me four months to finish the space so I’m going to show it off one more time! 😉
Oh dear… Four months sounds very timely to me. We’re three months into our family room update and I’m stuck… again. I’ve pretty much accomplished one step each (paint, toy organization, rug) each month. At this rate, I’ll be happy if we have a finished family room project by December! 🙂
I know… room makeovers can take forever! But it’s the journey right? Can’t wait to see your living room!
Love how this turned out and I am so glad you showed out to use the bonding. I find so many furniture pieces that I would love to makeover, but they are chipped or missing some of the veneer. This looks like an easy fix and I will be picking up those pieces now instead of passing them by!
Hey Lindsay! Using Bondo to repair the missing veneer was a pretty easy fix. I’ll be much better at it the next time I try it! 😉
Ashley, I really really love how this turned out! It is just perfect in your daughter’s room. It is so special it was your Grandma’s. You have inspired me. I have a cedar hope chest that was hand carved by my late father (he passed away from cancer in 2001). The chest is in storage in the U.S. until we return home. It also had some damage to the surface. I cannot wait to try this tip when we get back and restore the beauty of the chest. Thanks for sharing:) have a great weekend.
Hey Rachel!
I am tickled pink that I have inspired you to repair your grandfather’s chest when you get back home. I can’t wait to see it!
{big hugs}
Ashley
Ashley, the chest turned out beautiful, I love it and that it was passed down from Grandma! and her room looks adorable!! Can’t wait to see the complete room reveal next week!
Thanks so much Marti! I am thrilled with how the hope chest turned out! It will be so special for Tootsie to put all her treasures in!
{big hugs}
Ashley
Ashley this turned out so cute! I have some things i should repair like this. Your daughter’s room is so very cute and perfect for a little princess. Great job.
It was a fairly easy technique to repair the missing veneer. But… I’ll be much better at it the next time I tackle a project like this!
Beautiful job on a meaningful family heirloom!
Thank you so much for your sweet comment about my grandmother’s chest!
Ashley!!!! I am so glad you were able to use the tutorial and it turned out GREAT! That is so special that you transformed your grandmother’s hope chest for Tootsie. I bet it will be treasured for a lifetime. Blessings!
Oh I am so excited you found my blog! You did such an awesome job with your tutorial that I was inspired to tackle the chipped and missing veneer on my grandmother’s chest. Thank you so much!
{big hugs}
~ Ashley
Love it! The chest turned out great and the room looks so cute. Thanks for sharing the great tops about bondo.
Hey Meredith! Thank you so much for your comment love about my grandmother’s hope chest. Hope you will join me again next week when I finally do Tootsie’s complete bedroom reveal. 😉
~ Ashley
Oh my goodness! It looks great! I love that it’s a family piece and now it’s super fresh ad pretty! LOVE the monogram too! 😀
You know we Southern girls love a monogram!I couldn’t resist jazzing the hope chest up a bit!
This is so adorable!
Thanks for joining the Link Up this week!
Wow, this turned out really well! Thanks for sharing. (Stopping by from Do Tell Tuesday.)
Thanks so much Katie! So happy you stopped by my blog today!
Lovely!
Thank you Diana! I appreciate you hosting your weekly party!
awesome fix up 🙂 The chest is beautiful!!
Thanks so much! I love having my grandmother’s chest in Tootsie’s bedroom!
I am so glad to see the repair worked out so well…. What a gorgeous piece!! Pinning!! Happy Easter to you and yours…. 🙂
“hugs” Crystelle
Crystelle Boutique
Hey Crystelle! Thank you so much for your sweet comment about my grandmother’s hope chest. It is so special to me!
Dropping in today to let you know this is being featured on The Wednesday Roundup link party!!! Thanks so much for sharing it last week. I’d love for you to return this week, grab your feature button and link up your new projects! This week we are also hosting a Google+ Hop! http://foodyschmoodyblog.com/wednesday-roundup-week-21/
{Squeal!} So excited my Grandmother’s Repaired and Revived Hope Chest was featured! Thank you!
Wow who would have figured to use a bondo agent on furniture? I will have to remember that tip, it came out great!
I know! It was a tad bit tricky because the Bondo dries so quickly but the technique did work very well! Thanks so much for leaving me some bloggy comment love!
What a sweet way to give new life to a special piece of furniture! I love how it turned out–just girly enough to be cute but practical! I’ll be featuring this at the next Frugal Crafty Home Blog Hop! Thanks so much for sharing this with our readers!
Awesome! I am thrilled you have chosen my Repaired and Revived Hope Chest as one of your features! My Grandmother would be so happy!
{big hugs}
~ Ashley
I like the way you’ve restored it, it looks great. Thanks for linking up to Sweet and Savoury Sunday, stop by and link up again. Happy Easter, have a great weekend!
Hey Laura!
So excited you like Tootsie’s hope chest! It was a labor of love!
You did a beautiful job finishing the hope chest! I bet your daughter will treasure that her whole life! Great putty work!
Thanks so much! My grandmother’s hope chest was definitely a labor of love!
What a beautiful treasure for your daughter to enjoy for years to come! You did a fantastic job reviving it.
Thank you so much, Christy! I love that we were gifted such a treasure. I even found one of my grandfather’s WWII Army dog tags inside the hope chest!
What a beautiful makeover and a lovely way to keep a family treasure. Thanks for the info on using Bondo as well. I haven’t tried it for furniture repair but have heard about it. Good job!
Thanks so much, Wendi! Bondo is pretty stinky but it did a great job on my grandmother’s hope chest.
Thanks for the repair tips Ashley. I am in the process of repairing a china cabinet. And it seems as if the whole side of the veneer is coming off. What you said about learning new things every time you do a project is soooooo true.