My cabinets are oak but were white washed by the previous owners in the 90s. I hate the white washed color because they get grimy and filthy and when I try to clean them it rubs off the finish. They are looking pretty gross now. I would like to have them refinished to a mahogany color.
I’ve had three bids now. Two companies claim that they can just clean them up and put toner OVER the white wash color and gradually stain them to a mahogany. They are not going to use stripper. One company is going to do a bit of sanding and then build the color over the white wash for 00 (which seems a bit high) but the other will just put the toner directly over the white wash with NO sanding for around 80. I have this other guy who refinished my deck and did a nice job and I gave him one of my cabinet doors to experiment on (he’s never done cabinets but has refinished lots of furniture and decks). He used stripper to get off the varnish and most of the stain, then lightly sanded to get the rest of the white wash off. Then he stained them with a mahogany color and sealed it with polyurethane. I haven’t seen the finished product yet, but he says he’s confident that he can do the job and make it look really nice. He’s willing to charge 00 for the job.
Which of these methods sounds the best? I just want my cabinets to look really good. I want the wood grain to show through and don’t want it to look painted. I also don’t want anything to peel or come off.

recently got some used patio furniture, I think it is sea grass, but it is faded from the sun. What product can I use to add color back to it? Someone recommended a spray polyurethane, I tried this on a small corner, and it didn’t do much. Would a brush on poly work, or a stain, or an oil?? I don’t want to change the color, I just want it to look like it does when it is wet (new again). Please help! THANKS.

Say I have a wooden dining table that I love but I hate having to use table pads and a table cloth just to have an informal meal because I don’t want spills and condensation to ruin the finish on my table.

What I would like to know is: What is that clear, high-gloss, waterproof, scratch proof coating I see on restaurant tables and sometimes on stair railings or outdoor railings and other outdoor wood fixtures and furniture? Is is a special polyurethane or some kind of lacquer? If anyone knows what it is, do you know if it can be easily applied by a novice to any wood fixture or furniture?

Thanks in advance.

I recently had my solid oak barstools sanded down and spray painted with rustoleum 2x spray paint. The guy who did it, then tried to seal it with polyurethane which caused a mess. I have been slowly removing the poly with mineral spirits to get the layer off. I do want a protective coating on when I’m done, so I have two questions… 1) when can a lacquer coat be applied? Should the chairs be COMPLETELY dry and if so, for how long? 2) Is lacquer even my best option to protect these chairs from scuffing and wear and tear. Look forward to expert opinions. Thank you!

I have several large pieces of furniture that is finished with a clear polyurethane. My ex applied the finish about 10 years ago and I would now like to darken it to an espresso color.

The pieces are solid pine from Mexico. They are rustic styled, but I went to the furniture store and saw that they had similar pieces but in an espresso stain that still showed the wood grain. They also had a see thru color, like red and green on some of the sides and front (as if they were originally that color and it didn’t come completely off when it was refinished).

I have a bar, china cabinet, book shelf, coffee table, dining table and chairs that I’d like to redo. As you can tell I have a lot of furniture that I need to redo. So the less work I have to do the better.

Can this be done without having to strip the furniture?

Please help! Amateur at work here.

Thanks!

I just purchased wood chairs from a chinese restraunant that have polyurethane and soy sauce on them. I already used pine sol and a scrubie sponge. It took most of the grime off, but they are still sticky. Should I continue or should I stop and use something else? I just want to make sure I’m not damaging the wood before I get a chance to enjoy them.