I first started becoming interested in unfinished furniture as a way to be thrifty. Although it would have been even easy to get secondhand furniture cheap, didn't really want used furniture. I wanted something nice and in good condition, something that I could keep for years to come and feel good about. I entertain a lot of clients in my house, so it is important to have nice-looking furniture. At the same time, I never feel good about spending the money it costs to buy really high quality home furnishings. There was an unfinished oak furniture store down the street, and I stopped in on a whim. I was pretty impressed. They had all kinds of beautiful chairs, tables, desks, wardrobes, and other products.
I am not always good at finishing projects I start, so I didn't invest in too much unfinished furniture all at once. At first, I simply bought a wooden chair and took it home. I got a couple books out of the library and got to work. That first project was pretty easy. All I had to do was sand it down a little bit, varnish it, and put on a couple extra coats and then I was done. Even though it was my first project, it only took me a couple hours to do. Best of all, it was enjoyable. I had something beautiful for my efforts, and I got to save money in the bargain. Who could ask for more?
Unfortunately, for my next unfinished furniture project, I bit off more than I could chew. I tried to upholster my own chair, something that I thought would be easy. It turned out to be a little bit more difficult than I had anticipated. Sanding unfinished wood furniture is one thing, but making your own chair upholstery can be much more difficult. My first couple attempts failed miserably, and by the time I had something that was halfway decent, I had wasted hours and hours on it. Nonetheless, in some ways it was a good project. After all, the best way to learn is by doing, and I sure spent a lot of time doing it! Since then, I have been confident in my abilities to accomplish any unfinished furniture project. My house looks lovely, and I have even started to sell some of the things that I finish. It doesn't make me a lot of money, but it definitely is good for a little bit of spending cash on the side.
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