Monday 17 December 2012

Fixing up a 1950's chrome kitchen table.

source
This little retro kitchen makes my heart sing! It's so happy and cute and my dream kitchen would be something like the above picture.
Today the reality came just that little bit closer when I scored a cute table and 4 chairs for $50 from an estate auction.
It was in okay condition but the chrome shine was gone and there were lots of marks everywhere.
I am not the best at remembering to take before photos since I just get far too excited about new projects but this is what it looked like after a quick rub with some Brasso.
It was getting there but still not as shiny as I'd hoped for. The difference was quite noticeable.
We (handyman dad and I) decided to get out a drill with a polisher and give that a go and it was extremely successful.

We ended up going through 2 polishing pads to do the chrome edge but as you can see from the photos- the difference between the polisher and the Brasso was huge.
Once the edge was chromed we tried to bring up the colour in the table top by using timber wax polish.
As you can see it made the top darker and it also felt much shinier. The photo probably doesn't give the wax improvement much justice but it was considerably better.

And there you have it- my newly shined up kitchen setting in all her glory. I still have a long way to go with my retro kitchen plans but am so pleased to have found the centre piece.
And for whoever is interested, a breakdown of the costs:
$50 table and chairs from an estate auction
$8 timber wax polish
$10 Brasso
I already had the polisher connection for my drill but you can get a 4 pack for about $10.
I also used Jif which we had in the cupboard to clean the chairs a bit further.
Time taken: app 2 hours as polishing the edge with a tiny piece took a while and we needed a few trips to the store and tests to see what would work out.
So for $68 and 2 hours here's my beautiful new kitchen table- just in time for christmas entertaining.
Lisa x
P.s I'm linking up with

13 comments:

  1. It looks spectacular! You did a fantastic job of bringing it back to life.

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  2. This looks brilliant! All of this since yesterday too!

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  3. OOH, your new dinette set is GORGEOUS! I love it! For future reference, one of my favorite tricks for chrome is aluminum foil. It sounds weird, but if you rub chrome with aluminum foil, it removes rust and gunk and really shines it up!

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    1. Thanks for your tip. I had a go this morning with the aluminum foil and it did make a big difference.
      L x

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  4. Super cute.. and I love the above dream kitchen.. Looks like you guys did a fantastic job and are well on your way!

    bookgeekspeaks.blogspot.com

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  5. Great job! I love those vintage tables - I have one in my kitchen that's red. Link up anytime to I Made It! Monday at Ninth Street Notions.

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    1. Thanks for the invitation- I'd love to link up.
      L x

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  6. I love this table- amazing find!!

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  7. You my dear are so crafty! LOVE it reminds me of my grandmother!

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    1. Thank you. It is a very nostalgic table, I can just imagine generations before sitting around it enjoying meals. :)

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  8. i love this, and those are some great tips! we're doing a retro modern diner inspired basement/bar and we'll have to rechrome the chairs we have, or maybe use your tips. can't wait to see how the rest of your retro kitchen shapes up!

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  9. Wow, how well have you made it? Related to this, we have also designed Samara Furniture which is very good, would you like to see it?

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