Salvaging a Humidor

In cleaning out my garage last week I pulled this dirty old piece of furniture out of the corner with the intention of putting it curbside -- it was trash day.

I couldn't do it though. I could not just throw this thing away. Yes it was dirty, damaged, and not a style we would enjoy having in our home. Surely there was something I could do with it though, right?

***

You see, there's a little bit of emotional attachment here -- my wife reminded me that this little cabinet was from her parents' bedroom, although she had no idea how old it was or where they got it.

I've refinished several old pieces of furniture over the years (a buffet, dresser, chifferobe, dining table and chairs, and more), but this one just had too many strikes against it. There were several areas of damage, it was too ornate, I am pretty backlogged with projects already -- all signs that pointed to this never being completed.

But since I had recently injured my back and this thing was quite small and liftable, and since I really like the idea of keeping family pieces in use, I took another look.

Okay, another strike: it's a copper-lined humidor. Magazine rack and humidor combo -- I have no need for either of these things in my house!



Still, I saw something in it. Jigsaw was the first step...

...as I removed the side portions:

The side stubs were then removed and the dowel holes filled (by the original dowels), and the whole thing was sanded.

All of these parts went into the trash:

Using another project's remnants that I think were poplar (although some of the grain patterns had me questioning what type of wood it really was) I made a simple base for it:

A little veneer repair on the door (lower right corner)...

...some dark stain (Minwax English Chestnut) and polyurethane and it's ready to come into the house:

I'm happy not only that this thing is out of the garage and off my list, but that it's a bit of family "history" that we'll now be able to enjoy daily.

I do wonder what we'll store in it though...


Interestingly, I found a link to what looks like this exact model that says it was made in the late 1920's to early 1930's. Here's the photo that accompanies that appraisal.

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