You can bring furniture back to brilliant with a little elbow grease and shellac. This kauri pine stationmaster's desk, circa 1916, wasn't a particularly difficult job to restore, just time consuming and a bit messy. Stripped of the old leatherette top, it now looks beautiful with its traditional finish of shellac and wax. Ideal for so many timber furniture restoration projects, shellac seals timber and enhances its character and colour.

You'll find shellac in hardware stores in flake or liquid form. To make liquid shellac from flakes, add between 150 and 200g of flakes to 500ml of methylated spirits. Stir thoroughly to dissolve, then carefully strain through a stocking. Thin with methylated spirits as needed.

Shellac ranges, in colour from deep orange to almost clear. We used blonde de-waxed shellac to allow the natural colour of the timber to show through. This is a shellac that develops a shine in a few coats. But if you want to slightly deepen the colour, choose an orange shellac. Shellac is easy to use, simple to apply and quick-drying. Store paintbrushes in methylated spirits between coats.

Gather your supplies
Methylene chloride paint stripper
60, 80, 120, 240 and 400 grit abrasive papers and belts
Offcut of matching timber
5-minute epoxy
Blonde de-waxed shellac
1 and 0000 steel wool
Finishing oil or wax

• Tip 1 A belt sander and a random orbital sander will speed up the sanding work.
• Tip 2 Work where you can make a mess.
• Tip 3 Old paint can contain lead, so wear a quality face mask so you don't breathe in any toxic dust.

Here's how
Step 1
Remove the old vinyl leatherette top if applicable to your piece. Scrape off the glue with a pull scraper.

Step 2
Fill any holes in the desk with plugs cut from a matching piece of timber. Align the grain of the plug with the grain of the desktop. If the holes aren't round, transfer an impression of them onto timber, then cut out with a jigsaw. Trim the plugs to a snug fit by paring them with a chisel. Glue in the plugs with 5-minute epoxy. Tap in the plugs so they just fill the holes and stand a little proud of the surface; if they project below the tabletop, you'll risk jamming the drawers.

Step 3
Trim the tops off the plugs with a tenon saw. Using an 80-grit belt in a belt sander, smooth the tabletop, but still leave a hint of the recess created for the original leatherette top. Sand in the direction of the grain, working in parallel passes so the top is even.

Step 4
Mix the 2 parts of the epoxy with sawdust to make a colour-matched filler. Work it into holes, cracks or gaps around the plugs. Let dry while working on other areas of the table.

Step 5
Use a pull scraper to remove flaking paint from the rails. Brush paint stripper onto remaining paint and let soften. Wearing rubber gloves, scrape off the softened paint and put it straight into a disposable container. This should remove most of the old paint. Take off the residue with another thin coat of paint stripper. Wear rubber gloves, and use No 1 steel wool with warm water, then scrub, wiping clean as you go.

Step 6
To remove paint from the turned legs, apply paint stripper, then use a shave hook to deal with the curves. The shave hook can be angled to suit the various rounded shapes. Clean away the residue with steel wool and water. For the cylindrical parts of the legs, use a random orbital sander, being careful not to flatten curves or sand away too many character marks. If you find the paint is still a little thick in places, start with a 60-grit belt, otherwise use an 80 or 120-grit abrasive.
For getting into tight grooves, tear strips of abrasive cloth and pull backwards and forwards to sand.

Step 7
Set the table on its legs and re-sand the top, edges and rails with 120-grit paper. Dust off well, make a final check of the surface, then finish the sanding by hand, working with the grain using 240 and 400-grit paper.

Step 8
Wipe the surface with a rag dampened with methylated spirits. Coat all surfaces with blonde de-waxed shellac applied with a brush. The more thin coats applied, the shinier the surface. Lightly sand with 400-grade paper between coats. Buff the desk with a finishing oil or wax for a rich, soft shine.

Shopping
De-waxed shellac, Mother of Pearl, (02) 9332 4455.

Source:Better Homes and Gardens April 2002