Restoring a Walnut Desk

This week I finished converting what my client, Grahame, called a possible work bench into a renewed family treasure. This project was a delight to take on. I had done one other repair for Grahame and found him great to work with. When he brought in this old walnut desk it had been in the family attic for 35 years, probably there because the veneer was so badly chipped. It was no less loved, just not presentable any longer. You can see for yourself the state it was in!

I had to patch in veneer repairs on the leg and top but for the curved drawer fronts, I replaced the old, peeling veneer with a burled walnut. The piece was then stripped, the dog-chewed corner  filled with a coloured epoxy putty and then relacquered. Grahame picked up the finished product at the end of the week  and his obvious pleasure at the sight was a heart-warming bonus for all the hard work. The most wonderful part of my work is seeing how delighted my clients are to have an elderly, albeit wooden, member of their family restored to its former glory.