Baroque-Style Dresser
This piece was rescued from its DIY rough chalk-painted/ candle wax-dripped/Home Depot knobbed/split drawer-edged/one-step away from the curb state and lovingly restored into this strikingly beautiful natural and painted wood treasure. When I acquired this piece I had no idea what beautiful wood was waiting for me under the layers of chalk paint. My original plan was to sand and repaint but once I saw that crotch veneer I knew I would be using a natural finish.
This vintage six-drawer dresser, by Williamsport Furniture of Pennsylvania, has been completely restored, revealing striking book-matched crotch mahogany veneer drawer fronts and highly figured flat-sawn mahogany veneer side panels that have been meticulously stripped and refinished with Odies Oil and a hand rubbed all-natural wax finish.
Three of the drawers needed repair. The delicate curved bottom edges of each drawer had been split-off leaving a ragged sharp edge of wood. I used a plane and my router to produce a level surface in the edge of the drawer front, just below the facing of the precious veneer. This provided me the space to glue pieces of ¼” square poplar the length of the drawer bottom, using every available clamp I had in the shop (it’s true you can never have too many clamps!). Once the glue dried I used a plane, spoke shave and hand rasps to make the curved profile in the edge of the drawer bottoms, finishing off the shape by hand with sandpaper. These edges would be painted black to frame and contrast with the natural finish of the mahogany veneered drawer fronts. The carved wood throughout and the top of the case are made of secondary wood species so I felt justified in painting them black as well to further highlight the exquisite veneers.
The natural wood contrasts with the Fusion Mineral Paint Coal Black finish on the ornate carvings of the feet, trim and graceful curves of the top. The drawer cases are solid maple, dovetailed joinery throughout, with mahogany veneered drawer bottoms, all finished in natural shellac. I sourced reproduction hardware from D Lawless Hardware (https://www.dlawlesshardware.com). The 2½” on-center Antique English finish French Provincial leaf pulls were hard to find. I chose matching late-Baroque style drop pulls for the top drawers. I was unable to track down what the original hardware may have looked like as the Williamsport Furniture Company has been out of business for many years and Internet searches did not pull up a picture of this specific piece.
This piece is extremely well constructed, typical of the period, and holds a cavernous amount of storage.
Originally published on December 9, 2021