Before & After: Wooden chest with DIY leather handles

Adam’s childhood self misspelled “psycho” across the top with Sharpie (um, what?), so I started by sanding the whole thing with my mouse sander. I worked from a medium grit to a fine grit, just to smooth everything out and get it ready for staining. You can still see a couple of places where Adam tried carving his name into the top, but I think it adds character. Plus, one day Hannah may appreciate knowing that it belonged to her dad

After sanding, I applied one coat of Minwax stain in ‘Early American’. I’ve used a brush to apply stain in the past, but I prefer to work with a rag – much better control that way, at least for me. I let the stain dry overnight, then applied a coat of clear protective finish.

The paint is supposed to be extra durable and washable, and the primer is built right in, which I love. I added the wood blocks for the handles after I’d already painted the interior and despite lots of dings with my hammer (and a few from the cinderblock I used to hold the wood in place), not a single touch-up was required. Pretty good, right?

Now we have the perfect spot to stash some of Hannah’s favourite toys downstairs, though I still need to add a safety latch to the inside of the lid (to prevent it from slamming down on little fingers). When Hannah no longer needs it, I can definitely see us storing blankets or other household items in here.

While CIL provided me with a can of their Smart Wear & Wash paint, they did not ask me to write a review. All thoughts and opinions are my own. You can see other projects I’ve done using CIL paint - that I bought myself – here and here.

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