"How do I..." (Letter from a loyal reader).

I am so touched when one of my millions of readers reaches out to me with a question. I mean, when you consider they could ask someone like Martha Stewart or Nahm on This Old House, it's really quite humbling. So when Christine in Fayetteville, Arkansas (where the heck is Arkansas, Christine?) wrote me about how to treat a scratch on a vintage piece of furniture, I was happy, but nervous. After all, I'm not an expert. But then I thought, "If Christine in Arkansas thinks I can help her, then I can! Not just can - I must.

The letter/challenge:

Dear Pam:

I've been reading your blog and books for years and I think you're fantastic!

Can you advise me on how I should treat an unsightly scratch on my heirloom teak sauna bath?

Yours truly,

Christine G.

Fayetteville, Arkansas, U.S.A.

Well, Christine, without knowing the exact nature of the injury to your heirloom sauna - what the hell happened, for starters? Were you drinking? And who uses teak to make a tub? - it's hard for me to give a precise response. But I'm thinking that my own tried and true technique of treating scratched furniture might just apply here. The furniture featured in my response is indoor furniture, but I think the scenario applies pretty much any old place. Note: my proffered solution includes using a book, which you might want to place in a baggy due to the proximity of warm, murky water.

Now let's stop writing and focus on the pictures, shall we?

(Look up!!)

First, identify the issue. In the lower left corner of the top photo, you'll see what looks like a small dark speck on your computer screen. Don't be fooled and don't touch your screen! It's actually a scratch in the paint of this nightstand!

When trying to solve a complex problem, I always attempt to start with the easiest solution. In this case, it meant grabbing the closest small, decorative object to cover the scratch. This photo illustrates how that worked out. What do you think?

I thought covering the scratch worked out just fine, but it wasn't enough. While the expanse of blue wood was attractive and allowed one to appreciate the fine grain of the wood, I found myself wondering what was missing. So, I took more objects - in this case a red hardcover book and a small, blue book with dragonflies on it - and covered the scratch with some more stuff. (Please note that you should not feel locked in to using the same types and colours of books - now is the time to trust your judgement).

That's all I've got for you, Christine! Please let me know how this worked out for you! The most important thing is to just have fun with it! That's key!

Sincerely,

Pam

Making Something Old New Again

I came upon this sweet wire-back chair at the St. Lambert United Church Antique and Rummage sale last summer. This sale has been happening each May for almost 50 years, and it remains one of the few unchanged things about my hometown. As long as I can remember, the volunteers have been labelling the tea room sandwich baggies (i.e., Tuna, Ham, Egg) in 24 point Times New Roman font. This year and last, the gentleman wearing the security badge was the 75 year old named Ed, and the fella who sold me my tomato plants two summers ago and made me laugh non-stop was back again for more (as was I). Many of the faces I see there are what I call "St. Lambert faces" - people I didn't know by name, but saw at this sale every year since I was a kid. On my first time back at this sale after having lived away for many years, I was struck by how these faces had aged; then struck immediately by the knowledge that if they'd gotten older, so had I. The hard work and camaraderie, the sense of community - and did I mention the Lazy Daisy cakes for sale at the Country Kitchen nook off the main hall? - all of this is heartwarming and reassuring to me.

But, I digress. I'm here to write about that chair. I paid $7.00 for it (after hesitating a few minutes, yes, but after that I never regretted it). I rather liked the pink corduroy seat cover, but as it had a bit of paint on it, I knew it had to go. I brought it home and, as I am wont to do, tried a couple of different 'fat quarter' fabric samples on it. I hemmed and hawed, took pictures, then hemmed and hawed some more. Finally, I borrowed a staple gun from my friend and got the job done. I couldn't like it more. Even better, I saw an identical chair (with different fabric) in a Westmount vintage store window for $75.00. Sometimes my ideas are so good I just don't know what to do with them all...

I genuinely like salvaging old pieces of furniture. Sometimes they're not terribly practical - say an old bureau with narrow, sticky drawers - but time after time I have found pieces that fix up beautifully. I don't always feel like dedicating the elbow grease, but when I do it pays off with something unique and often pretty striking. And unique! Who else has this exact chair, or a soft green bureau with lily of the valley painted on the top and sides, or a robin's egg blue kitchen hutch? Nobody, that's who. And another plus is that in most cases, this stuff would have ended up as landfill. How someone didn't see the possibility in these pieces, I'll never know. Admittedly they're not everyone's cup of tea, and not to say I wouldn't appreciate some fine new piece now and then, but overall, this just works for me.