Cindy Piccoli raided a cane and basket shop to make over an unattractive chest of drawers. For a tropical look the Victorians admired, try this raffia cloth conversion.
Materials:
wooden chest of drawers with flat surfaces
semi-gloss enamel paint
spray glue
fine raffia cloth
bamboo garden stakes (or fresh cut bamboo)
scissors
yardstick
black marker
hot glue & gun
miter box for corner cuts (optional)
painter's tape
Steps:
- Strip the old finish and sand. Note: You can start with an unfinished piece of furniture and skip this step.
- Remove drawer handles and other hardware.
- Measure drawer fronts and cut Raffia cloth to fit being careful not to unravel the edges of the cloth. Note: Make sure all wrinkles are out of the cloth by applying a warm steam iron.
- Spray the cloth with spray glue and apply to drawer fronts.
- Cut bamboo to length for four edges of each drawer.
- Split the bamboo with a razor knife or chisel. Dry bamboo will split virtually down the middle while green or fresh-cut bamboo is harder to work with and may need to be cut on a band saw.
- Using hot glue, attach the bamboo frame on all drawers. Continue to attach bamboo along the sides and top of the chest.
- Add painter's tape around raffia and paint with semi-gloss enamel.
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