Have admired this file cabinet (above) over at scissor variations for quite a while, so when I came upon a similar one (below) on a recent outing at Bottoms Up, I didn't hesitate ~ well, actually I did ~ I had to do some serious thinking as to where I could put it and if I should spend the money!Since the foot of snow has melted, the man I bought it from is delivering it tomorrow ~ I will be making a temporary space for it in the garage so I can clean it before bringing it inside. My plan is to add some casters to the bottom and then put it in the foyer ~ it will be a great place to organize and store the magazines that I save. I'm not sure if I will keep the cordovan colored finish or not ~ but it will be another huge project I don't need to strip it if I decide to do that!
I was told that the cabinet came from a city office where there must have been a wall of cabinets like this ~ notice the mismatched drawers. Not sure of its age, but I would guess the 40's. Too bad those Budweiser lamps weren't included?! Ha ha!
7 comments:
You lucky girl- its a beauty!
Yayyy---!
I was told my cabinet was from the Art Deco period. Some of my drawers are mismatched too, Mine is also the same color although it may be hard to tell from my photo.
It appears that some of the metal is copper underneath of mine.
I want to sandblast it, so it will have a matte silver finish, but not sure if this is possible. I need to get an opinion on it.
Mine weighs a TON--I would say somewhere between 200-300 pounds at the least, maybe even 400 pounds. It was supposed to go in an upstairs room, but we feared to even attempt to get it up the stairs!
Julie, you're going to love having it! You'll have to show pics of it in situe.
Janice
I would have to have had it too! Great purchase! :)
Thanks for visiting! Sounds like the dealer may have another one of these to sell, so if anyone is interested, let me know - kansas city area.
Janice, I have had similar thoughts about giving this cabinet a more industrial look - I already have one in the works: http://bricolage-julier.blogspot.com/2010/07/diamond-in-rough.html
I am using a disc grinder, which works great - but I have found that the pieces have been discontinued and the 3M discs are hard to find too! I noticed that the handles on this cabinet might be difficult or impossible to remove in order to strip too. I'm curious to see if the handles are copper plated or solid copper - I hope they are brass, but I have my doubts! I have had the same fear about the weight - especially when I load it with magazines! That is why it is going in the foyer - at least if it causes trouble, only the front stoop of my house will fall over. I love the drawers on yours - the ones with the cartouche label holders. What do you use yours for? You'll have to show photos if you decide to refinish!
Julie,
My cabinet is full of mostly little vintage bits + bobs. I do keep magazines in it as well.
It took a bit of cleaning to get the dust out of the nooks and crannies. I sprayed the drawers down with water, turned them upside down to dry, Then used a toothbrush in some corners to get the stubborn dirt out. Took a while but worth the effort.
I have seen some sandblasted cabinets where the handles and card holders are brass or copper and although I prefer that "all silver" industrial looking finish, I would be okay with the handles remaining brass or copper---because I would have no choice!
I recently purchased a book: "Sense of Style: Color and Space"-Shannon Fricke ....solely because of the picture of a sandblasted filing cabinet on page 243.
I got the book for $5 on the bargain table at the book store--not $75.00 that it is going for on Amazon (yikes!) I have 3 of these filing cabinets and I think I will try my hand at sandblasting those first since I got them for free.
I also have another filing cabinet (circa 1960) with the lift up doors (like a lawyers book case, but they are all metal and the filing drawers pull out)---that I want to sandblast.
Do you have some "in progress" photos of the other (gorgeous!) cabinet you are working on?
You're inspiring me to get started on one of the pieces--thanks for the tip on the grinder, I will look into the parts here and see what I can find.
Hi again Janice,
I had forgotten that you had made comments on my other cabinet posting! That did get put on the back burner because of the troubles with the grinder and the cold weather setting in. Now that spring is on the way and I think I have located some of the pieces I need for the grinder, hopefully I will be able to get this piece worked on. The one reason I like the grinder results is that it gives the metal a brushed metallic look rather than the more matte gray look that sandblasting gives. Sandblasting would be much quicker though and perhaps those places selling the refurbished pieces sandblast first, then go over a second time to buff the pieces up. I don't have access to a sandblaster anymore, so unless I want to spend some bucks, I'll have to do it the slow way. Once I get moving, I will be sure to take some photos to share! Maybe we can inspire each other to get these pieces finished!
Thanks for the book suggestion - sounds like one I would like!
I think the grinder leaves more of a "whorl-like" pattern doesn't it?
That is actually what I like most about some of the refinished metal pieces is this patterning.
This is one of my favorite sites for inspiration:
http://www.elemental.uk.com/
There is another site, but the name escapes me I am sure you know what I am talking about...
Factory (something?)
Outrageous prices, but oh-so-inspiring...
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