Antique Cupboard Gets New Life ... Makeover Magic!

 This is the story of an old wall mounted kitchen cabinet, cobbled together from available wood, probably during the 1920s, or 30s .  Of course I love that the available wood was real live bead board wains coating.  The cupboard was covered on all six sides ...  It came into my life when a customer brought it to the mall ... couldn't imagine what I would do with it, but it was love at first site...


It is shown here on its side, in my kitchen just before my husband took on the assignment to make to give it a new incarnation by making it into a rolling work island ...

It was much too short for its assignment, but I figured by adding some cool old map drawers, it would be just right.

He also added huge casters to add height, and for easy positioning.

 Here it is, with the drawers added to the top, and the casters beneath ... now the perfect height  ... and then it was time for the top...  You may recall that I bought an old 90's kitchen table with a butcher block top last summer, did I mention it was $5.  I used the table for making my Mad Hatter's Tea Party table for the festival of trees.  We took off the butcher block top and narrowed it before doing a used board top. (You can see the other makings for the Tea Party here.)

 That left the butcher block top, out of which my husband cut the center section on his table saw, before hinging the two side sections together to use as the top and drop leaf for my work island ... (The drop leaf hangs behind) Of course it had worn varnish and was pale oak in color, so I sanded it down and stained it darker.

,,, and here it is with its several coast of paint to unit its diverse elements and some funky knobs ....  The hinged top is not apparent here, but if the work island is pulled out the drop leaf can be pulled up to provide a large counter height work station for big jobs, like canning, or cake decorating.


There is still much to do in our kitchen, definitely a work in process.  On our long list of improvements we have been able to check off uncovering the brick wall (my Christmas present from my dh) and now the work station!  As you can see the floor awaits refinishing, and there is the cabinet painting to be done, new black and white kitchen counter tops and a new (woot woot) farm sink to be installed.

 I have to say, I am loving these shallow map drawers ... I have a great love for silverware, and I suspect, with some nice felt in the bottom of each drawer, that I am going to love this practical detail, whose main intent it was, to merely make the work station the right height.