Restoring Furniture

Step1: Sand

Sandpapers are commonly graded as coarse (40-60 grit), Medium (80-120), Fine (150-180), Very Fine (220-240), Extra Fine (280-320) and Super Fine (360 and above). Depending on What kind of wood you are working with (soft or hard) start with a Coarse grade and work your way to a fine grade.

Example: This table is pine (a very soft wood). It had significant damage, so I sanded the whole thing with 80 to get out the scratches. Then I went over it again with 220 to smooth it out.

Step 2 (for staining only): 

Seal the wood. Apply pre-stain to the furniture using a brush or clean rag. Allow the it to soak in for five minutes and then wipe off the excess. Allow it to dry an additional 30 minutes.

Step 2 (for painting only):

 Prime the wood. 
Wait at least four hours for the primer to dry before painting the piece of furniture with the paint.

Step 3: 

Stain and/or paint the the wood. 

And there you have it! A beautiful new piece of furniture!