Home Office Redesign - My Husband Has An Opinion?!

After years of having absolutely no opinion about the decor of our home, my husband has suddenly developed a sense of what he wants. I have to say I really don't know what to make of this, except to say I will attempt to listen to his thoughts. (Has he learned a lesson from Max?)


Husband's first opinion: stain the top surface of the cabinet. Here I completely agree. The wood, which is marked up pretty badly, still has some beautiful potential. Stain will mask the damage while embracing the variations in the wood tones.


The cabinet was returned to me, after getting striped of lead paint, with quite a few rough spots.


My little sander did a good job of smoothing the surface quickly. I had to be careful not to take too much of the surface away, however, as the cabinet is very old. I had visions of entire pieces of wood coming off during the sanding process!


Doesn't this look much better?!


Next, I applied a layer of stain from a well loved and now empty can. Minwax in Dark Walnut.


I decided to use this darker stain in order to cover the wood damage, which could not be removed through sanding. The tone of this stain will also work well with the colors in the space.


I was very happy with the result, and also stained the board which pulls out from the front of the cabinet. (Seen peeking out at the lower left edge of the photo.)


After the stain dries a layer of Minwax Polycrylic Protective Finish in Clear Satin will be applied, and then comes paint. Yes, you heard it, I'm painting the body of the cabinet. This was the husband's second opinion: I prefer paint over stain, most definitely. Hum, if I ever asked his opinion in the past I typically would do the opposite. (Truly.) I hope this turns out okay.

So now it's time to figure out exactly what color of paint. Not too dark, not too light. I am hoping to paint the cabinet in a way that the surface looks worn, with a nice patina. Do you have any great tips for me?