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Faizan
Old trunks such as steamer trunks, wood trunks, and footlockers can be found at flea markets, garage sales, antique and used furniture stores. Often the trunk is sturdy and well built, but the exterior is visually unappealing and the interior is rapt with odors. Refurbish an old trunk by cleaning and resurfacing the exterior and deodorizing the interior. With a lot of elbow grease and persistence, your old trunk can be useful and attractive again.
Preparing the Old Trunk
Spray trunk's exterior with cleaner. Use a damp sponge to clean away surface dirt. Towel dry.
Remove rust by rubbing with damp steel wool, in circular motions, until removed. Change the steel wool frequently. Add a squirt of rust removal cream to the steel wool if the rust is difficult.
Wrap medium grit sandpaper around a sanding block. Sand the exterior wood in a back and forth motion until smooth.
Fill holes in the wood with wood putty. Smooth the excess away with your fingers. Wipe smooth with the edge of a putty knife. Allow the putty to dry. Putty shrinks once dry, add additional layers of putty to attain an even surface.
Sand the dry putty until smooth with medium grit sandpaper wrapped around a sanding block. If staining the trunk, verify your putty is stainable. All wood putty can be painted. Once the putty is dry, use a damp towel to brush away sandings.
Painting the Old Trunk
Cover metal with a metal primer using a paintbrush.
Paint the trunk with a wood sealant. Allow sealant to dry.
Paint the trunk with acrylic or latex paints. Allow paint to dry. Stenciled or freehand images can be painted on top of a base coat.
Spray with a clear coat of spray paint in a well ventilated area. Allow the paint to dry.
Staining the Old Trunk
Fill a coffee can 1/4 full of tung oil. Fill the can 1/4 full of mineral spirits. According to Brettuns Village, some hardware stores sell pre-mixed tung oil and mineral spirits. Trunk and furniture makers used tung oil in the 19th century.
Pour three tablespoons of solvent-based stain into the tung oil/mineral spirit mix. According to Brettuns Village, you can stain/refurbish most trunks with a half a coffee can of the mixture. Water-based stain will not mix into the solution.
Stir with a wood stirring stick. Look at the color on the stick. Add more stain to the mixture until you achieve the desired color. Brettuns Village prefers golden oak stain.
Paint the stain onto the wood with a paintbrush. Use a rag to wipe away any drips. Allow the trunk to air dry.
Deodorizing the Old Trunk
Tear out any fabric lining that smells bad. For paper lining, wet a sponge and wipe the interior. Use a paint scraper to scrape out paper and the dried glue. According to Brettuns Village, the glue in old trunks is called mucilage and was made from horse by-products. Allow the interior to air dry for about 24-hours.
Place an open bag of cat litter inside and close the trunk. Leave it for a week. The litter will absorb odors.
Sand the trunk's interior with a piece of medium grit sandpaper until smooth.
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