You might be turned off by a great bargain in older furniture because of the mustiness that goes with it. But don’t be discouraged. There is an easy way to freshen up older furniture and sweeten drawers of dressers, desks, cabinets and more.
The local thrift store near our old home was always filled with interesting furniture. Most of it was in very good shape. I even noticed an old art deco style cabinet there once that I was tempted to snap up, since it was probably worth five times as much as the thrift store price. But, I didn’t appreciate the musty smell that wafted out when I opened a bottom drawer.
It is too bad that I didn’t know then what I know now, that it isn’t hard to get out that musty smell.
All you need to do to sweeten up those drawers is to scrub the inside surfaces with a bleach mixture. Mix up fifty percent bleach and fifty percent water. Scrub the surfaces with an old rag or sponge, but do not rinse them after scrubbing. Allow the drawers to dry in a well-ventilated area. You want to make sure to use gloves when you apply the bleach solution and be careful not to splash any into your eyes. Also, be careful that you don’t splash any of the bleach solution on your clothing, carpets or other fabric or fibers. I found that the easiest thing to do is to take the project outside, or if that is not practical. do your draw scrubbing in a bathtub or tiled bathroom floor.
Now, you’ll be sure to be on the look out for some great treasures. beside the thrift store, nice furniture can be found at estate sales or even at the curb through curb shopping, if that is your thing.
Mary Ann Romans writes about everything related to saving money in the Frugal Blog, technology in the Computing Blog, and creating a home in the Home Blog. You can read more of her articles by clicking here.
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