Vintage Sewing Machine Desk Woes—Help!

[WcW]

I recently bought a mid-century modern sewing machine cabinet/desk and matching stool. According to the catalogue page, the original finish was likely mahogany—albeit quite orange in appearance.

The finish wasn't what I was looking for,* so buoyed by my previous two projects involving cabinets (oak both times), I thought stripping and refinishing this pair would be a no-brainer. Wrong!

The desk has large blotches throughout (pic 1). I used a chemical stripper, circa 1850. Is this something that can be fixed by trying to strip these areas again? Or is it due to the age of the wood or something else that is beyond my control?

The stool did NOT have blotches; however, when I applied Varathane's oil-based ebony stain, the results were either uneven or not dark enough (pic 3). My understanding is due to the varnish that is present in this stain, there's no point applying more as it won't penetrate further, so all I can do at this point is try to remove it. Should the chemical stripper work for this at all, or is sanding my only option?

Back to the desk... if I am NOT able to even out the blotches before applying stain, would wood conditioner help at all? My intention is to give up on the oil-based stain and return to a water-based stain in black (SamaN, Canadian company). I would then top it off with Danish oil, as I don't really want an overly glossy or glass-like surface. My hope is that the combination of black stain and Danish oil will even out any the blotches.

My readings tell me wood conditioner than gel stain is typically recommended in these cases, but for whatever reason—likely because it just sits on the surface—gel stain isn't very appealing. I might as well paint instead.

Lastly, any thoughts on whether this veneer actually is mahogany?? I'm no wood expert, so I would've thought mahogany to be much darker. Googling about led me to think this was padauk, especially the drawer fronts (pic 2), but I was told padauk wouldn't have been used in the late 50s/early 60s.

Thanks in advance for your thoughts and expertise! :)

 

* I quite like the grain on the drawer fronts, so am considering leaving them as is, and only finishing them off with some Danish oil, depending on how they look installed in a black-stained desk.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[wtnhighlander]

The wood surface appears relatively open pored, and likely has a good bit of the old finish still diffused into the surface. That would be my guess as to what is causing the blotches. 

If the dark color of the last photo is your goal, I would say try the gel stain approach. Attempting to strip it again increases the risk of lifting the veneer.

[WcW]

Thanks for the reply! The veneer is quite thick, so as long as I use a chemical stripper and not my heat gun, for example, I think it might be ok. I'll give it a try later and report back.

Does the veneer look like mahogany, though? (not a big deal; just curious)

[Mark J]

I would sy that it is mahogany.