In the Workshop 1 – My Hand Painted Furniture Roscommon
This article is part of a weekly feature from the blog of My Hand Painted Furniture Roscommon Traditional painter for Ireland, Adam Bermingham.
I am going to write this type of post to let you all know what’s been going on in the workshop during the week, the pieces I’m working on and what stage they are at, the equipment I use and some of the processes the furniture goes through, including useful hints and tips. I hope you will have the confidence to try out some of these things for yourself, but if not, you can always contact me for advice or failing that, a free quotation.
Exotic wood coffee table
This piece, bought at a car boot sale in Carrick-on-Shannon, Ireland, is taking a bit longer than it should have, but by the way its starting to look, I think it’s going to be worth it.
I would imagine it was made in a Far Eastern country, maybe Bali or maybe India. The exotic hardwood has been designed in a western style for export. The pictures below show some of the stages that this table has gone through already.
One shows the top with linseed oil applied to the left half, and the other shows the body of the table with Zinsser Bullseye primer applied.


Pair of painted bar stools
Not exactly a pair in this picture, but they soon will be. I Picked these up for a great price at an indoor market in Longford, Ireland.
After a good sanding, the legs will get 2 coats of Zinsser Bullseye primer, using a *1.5″ Wooster Alpha (shown in the picture below) followed by 2 coats of brilliant white Dulux Eggshell.
I’m a big fan of Crown Liquid Satin, but in this case the extra shine of the Dulux, I think, is more in keeping with the style.
As you can see, the seats themselves are all but finished, they just need a polish. They got 1 coat of Sadolin Classic Mahogany stain applied with a Hamilton Perfection 2″ brush. If you visit the Sadolin website, it will say that Classic is an exterior stain, but for me it’s the best wood-stain both inside and out. Tune in next week the see the finished product.
Painted oak veneered chest of drawers
Lastly this week is an oak veneered chest of drawers, also from the the indoor market in Longford. This caught my eye from a good distance away, and I was expecting it to be too expensive for my margin, but I found a number of pieces at the stall and managed to get a good price. The grain, I think is fantastic, matching on all the drawers.
Again, 2 coats of Zinsser Bullseye primer on the body, as you can see in the pictures below after 1 coat. It will then get 2 coats of a satin/eggshell paint.
The top and the drawers will get 1 coat of Sadolin Classic Walnut Stain followed by linseed oil wiped on with a cloth. They will then get 2 coats of natural bee’s wax, I use Colron Finishing Wax
Thank you for reading and sign up for RSS or email alerts for updates to this blog. Each week there will be an “In the Workshop” post like this one, so bookmark www.myhandpaintedfurniture.com and be the first to see these pieces, and many others, when they are finished and ready for sale.
Many thanks, Adam. Happy Painting.

Joseph & Son is Adam & Tom Bermingham, a father & son team with diverse backgrounds covering specialist painting and decorating, antiques and interior design.
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