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In this post check out how I took this old discarded sewing machine cabinet and repurposed it into a bar cart! Yes, this old furniture piece was found curbside ready for the trash. You know what they say! “one’s person’s trash is another one’s treasure.” So come along and check out this amazing sewing machine cabinet repurposed into a bar cart.
Table of Contents
Prepping the sewing cabinet
Before I do anything with this piece, I removed the old non working sewing machine. Once this was removed I took a washcloth and warm soapy water and cleaned the entire piece…twice!
All amazing furniture redos start with a clean foundation. Always clean your piece first. Read about the importance of this in my How to Refinish A Secretary desk post.
Supplies for the sewing machine cabinet repurposed project
Below are all the supplies and materials I used in repurposing this sewing machine cabinet
- Klean Strip Premium Stripper
- paint spackle knife
- BLACK+DECKER Sander
- Sanding Pads for Black and Decker Mouse
- 220 soft grit sanding block
- Bar Keepers Friend Cleanser – used to clean hardware
- Minwax polycrylic– clear matte finish
- Sponge brushes– Package will give you multiple sizes
- Purdy brushes 1.5″ and 2″
- Fusion Mineral paint– I used the color, Champlain for this project
- Gold metallic paint
- felt pads for furniture legs
- Bottle opener
Prepping wood on Sewing Machine Cabinet Redo
Below are the steps I took on preparing the wood that will be exposed on my sewing machine cabinet.
- Take off any hardware put in a bag for safe keeping. This hardware once cleaned was perfect to reuse.
- Use furniture stripper and follow instructions! As you can see the surface was damaged. By removing the old finish it was like having a new piece of wood.
- Scrape all old varnish off with spackle knife. Do this in the same direction of the wood. Be careful not to damage the wood as you do this process.
- After wood is stripped, use sander with an 80 grit to remove any remaining stain or finish. The stripper will not remove everything. So the sander will complete the job.
- Take a 220 grit block and smooth out any rough areas. By using a lighter grit this will remove any roughness to the wood surface.
- On this project I decided to bleach the wood once I removed all the old varnish
- For steps on bleaching go to How to Refinish A Secretary desk post for bleaching steps
- Once lightly sanded, I use Minwax polycrylic to seal my wood.
Design for sewing machine cabinet
Once I have stripped the wood that I would like to use. It is time to decide on my design. I am going with a natural wood, off white paint and rose gold accents.
- Prime all wood that will be painted. This way it is ready to go.
- I am using Fusion Mineral paint which says you do not need to do this. However because it is a dark wood and I am painting a light color I will add this process. Primer will block any wood tannins that may bleed through to your paint, and you do not want this to happen!
- Place painters tape in desired layout
- Apply two coats of paint on desired areas.One first coat is dry, apply the second.
- Remove painters tape, once fully dry I retaped the lines for the metallic paint accents.
- Paint metallic accents, I did two coats of this and using
- Reusing old hard ware, after a good cleaning with Barkeep my old hardware surprised us with this beautiful rose gold finish. My metallic paint accent was determined by this!
- Once all paint is dry seal with Minwax Polyacrylic to help protect paint and metallic trim.
- Again Fusion Mineral paint doesn’t require this, however because I used a different metallic paint, this needed to be sealed. The polyacrylic then will give the whole table a unified look.
- Add wine rack & Bottle opener
- Glue down felt tabs at bottom of legs
- Add all your favorite bottles and accessories
- Enjoy your new sewing machine bar cabinet!
Accessories for sewing machine bar cabinet
See all the fun accessories for this sewing machine turn bar cart!
- Wine Opener- Corkscrew- rose gold– keeping to a theme!
- Cocktail Shaker Set 16 Pcs Mixology Bartender Kit – Great kit for any cocktail making.
- Truro Wine Glasses– This comes in a set of two.
- New Vintage Double Old-Fashioned Glasses– Can be used for multiple cocktails
- Agate Coaster– Because you want to protect your new wood surface
- Patterned Cocktail Napkins with Acrylic Holder, so you can refill once done.
- Wyatt Ice Bucket and Tongs– Keep ice handy on your bar.
- Tamsin Decanter– Stylish way to open up a bottle of red wine.
- Glass Straw – Set of 6– Love a reusable option!
Final sewing table turned bar cart results!
Loved how this came out! The mix of wood, paint, and metallic worked so well together for a beautiful sophisticated look!
I added a wine rack on bottom shelf. This can easily store additional glasses when not use. Great for storage! Also will be adding a bottle opener to the side. This is an easy process. Again buying a metal wall mounted bottle opener and screwing it into the side of the cabinet. Lastly I will be adding a pop of color to this sewing cabinet repurposed into a bar cart by adding peel and stick wallpaper to the inside of the door shown. Stay tuned! When I do this I will update this post!
Additional products for this bar cart
- Wine rack– First Measure your surface to make sure it fits.
- Wall mounted bottle opener– Comes in a few finishes, check which one works for you.
- Peel and stick wallpaper– This is the one we chose. However there is a ton of choices!
Bar Carts for the non DIY’ers!
Not all of us have a sewing machine cabinet laying around for a redo. So I always try and add some fun alternatives that fit the look of what I am working on! Happy Shopping!
Related Posts
Enjoy what you have just read? check out some related posts, or go to my home page at, Double Arrow Designs for a ton of fun posts
Let me know if this post was helpful! Leave comments below.
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