Dearest design sponge,
I found these two pieces of furniture on craigslist for $300! Between my sister (interior designer) and I (art director) we knew we could make them into fabulous contemporary pieces. It was a challenge to figure out and we thought you and your readers might find there to be some useful information. I attached the photos of the phases with more details. We are huge fans of your blog! Thanks. (for those of you not familiar http://www.designspongeonline.com/)
Phase #1: I found a posting on craigslist for redwood driftwood table. All I wanted was the table, but the guy threw in the chair for an extra $25! He told me that the table and chair were from a factory in northern California and were purchased by his parents in the early 70's. (The guy actually busted out Christmas photos of himself as a baby on the table) They were in really good condition, but were completely yellow from that awful shellac that people used to use in the 70's!
Phase #2: I found a local artist here in Portland, OR who did metal sandblasting. He sandblasted both pieces for $150.
Phase #3: At this point it was very unclear as to how to proceed because after the sandblasting was done we could tell that the chair was not all redwood. So we attempted a white oak wood stain, which did nothing. Laura suggested that we white wash with a greener toned white, to counter act some of the red in the redwood. So I watered down the paint with a 3/4, 1/4 ratio and painted everything. Once it was dry, we rented a hand sander with a 120 sandpaper and very careful took off portions. Lastly, used a low-luster water based acrylic from benjamin moore. Gave it the final touch, that really pulled out portions of the wood.The finished product we are so happy with... literally it took 20 years off these pieces! With materials in all, we spent $800. Not bad for 2 new pieces of furniture that will last us another 20 years. 
Thanks and all the best. Heather and Laura Gray
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