Let me introduce you to some of my friends: the detail sander, the palm sander (my BFF), and the orbital sander. They hang out with me in the driveway on nice weather days. They help me turn ho-hum into beautiful, but they tend to turn me into...a sawdust snow-woman.
Quite a few items that make it into the store need attention from my special friends. Before we take furniture to George, our painter, we use the orbital sander, with some 100-250 grit sandpaper to get that shiny finish off. Mr. Orbital is a speedy fella, and quite heavy. He can make a big gouge in a piece of furniture, if I don't control him. George tells me I am a little too eager with Mr. Orbital sometimes. Once I see that finish coming off, I tend to want to take it all off, even though I only need to scratch it up a little bit.
My BFF is my palm sander. I do love furniture that already has a long history of paint layers. When I can get my palm sander buzzing with a nice 100 grit paper, and reveal all those beautiful colors, it's a downright adventure for me! See that cutie cupboard in the front? Got it at a church sale for cheap in it's nun-like brown paint. I guessed it was a spice cupboard. Little did I know it was a spice-y cupboard! As I was sanding to show a little of the white around the edges, I started seeing a leg! My interest was peaked...what was that ho-hum brown paint covering? I kept sanding away, chuckling as I went. There was a whole bevy of beauties hiding on this spice-y cupboard: a blonde, a brunette, and a redhead! I thought, "Oh, if only the pin-up girls in our age were as prudent as these!"
Isn't she cute? I had so much fun sanding this one. I just have fun sanding...call me crazy. The different color paints on a piece of furniture are like different stages in it's life. Some were better than others...
Kind of like our lives. Relationships, experiences, traumas. They all impact our lives. Some stages aren't that great, but seen later, through the hues of better times, the beauty can be seen. The bad details, in retrospect, bring wholeness.
My last little friend is my detail sander. A cute little triangle...it can get where the big guys just can't go. Around those irritating spindles on chairs (that I really love, except when I'm trying to sand them), in those tight corners, or reaching into something that no one else will fit in. It makes a buzzing sound like fillings at the dentist. I don't use it that often, but when I need it, I'm glad to have it in the arsenal.
How do I know when a piece is done? Definitely by looking at it and seeing if the right balance of colors is portrayed, but lastly by the "touch" test. A piece of furniture can look good "from the road", but I like it as smooth as a baby's bottom! I run my hands over the edges and the corners to test for splinters or scratches. Potters use their hands to perfect their creations in much the same way. Only the Creator knows when His Creation is ready to be used for His purposes. ;)
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