How to DIY Restore a Vintage Wood Cheese Box

These two vintage cheeseboxes were at our small-town thrift store.  They had been donated full of beeswax candles, so they smelled amazing.  Because of the smell and the floral applique on top, the store thought they were hat boxes. The restoration of these old cheeseboxes is different from my usual style.  Instead of painting them white, I thought I’d restain them to bring out their original vintage look. 

These cheeseboxes had already been updated with stain, wallpaper flowers, and glued-on lace around the sides. Because of the stickers I have to forget about the built-up patina on the old boxes and try my best to get those stickers off without harming the wood or the finish.  The first step is to get the cheese boxes clean inside and out.

Heat gun

paint scraper

steel wool

dark walnut stain

varethane

Step 1 – Remove Stickers

The hardest part of removing the old stickers is the rough surface of the cheesebox wood.  The tops of each cheese box are made with wood slats and some of the slats are quite rough.  There are several ways to remove stickers, mineral spirits, and WD40. Sometimes placing a vinegar-saturated paper towel will remove modern stickers but these stickers looked quite thick and old, almost like wallpaper so I decided to remove them carefully using a heating gun, paint scraper, and fine steel wool.  

I always wear a mask while using a heat gun, in a well-ventilated area, and NEVER wear plastic-coated gloves of any type.  

The colorful fabric top comes off right away as expected, but leaves a thick layer of paper-covered adhesive.  I removed it carefully with the heating gun, and gentle persistence with a paint scraper. I never turned the gun off, but faced it away from me on a block of wood to avoid fires.  I found it easier to heat the glue, put the heat gun down safely, scrape at the adhesive gently with the paint scraper, and repeat with the heat gun.  It took a couple of hours to get all the stickers off.

Once the stickers were removed I “sanded” the surface with steel wool to get any residue.

Step 2 – Clean Well

Once the stickers are the next step is to give them a good cleaning with either mineral spirits or Murphy’s oil soap.  The outside of the box is stained, as is part of the inside, but nothing was dirty.  The thrift store clerk told me the boxes had been donated full of handmade beeswax candles, so they smelled very nice. The outside had dust, but the inside was quite clean.  I chose to use Murphy’s oil soap in warm water, because it’s milder, and a clean cloth to give them a thorough scrubbing, but I did not immerse them in the water.  Then I let them air dry.

Step 3 – Repairs

These cheeseboxes are quite old, as the wood was dry and it has lots of layers of worn in patina, especially along the sides of the lids. Considering their age they were in very good shape and required minimal repairs. I applied wood glue to the seams on two of the boxes and clamped them before letting them dry overnight. I also checked and gently hammered any loose nails back into place.

Step 4 – Refinish with Stain and Polyacrylic

I tried different oil stains I had on hand, one went grey when I applied it, and the second one was too light,  I ended up using Minwax Dark Walnut stain, which worked perfectly. The inside of the box was originally stained halfway down, the bottom was the bare wood.  The dark walnut stain matched the previous stain exactly.

Stain the cheesebox using a sponge brush, put it on in the direction of the grain, let it sit for a couple of minutes, and wipe it off with a soft cloth.  I stained all the surfaces, giving the old wood two coats of stain.

 

Once dry I used acrylic Minwax Polycrylic to seal the cheeseboxes using a paint brush. The can of polyacrylic says it dries clear but it goes on a little bit white.  To ensure it dried clear I spread the poly until it was thin and clear.  If your cheesebox has rough patches like mine keep an eye out for white poly in those areas, and work it out by dabbing with a dry paintbrush.  Once there are no definite white areas, set it aside to dry.

Step-by-Step Video Tutorial

If you want to watch the entire process I have created a video tutorial as well.

Step 5 – Decorating

The plan was to add a decorative ribbon and garland to the top of the small cheesebox and place them stacked on top of my Hoosier cabinet. But the large cheesebox didn’t fit flat on top of the cabinet.  So I left the cheesebox plain and displayed it on its side with a small fabric flower wreath. I had to whip together the flower and wreath as well, so I will share how to in a day or two.

I love how they turned out, I plan to use the small one to hold some pumpkins for Fall. It’s no wonder thrift stores can be dangerously addictive. Hope you like this little project. Leanna.

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