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A dark-brown secondhand TV unit became a light, beach-house-style cabinet through three coordinated changes: the timber was sanded and given a softened stain, the glass door panels were replaced with natural rattan, and plain 16 mm dowel became the new hardware. Kylie Baldwin documented the makeover in a Better Homes and Gardens Australia feature published on June 10, 2021. Her reported total was $130 for the project at that time.
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The finish is not the only reason the result looks coastal. Smooth, warm wood, open woven texture and simple cylindrical handles each solve a different visual problem in the original piece. The preparation, particularly the sanding, is the labor that makes the rest of the transformation look deliberate rather than improvised.
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What changed between the before and after
Baldwin found the old-fashioned dark-brown unit on Marketplace and saw a shape that could suit her beach-influenced home. Instead of covering the cabinet in opaque paint, she kept a timber-led look and changed its character with a lighter, warmer finish. The doors gained natural rattan in place of their glass panels, and the original handles were replaced with matching dowel pulls.
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That combination creates contrast without introducing a long list of colors: the stained timber supplies warmth, the rattan adds a pale, tactile surface, and the round dowel handles repeat the natural-material theme. If you are planning a similar project, the important lesson is to treat finish, texture and hardware as one design decision rather than three unrelated updates.
What the $130 budget covered
The $130 figure is Baldwin’s reported total for this particular project, published in Australia in 2021. It is a historical project cost, not a current estimate or a price comparison. The TV unit came from Marketplace, the rattan came from Cane and Wood Emporium, and Baldwin said she bought everything else from Bunnings. The feature does not give an itemized breakdown, so the total cannot be used to infer what each component cost or what the same materials cost today.
Prices, stock and sheet sizes will vary by location and date. Use the figure as context for the scale of her makeover, then price your own cabinet, rattan, stain, clear finish, sandpaper, dowel and fasteners locally.
Materials and tools for the documented approach
| Item | How it was used in Baldwin’s project |
|---|---|
| Warm water and sugar soap | Thorough cleaning before sanding, to remove old oil and dust grit. |
| Orbital sander | Initial and intermediate sanding on broad, accessible surfaces. |
| Sandpaper in a progression of grits | Started at 80 grit, then moved through finer grits; fine paper was also used between stain coats. |
| Cabot’s water-based stain in Brazilian Roast | Mixed with Cabot’s water-based Cabothane Clear Satin to dilute the stain to the desired color. |
| Cabothane Clear Satin | Included in the stain mixture and applied again as the final protective sealer. |
| Natural rattan | Stained with the same mixture, fitted while damp and stapled to the door frames after the glass was removed. |
| Staple gun | Secured the fitted rattan on the back of the door frames. |
| 16 mm dowel, screws and glue | Dowel was cut to length and installed as new handles with screws and glue. |
The feature identifies an orbital sander but does not identify a model. If you search for a “random orbital sander for furniture,” choose a tool that suits the surfaces you have; the documented process still required hand sanding wherever the machine could not reach.
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How to reproduce the makeover, step by step
1. Clean before you abrade the finish
Start with warm water and sugar soap. Baldwin cleaned the unit thoroughly to remove old oil and dust grit before sanding. This first pass matters because sanding over a greasy or gritty surface can spread contamination across the timber and load the abrasive. Work over the whole cabinet, including door frames and edges, so the later finish is not being applied over different levels of residue.
2. Begin sanding at 80 grit
Baldwin used an orbital sander and began with 80-grit paper. The purpose of this stage was to take back the existing surface and establish a consistent base. Keep the sander moving over broad panels rather than dwelling in one spot, then progress to finer grits toward a smooth finish. The article does not specify a complete grit schedule, so the documented instruction is the progression itself: start at 80 grit and move finer as the surface improves.
3. Hand-sand the places the machine misses
Recesses, inside corners, narrow rails and areas close to edges often cannot be reached cleanly with an orbital tool. Baldwin hand-sanded those sections using the same progression of grits. This is also where the project time accumulates. Her description captures the reality: It was a lot of sanding and hand sanding, which required patience and it was also my first time using natural rattan.
The quote is from Baldwin in Olivia Hart’s Better Homes and Gardens Australia feature, published June 10, 2021.
4. Mix a softer stain color
Rather than applying Brazilian Roast stain at full strength, Baldwin mixed Cabot’s water-based stain with Cabot’s water-based Cabothane Clear Satin. The clear finish diluted the dark stain to the color she wanted. Mix only enough for the work you can use consistently, and keep the ratio you settle on recorded so later coats match. The account establishes her chosen materials and approach, but it does not prescribe a universal ratio for every species of timber or every cabinet.
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5. Apply three even coats
She applied the diluted mixture in even, long strokes for three coats. Each coat was allowed to dry before she hand-sanded with fine-grit paper and continued. The fine sanding between coats helps keep the surface smooth while the color builds gradually. Follow the drying and recoating directions for the exact products you buy; Baldwin’s account gives the sequence and number of coats, not a general drying-time rule.
6. Seal the entire cabinet
After the stained coats, Baldwin sealed the full piece with Cabothane Clear Satin for additional protection. Covering the whole unit keeps the sheen consistent across the top, sides, doors and smaller components. A final clear layer is especially relevant on a TV cabinet, where the top and door fronts are handled and wiped more often than a purely decorative surface.
7. Replace the glass with damp-fitted rattan
She removed the glass panels from the doors, then stained the natural rattan with the same stain-and-clear mixture used on the timber. For this project, Baldwin soaked the rattan for approximately 30 minutes before fitting it. She fitted it while damp and secured it with a staple gun. That is her reported method for this material, not a universal instruction for every cane or rattan product; follow the handling guidance supplied with the webbing you purchase.
Install the material from the back of each door frame so the front presents a clean woven panel. Keep the pattern aligned as you work, because a small skew becomes noticeable when two doors sit beside each other. The feature describes the rattan being stapled in place but does not specify staple size or spacing, so those details need to be matched to your frame and the material’s own requirements.
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8. Make and fit the dowel handles
Baldwin used long pieces of 16 mm dowel, cut them to size, and fitted them with screws and glue. Measure both doors before cutting so the handles share a consistent length and position. The round profile is intentionally simple: it echoes the natural rattan and avoids adding a shiny or ornate metal element that would compete with the woven panels.
Why the preparation determines the finish
Stain is unforgiving of an inconsistent base. A dark patch that remains after cleaning, a swirl left by coarse sanding or an edge that has been sanded more aggressively can change how the color is absorbed. Baldwin’s sequence—clean, sand with the machine, hand-sand the inaccessible areas, then move through finer grits—puts surface consistency ahead of speed.
The choice to dilute the stain also makes preparation more visible. A softer color leaves more of the timber character on show, so scratches and uneven transitions are not hidden under a solid paint film. The clear satin in the mixture and the later full-piece seal were part of the finish system she selected; they should not be treated as interchangeable steps with an untested product combination.
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Design decisions to make before you start
The documented makeover follows one stained-wood-and-rattan route. You can plan your own version by deciding how much of that route you want to retain before buying materials.
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| Decision | What the documented project does | Planning question for your cabinet |
|---|---|---|
| Overall finish | Keeps a timber look with a diluted dark stain and satin clear coat. | Do you want visible wood character, or would an opaque painted surface better suit damaged or mismatched panels? |
| Woven material | Replaces the door glass with natural rattan across the existing openings. | Will you cover every door, or use rattan on one section as an accent? |
| Hardware | Uses matching 16 mm dowel handles fixed with screws and glue. | Can your door thickness and frame accept the handle fixing without interfering with the opening? |
| Secondhand base | Starts with a Marketplace TV unit chosen for its potential in a beach-influenced room. | Are the cabinet’s proportions, door frames and internal storage useful before you invest in refinishing? |
These are planning choices, not results from a comparative test. The feature reports one completed design and does not measure a painted alternative, a different woven material or another handle style.
Common trouble spots and practical checks
- The surface still feels greasy after cleaning: repeat the warm-water-and-sugar-soap cleaning before sanding rather than burying residue under the finish.
- Color looks uneven after sanding: inspect broad panels and hand-sanded edges for leftover old finish or visible sanding marks, then continue through finer grits until the surface is consistently smooth.
- The stain is darker than intended: Baldwin reduced the intensity by mixing the Brazilian Roast stain with Cabothane Clear Satin. Test your chosen mixture on an inconspicuous area or a scrap from the same project before committing to the cabinet.
- Rattan does not sit neatly in the opening: Baldwin fitted her natural rattan while damp after an approximately 30-minute soak. Check the product’s own instructions before using that method on another type of webbing.
- Handle placement looks inconsistent: mark the same reference points on both doors before cutting or drilling, and compare the handles side by side before final fixing.
- You expect the orbital sander to do every surface: plan for hand sanding in corners, recesses and narrow frames. The maker specifically reported that this additional work was necessary.
A realistic sequence for scheduling the work
- Choose a sound secondhand unit and remove the doors or hardware needed to reach every surface.
- Clean the cabinet with warm water and sugar soap.
- Sand broad areas with an orbital sander, beginning at 80 grit, then hand-sand inaccessible areas through the same progression.
- Prepare the diluted stain-and-clear mixture and test the color on a hidden area.
- Apply three even, long-stroke coats, hand-sanding between dry coats with fine paper.
- Seal the full cabinet with Cabothane Clear Satin.
- Remove the glass, prepare and stain the rattan, then fit it while damp and staple it to the door frames.
- Cut 16 mm dowel to matching lengths and install the handles with screws and glue.
Keeping the sanding, finishing, door work and handle work as separate stages makes it easier to inspect each surface before the next material covers it. It also prevents a rushed hardware decision from dictating the finish.
What this makeover account establishes—and what it does not
Olivia Hart’s June 10, 2021 Better Homes and Gardens Australia feature is a maker interview and project account. It establishes Baldwin’s materials, sequence, reported $130 total and her experience of the labor. It is not independent testing of sanders, stains, clear finishes or rattan, and it does not provide current retailer availability, a product model, an itemized budget or measured comparisons with painted cabinets.
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That limited scope does not make the project less useful. It gives a reproducible design logic: prepare the timber carefully, soften the stain to preserve a lighter coastal feel, introduce woven texture where the glass was, and repeat the natural material in simple hardware. Your final cost and exact product behavior will depend on the unit, timber, rattan and products available to you.
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