Old chest of drawers

G'day from the Uk.

I've lurked long enough and there doesn't seem to be a forum to match this one anywhere else.

Already enjoyed reading about some of the projects people have done, I've no experience and its all interesting stuff to me. Have invested in an orbital sander after seeing them mentioned so much (are they given out free at birth over there? everyone seems to have one).

I'm working on an old chest of drawers, presuming they're pine, nitromors, sandpaper and the orbital have got me so far just not sure how to approach finishing them and looking for a little advice. There are a few white patches still visible, paint or old filler I think, just wondering if staining the wood would be the way to tackle them rather than digging holes to get an even finish. My other query is whether I should wax, oil or varnish the exterior, I've rubbed a little boiled linseed oil on the side of one of the drawers and its come up quite well, planning to use it on all the interior surfaces. Thanks for your time, regards Liam.

Looks like Baltic Pine to me, it would finish up nicely with a couple of coats of shellac. I'd leave the few white spots too, let it show a bit of character. Do you have any original style knobs for the drawers?

Hi and welcome to the forum. The white patches would probably show through the stain. Pine has a habit of absorbing filler and stains pretty badly causing patches that are difficult to remove. I think you would probably have to sand it right back to get rid of the white patches. However I would definitely apply a couple of coats of shellac and see how it goes. Good luck with it.