Restoring a Steamer Trunk

RE: Restoring a Steamer Trunk that was in a flood Post By Greg Becker (Guest Post) (07/01/2008) My aunt gave a metal steamer trunk that was in the flood, its rusted. How do I go about restoring the outside to somewhat original condition? How do I remove the rust and do I prime it? Should I remove the hardware that looks brass or brass colored? Any help would be great. Report Spam or Abuse RE: Restoring a Steamer Trunk Post By Debbie (Guest Post) (09/07/2006) I cleaned out the inside of the trunk. I then lined it with ceder chipboard. I am making a crochet table cloth to store in it and giving it to my son as a wedding present. Report Spam or Abuse RE: Restoring a Steamer Trunk Post By Lynn (Guest Post) (08/19/2005) I did this project twice for extra storage that looks nice. It cost me about $6 total for the materials, plus the trunks. Those I got at a thrift shop for about $15 each. First peel off all the old paper from the inside, then scrub with a mild bleach and water solution. Let dry really well in the sun if possible. Get a can of a spray primer like Kilz that will kill any remaining mildew and seal it. Then you could paint the inside, or I used a roll of clearance wallpaper from the Dollar Store to cover the inside. You can clean and paint the outside too. I mixed just a little gold craft paint with some black, and blotted it onto the outside. This gave it a brownish leather look. Then I painted the metal hardware gold, and when it was dry, used black shoe polish to give it an "antique" look. Have fun! Report Spam or Abuse