Style Burl

Style Burl
Turning Contemporary Oak Curio into Old World look…?

I purchased a large (7′ high,4′ wide, 24″ deep) Polaski brand Curio Cabinet before moving into my new home and changing my decor style. It was very expensive so I want to “convert ” it to my current style.

Details- It is solid, natural light oak. It has aged and gotten darker as oak does over time. It has large stair step like crown molding at the ttop, base and around the sides as well.

I’d like to change the finnish or look to be more of a pecan, burled wood finish like the rest of my Old World style wood furniture.

Any ideas on how to do this? The oak has had lemon oil put on it for conditioning, so would I need to strip it?

I am an interior decorator and do a lot of faux painting buthave no clue how to get a burled wood look OR how to stain/ refinish it to a darker Pecan color?

Help, ideas anyone? Thanks!
The rest of curio is heavy beveled glass front, sides and shelves.

Unless your’e really good at faux finishes & very patient, the best you might do would be to match the color as closely as you can.
Oak & pecan do not have the same grain pattern & adding faux burl to the “grainier” oak might look odd.
For an “old world” look a “distressed” finish might be better
In this case a light bodied stripper that can be easily wiped off is probably best.
Scraping & sanding should be avoided esp on a piece like this.
Rubbing out w/ mediun & fine bronze wool is about as drastic as you need to go.
After stripping clean w/ mineral spirits till you get a clean rag .
Not a big fan of minwax stains , but their fruitwood stain will get the slightly deeper pecan shade & you can also mix in a little minwax olde maple ( or similar) if you need to go darker.
Artists colors work well & you probably know what technique is best to get the burl or distressed look.
Have used watercolor brushes & “spatter” to “distress ” & get the look of wormholes.
Same to fake the look of the smaller burl you would find in pecan.
A tung oil or Danish oil finish is easiest to apply , touch up & will give the warmer “old world” finish you’re looking for.
Also easy to redo if you do not like results.
Best regards

Antique American Victorian Eastlake style burl walnut and