Singer Cabinet No. 40 project

My weekend project is this little sewing table that I picked up last weekend just before we went camping for a few days. It's one of those things that I didn't know existed until recently but turns out is a perfect design for our small living/dining/studio/crafts room. When I did some research I discovered it's the 1940s No. 40 Singer cabinet, designed for machines such as the lovely Singer 15-91 sewing machine which is what is tucked in there right now.

The great thing about the design is that the two leaves open and the sewing machine is lifted up and settled in the top. Then you have the two leaves as extra table space while you work. But when it's shut up it's quite small. The front panel is a funny drawer that is hinged at the bottom only and has small compartments inside.
It also has a matching bench that tucks underneath. The bench has a lid that lifts up with storage underneath for sewing accessories.

Also the style is similar to other furniture we've collected for the room, a 1940s side table, an Edwardian cabinet (to be shown later) and a Duncan Phyfe dining table. It's also mahogany which matches the cabinet. All craigslist finds! In this case it's going to be a labour of love because as you can see the finish is in very bad shape. It's mainly the top, the rest seems to be in quite good condition. The good news is that it's basically the varnish that has scraped off but underneath the wood is fine. So I've been working on refinishing that and I can show you my progress in the next couple of posts...