From a pure functionality perspective, I don't really much care for that piece. I'd be worried that the baby might get his head bumped against the raised ledge on the right--either by someone changing baby or later by the baby himself if he tried to sit up or was squirming. In addition to the issues that you brought up regarding the stain, it just does not look like a well designed piece of baby furniture. It looks like a piece where they are trying to make it still be useful after the baby stage. Chances are, however, you will invest in a new set of children's furniture in 2-3 years and may want a different coordinated look so just get a simple changing table that works for the next 1-2 years and assume you will either use it for another baby or get rid of it. BTW, for my 3rd child I did not even use a changing table as I had disposed of the one I had after baby #2 and was not about to spend a few hundred on such a temporary piece of furniture. I just used a good quality pad which I slid under her older sister's bed and more often than not I changed her on the bed with a plastic pad below. Diapers I stored in a cloth diaper stacker.

GCSciencechick, the Empire period was around 1815-1840. That means that Empire furniture is coming up on 200 years old now. As said, an Empire renaissance is coming, with appreciation for itincreasing dramatically--along with its price. If only I'd liked Empire more, I'd have been collecting it for decades as for most of my life it's been the only genuinely antique, fine quality furniture I can afford good pieces of. That said, yours is in poor condition, which will probably severely limit its price and restoration appeal for another few decades--until the good-condition stuff becomes prohibitively expensive for most people. AND you don't like it. Someone may have suggested this, but if you don't pass it on to someone who does want it, you might consider applying a coat of something removable to protect what is left of the original finish and the wood, then go ahead and fill and paint over that. Turning that homely, beat-up old thing into something that would be appreciated and cared for over these coming decades is not the worst thing that could happen to it by far.

We are currently under contract for full asking price (all cash) after 4 days of showings and two offers, so I (smugly) feel qualified to answer this question. This is our third time selling and the second time with a quick sell in a buyer's market. Here's what we did: Interviewed three real estate agents. They all came up with the same selling price, so we chose a flat fee agency and are saving $12,000 in commissions. This agent was very good, took professional pictures, wrote the listing, posted to MLS, dealt with contract negotiations, the whole shebang minus open houses which we didn't want anyway. Super happy with this company. I did research the agent on Realtor.com before choosing him. Took our agent's advice on pricing. We were not in a hurry to sell, looked at the comps, and agreed that our agent had us solidly in the middle of what we could reasonably expect to sell our house for. Through the 9 years we have owned the house, we have updated everything, including having our very small Florida yard professionally landscaped. Fixed everything that was broken Cleaned everything Repainted where we couldn't clean the walls or trim adequately Decluttered, put a bunch of stuff in storage Staged the house nicely Put everything personal away for showings The only things on counters were decorative Bowl of green apples on kitchen counter for a pop of color against the granite Hung fresh white towels that we don't use in the bathrooms Used tasteful artificial flower arrangements in most rooms Fresh mulch in garden beds Refreshed flowers in front borders Trimmed hedges and trees Turned on all of the lights before showings House was spotless for showings (we don't normally live this way, but it's worth it to get top dollar for our house and not prolong the painful selling process) Turned on our Sonos to soft jazz music Got ourselves, our cats, and the litter box out of the house for showings Here's what we didn't do: Neutralize all of the colors in the house. We have earthy tones of blue, green, rust, and aqua in our house, but everything is not beige, white, or gray.. Get rid of curtains (I posted several months ago about this, ultimately decided to keep them) Hire a professional stager Set the table with plates Scent the house with anything We met our buyers on Saturday for the home inspection and asked them what made them want the house. They said: Loved the landscaping Looked professionally staged Clean and inviting Didn't need to do anything to the house Looked well taken care of We are super happy with our experience selling this time, love our buyers, and are looking forward to the May 8 closing!

Brutal but honest. Get your deposit back and run! Was in this position and learned the hard way. Don’t build with big box; build custom custom with a local builder who will accommodate all your needs and build a one story only. Two story’s don’t work when “aging in place”. Big box force you into compromised and design choices that don’t work. Skip the paint and lipstick and focus on layout and flow. When building a “forever home” you need quality over quantity. Our one story has larger hallways to accommodate wheel chairs and walkers. We designed around how you move through a space with ease. We have a big shower and no tub cause as you age, tubs are hard to use. Even the front door has literally one step that can accommodate a ramp as to when or if we get there it can be done. Every bathroom has storage and storage is essential. Bonus space is useless. Only put rooms in the house you will use. Formal anything is garbage and waste to heat and cool. These are all subject to preference but these are lessons learned.