It's not very often you score a "white whale" on Craigslist - or in my case, a teak whale:

I think I got lucky because the listing (written by an interesting Russian man as I found out at pick-up) was titled "Drawers." Any furniture flipper's usual search for dresser would have ruled it out - so luck was on my side!

Upon closer inspection I found out the full good news and bad news. The bad news: there was some serious damage on the base - mysterious splatter stains and what appeared to be some water damage. But here was the good news: it was certifiably a true Danish Mid-Century Modern piece.

Very exciting! Once he was home, the repair-sleuthing began. I had to figure out how to treat the mystery splatter and how to repair any wood rot. I tried stripping the finish to see if that would get the splotchy stains off - no such luck. I tried carving out the bubbled and soft wood on the base so I could correct it with wood filler. Futile. And as I chipped away at the damage, I began to realize from the stench it was not water damage I was dealing with at all. It was dog urine! YUCK!!! Now what?! Who would want to buy a dresser that's already been claimed by some pooch's bottomless bladder?!

Not gonna lie - I panicked a little. I lay it down on it's back to put some desperate elbow grease in it. After trying a few more things (to no avail) and pacing around the garage for a while, I noticed the affected area seemed to be contained to the base and not the drawers. Upon even closer inspection, the rotten "shoe" proved to be removable! I was saved!

I couldn't unscrew that stinky piece of wood fast enough. And go figure, my natural instinct was to replace it with sleek tapered legs. You know me...