Thursday, August 22, 2013

{Wood & White Dresser Makeover}

Hey, y'all!  I have been very busy for about a week now since school started back.  I haven't had the chance to be my normal crafty self, so I don't have any awesome projects in the works right now.  I do have a project to share that you haven't seen yet.  A while back, I bought a dresser from my local Habitat Restore.
As you can see, I paid $50 for this old gal.  Because I could tell the dresser was older and had dovetailed drawer joints, I figured it was worth the $50.  I had been seeing wood tone and white dressers around the web, and I knew this dresser would be perfect for that treatment.  (I did the combo on my Sad to Fab Table Makeover, and I've wanted to do it again ever since.)  I started by stripping the drawers.
I used Citristrip for the first time on this project, and it was like unwrapping a present when I scraped the paint off and saw the beautiful wood underneath!
Of course after I stripped the drawers, I gave them a good sanding.  I then stained them with a dark stain and sealed with with a few coats of Polycrylic.  Next I had to work on the body of the dresser that had a few more problems that I originally realized.  You see, I see old furniture through my makeover-maven rose-colored safety glasses, and I don't always take the time to notice problems.  That happened with this dresser.
The top layer of wood--I guess you'd call it the veneer even though this piece is wood--was missing in places.  I thought I could just patch those places, but upon closer inspection, I realized that the veneer was loose in quite a few places.  My dad and I decided the best thing to do would be to peel all the veneer off the top.
We replaced the veneer with a thin sheet of plywood and then I sanded the entire body of the dresser.  I sprayed it with a coat of Kilz primer and a few coats of white Krylon spray paint.  The last step of the makeover was to find new hardware for the drawers.
I posted this pic on Instagram (@PitterandGlink) when I was trying to decide which handles to buy.  I ended up buying both, but I decided to use the mercury glass ones on this dresser.  I think they were the perfect finishing touch.
I am in LOVE with the dark wood paired with the crisp white paint!
I want to makeover every piece of furniture now with a dark wood and white finish, but I'm trying to practice self-restraint.
I have actually had this dresser finished for a long time.  I took these final pictures a while back, but I didn't really like them.  Since I haven't had time to do any new projects lately, I decided that I'd just go ahead and use them so I could share this project with you.  I guess Pinterest puts a lot of pressure on bloggers to have "Pinterest perfect" photos, but even though I don't consider these final pics Pinterest perfect, I think they adequately show you just how much different the dresser looks now.  
So I'm curious: what cool furniture finishes have you seen on the web lately that you'd like to try out?  

13 comments:

  1. I am in love with the two tones on here. It looks fantastic. ~ Lisa

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  2. Bethany - this is gorgeous!

    And don't be so hard on yourself. The pictures are fantastic. You did a really nice job, lady!

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  3. wow, LOVE! great job! i love this!

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  4. You are so fabulous! This is amazing - pinning, sharing, tweeting, and drooling over it, too. :)

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  5. So beautiful, your furniture work is incredible! Love the finish! Hope you had a great start to school!

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  6. (Visiting from Tatertots) This came out beautiful I love the two tone. I have an extra dresser in my basement and am now feeling totally inspired! You did a wonderful job :)

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  7. Beautiful! I love the white and natural wood two tone! You are very talented! :)

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  8. Hi, Bethany

    Your piece is stunning. I love the color choice and the knobs as well. Those knobs are my favorite and I always buy them for my pieces. You are amazing. Hope school is going well for you. Have a great week.

    Hugs,

    Vanessa

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  9. I saw this lovely project on Hometalk which led me to your blog. Actually I think I came across your craft space on another blog some time ago, but here I am again. Following via Bloglovin this time. Just wanted to say that this is a marvelous project! I love the two-tone look. I refinished a chest of drawers summer before the past one and loved it. Now I need to do something with the matching dresser in another room. Thanks for the inspiration. I hope you have a fantastic school year. Our students come back after Labor Day for the first time ever!

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  10. Bethany,it came out beautiful! I have never used the Citristrip. I have a project waiting for me (for the last 5 months to be exact) that needs to be stripped. I'm going to give this stuff a try.

    Thank you for always stopping by and commenting. I appreciate that. Sometimes I start wondering if anyone is out there. :-)

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  11. What a cute dresser (but to be honest, the before was also kinda cute in a shabby chic fashion)! Never heard of Citristrip, though.

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  12. I love it!! awesome contrast with the dark stain and white paint, also great hardware, looks amazing :D.
    I'm your newest follower
    Molly

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  13. Hey! I stumbled across your blog thanks to Pinterest and just had to comment on this make over. It looks great! I love the white with the dark wood tone. =]

    Runt
    runtspickins@yahoo.com
    www.runtspickins.wordpress.com

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Thanks for taking the time out of your busy day to leave an awesome comment! :)