Remember I gave you a sneak peek at the dressers we finally found on Kijiji – their sizes, detailing & quality were absolutely perfect.
With the exception of the boards between the drawers, they are solid maple & I have several pulled muscles that are very angry about their weight.
Here’s the requisite ‘Befores’…..
The first thing they needed was legs….adding legs adds height of course, but they also change the whole look of a piece significantly.
Like Spanx – one small thing makes a world of difference.
Readily available furniture legs tend to be spindly – these dressers needed sturdier & more hefty legs. They needed cankles. Also, furniture legs are about $12 each. We found fence post caps that were the perfect height and visual weight for $4 each.
Here’s how we added our ‘legs’:
The Mister cut a block from a 4×4 that was the height of the inset underneath the dresser, and screwed it in from the sides and the bottom. The post caps come with a screw in them, so all that was required was a hole drilled into the block.
All worth it because those are some pretty fantastic cankles, yo.
I gave the dressers a light sanding with a palm sander, just to get the gloss off the finish, & filled the old hardware holes with wood filler. Everything (except the top) was given a coat of Zinsser Cover Stain Spray Primer. Once dry, I applied 2 coats of Sherwin Williams ProClassic paint in CC-30 Oxford White. I love this paint on wood because it’s very durable and it applies & levels very smoothly. I used a small foam roller for the flat fronts of the interior drawers, but did everything else with a brush.
We chose to re-finish the tops instead of painting them. Once they were completely sanded down (sand with medium grit, then fine grit – you want them smooth like buttah), I stained them with watered down latex Minwax Antique Walnut stain. I wanted the tops to have a soft, worn finish with variations in shade. After 2 coats of stain, I dry brushed watered down white latex paint. Then 2 more coats of stain.
Just futzing really – some of this, some of that, until it had the look I was after.
Next came the distressing. There was resistance in the camp (read: from The Mister) about this step; and I must admit, it is a bit daunting to painstakingly achieve a perfect finish and then attack it with sand paper. But I did.
I did not want a heavily distressed finish – more a time worn, well loved look. I sanded back some edges, and the high points of the carved detail, and applied & wiped off stain to the revealed wood.
Then I rubbed white paint on top of that – resulting in an “old” looking scuff.
Here’s some close ups:
Each piece has interior drawers behind the door(s) – I lightly stencilled on our monograms for special touch. Of course, we also added glass knobs.
Once everything was done, I finished the tops with 2 coats Minwax Antique Wood Oil Finish – this offers some protection, and it also gives the wood a hand rubbed soft finish.
We are so thrilled that they are finally freaking done with how they turned out, and now the NightStands are in good company.
This was not at all a difficult project, it just requires patience and the capacity to live in complete chaos; I possess neither.
But here we are, all done, and they’re magnif.
Next steps for the completely unnecessary Master bedroom Re-Do:
- Coffee table turned upholstered bench
- Re-Upholster headboard
- A very creative wall shelf incorporating a wall mounted TV
- Sew drapes & toss cushions (I am borderline thumb sucking fetal position just thinking about this; I still haven’t even opened the Sewing Machine).
Of course you’ll want to stay tuned on this just to monitor my well being, right?
Yes, you will. Firm embrace.
If you’re planning to re-decorate, re-design, or renovate, contact me to help you create the extraordinary. Fall in love with your home again.
MyUncommonSliceofSuburbia; remodelaholic; Addicted2Decorating
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