I found this little dresser on Craigslist and picked it up for $20. I figure it will make a good night stand or a good organizer for a craft room. It was a pretty boring piece before and smelled like cigarette smoke.
I started by taking off the knobs and putting a coat of a stripping agent all over the thing. This time I used an orange goo stripping agent that is recommended for indoor use. Last time, for the big dresser, I used a more toxic chemical that could easily knock a person on their butt. The orange agent was a lot more friendly on the nose, as it smelled like oranges and didn't burn the skin as quickly, however it didn't work as well. The harsh chemical would dry quickly so you had to work quickly; but this isn't such a bad thing when you are trying to move on to other steps. The harsher chemical also stripped the varnish off quicker. The orange goo can be left on for up to 24 hours and it will still be wet. This is problematic when you really want to move on to other steps. I tried to wipe off the excess and let it dry so that I could move on to painting the next day but it never dried. If you miss spots it stays wet and your paint won't stick. Also it was a lot messier to clean up. So if you get the harsher chemicals, because they work better, make sure to ventilate your area and get a respirator mask ($5 at Lowe's).
After stripping the varnish with the stripping agent and a scrapper, wiping down with mineral spirits, and letting the piece dry, I hand sanded the rough spots. There were a ton of rough spots and I wasn't able to get it all smooth without getting rid of a lot of the wood. I used a wood putty on the top to fill in a few deeper scratches. The putty didn't seem to go well under the blackboard paint I used.
I used blackboard paint on the top of the little dresser. It comes in spray paint and is really quick and easy to apply. (about $4 at Walmart). I think a blackboard top will be functional because how many times are you in bed at night when you suddenly remember something you forgot to set out, or something you need for tomorrow. Just make yourself a note on your dresser and you will have a reminder without having to get out of bed.
I then painted the drawers and the dresser with a sunny dale green from Valspar. It took about three coats but a sample size paint from Lowe's was sufficient. I then spray painted some old knobs that I had (the old ones from the dresser I refinished). This is really simple. Just get some metallic spray paint.
I decided since this was a cheaper piece I would experiment with some different crafting skills and decided to stencil a design on one of the drawers. I created the stencil using my cricut and home accents cartridge.
I also wanted to cover the inside of the drawers so they would feel fresher and look fancy. I didn't have any scrapbook paper on hand that met my design needs so I decided to create my own. I took four pieces of white scrapbook paper and cut them to fit the drawers. I then used a stamp and black ink to stamp patterns on the paper.
And now the mini dresser has been turned from blah and stinky to a fun and functional piece of furniture.
No comments:
Post a Comment