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Chalk Painted Dresser–Aged Barn Wood

I have been collecting furniture in the garage and it was requested that I start doing something with them or else!  Since I wasn't sure what “or else” meant exactly, I started my first project this weekend :)

I have been following many blogs that re-do furniture and everyone has their own way of doing things, their own favorite brands, products, and tools.  I tried to take a little something from each blog to come up with something that works for me.  I thought I would share with you the steps I took to get a beat up Bassett dresser from drab to fab!

So here’s the down and dirty:
  • Painted using Behr flat in one of those new sample size containers.  I used two coats of homemade chalk paint (added 2 tablespoons of unsanded tile grout diluted in hot water to 1 cup of paint). I noticed the paint seemed to get thicker as I applied each coat so I added little bits of water here and there to thin out the paint a little. This seemed to do the trick. The chalk paint dries super fast – no waiting for hours.
  • After this step, I sanded the edges down to the original dark wood. I then took steel wool and sanded all over – this step brought some of the previous gray paint up to the surface. I sort of liked it at this stage, but decided to add some dark Mini-wax stain. I will admit that after putting the stain on, I wasn’t sure if this was the look I was going for…but I kept going.
  • Once the stain dried, I took my block sander and began sanding again – taking some of the stain back off.
  • Lastly, I applied Mini Wax finishing paste to give it a smooth show-room feel.
After the last step, I started liking the piece again - it makes it more a “one of a kind” piece. I think it has an aged barn-wood look with light blue and copper undertones with hints of gray. Very beautiful and I’m so happy with the way it turned out!

The original hardware was white and had pieces missing. I went to Home Depot and found some inexpensive handles that I liked, but really wanted copper pulls to match the paint color. I decided to buy some copper spray paint and just paint the pulls to match. I love the way they turned out!

I learned a lot from completing this project
  1. I learned that home-made chalk paint is awesome and dries quickly. This negates the step of having to sand and strip off previous paint jobs.
  2. I learned that when you sand with steel wool and then put dark stain over it – the dark stain will seep into any and all lightly sanded areas. This is OK if that’s the look you are going for.
  3. I debated whether or not to polyurethane the top.  But, I thought it felt fine as is with just the Mini-paste wax.  
  4. Lastly I learned that once you complete a project that you loved doing, it's hard to let it go!  Unfortunately, I have no place to put it, so this one will be going up for sale...maybe on Craig's List!

Before:

Dresser Re-do and boating 011

After:

 blue dresser
 
Dresser Re-do and boating 020

Dresser Re-do and boating 097

Dresser Re-do and boating 093


Linking Up to Tip Junkie

Comments

Looks great! I love the homemade chalk paint and you are right! It dries super fast. Just followed you - would love a visit back :)
it looks like driftwood! so cool!
Tam said…
Thanks Sherrie and Cassie. It does look like drift wood!
Gina said…
Cool! Thanks for the idea... trying tofigure out how I want to finish a table my husband and I are working on... okay, so far my husbad has done most of it. :)
Jessika said…
I agree that you gave it a driftwood look! Very cool!
Stacey said…
I love how it came out! understand the need to get stuff done - actually my husband just wants his garage back :o)
Not sure that's going to happen! Thanks for linking up this week!
Stacey of Embracing Change
I love the shape of that dresser and it looks fabulous with your make-over!

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