Sometimes, I think I’m Martha Stewart. I’ve been known to make my own preserves, and just recently I undertook a project that proved to be a logistical nightmare for someone living in a small city apartment. About a month ago, other tenants were moving out. They threw everything away instead of moving it, it seems; boxes containing pots and pans, bags full of clothing and shoes, entire living room set including sofa and chair, kitchen table – you get the idea. I cannot begin to describe my wrath for people who throw these (useful) items away instead of just calling someone from a local charity to come pick them up. But anyway, in the trove of treasures was a pine-faced dresser that was sitting slightly askew and had stickers all over it. I asked my husband if I could bring it up to our apartment, with the intent of refinishing it. No. Too little room in our apartment. But I pleaded: we’re moving into a home in the foreseeable future. This home will have more room to put furniture, and in particular it will have a guest room where I envision a pretty refinished dresser will go. He ceded. So up it came, and even he warmed up to the idea once I removed the stickers and he straightened the support beam with a simple twist of a loosened screw. “Someone’s gonna be mad they threw this out” he said. Small victories, that’s all I ask for.
Anyway, over the next two weeks, he helped me dismantle it so that I could sand the varnish off the pine drawers, sides and top of the dresser. I used progressively finer sandpaper with a hand sander. Since the dresser was obviously a newer piece (the back and drawer bottoms were made of particle boards) I was not scared of potentially ruining an antique piece. Knotty pine is a bit rustic for me, and I always liked the idea of an all-white guest room so I taped the dresser up and primed with BIN primer (apparently, after some online digging, this is the stuff to use on knotty wood that was once covered in varnish). Two coats of primer, plus two coats of “antique white” latex paint, applied with a foam roller.
Before
After
The stainless steel knobs are an eBay purchase from locks, knobs & hinges ($14, two extra). The primer, paint, and rollers cost 30$ with some left-over, so the whole project was under $50. Can't really beat garbage picking, is all I gotta say.
