Vintage Dresser Makeover

If you have a dated dresser or chest of drawers that is an eyesore but is perfectly functional, why not paint it to give it a makeover? Follow along this step-by-step dresser makeover! Enamel paint makes it so easy to refurbish an old piece of furniture.

RELATED POST: Board Game Cabinet Makeover

Enamel Paint Dresser Makeover

Here’s a pretty pathetic before shot that took place in my hideous garage. Note to self:  Please get a decent before shot next time!

It has beautiful lines and details and the wood is beautiful. I didn’t want to cover all that gorgeous wood so I went with a two-toned look similar to this vintage desk makeover. So what did I use to turn this vintage beauty into a handsome prince?

SUPPLIES FOR THIS DRESSER MAKEOVER

• DecoArt Satin Enamels Paint in Classic Black
• Liquid deglosser
• Restor-A-Finish in Dark Walnut (I use this ALL the time)
• 2 Inch Paint Brush
• Paint pail/liners

Here’s a little confession. I get lazy sometimes when I paint. I don’t always want to sand furniture, but this surface was pretty slick to start with. This paint says you don’t need to sand or prime, but I felt like there was lots of Pledge built up over the years! It needed something to get the paint to adhere to. I used a liquid deglosser. Follow the directions on the bottle and you’re good to go. You wipe the liquid deglosser, then wipe with a clean cloth. I used this same process in my kitchen cabinet painting and it works beautifully!

I had an 8-ounce jar of the paint and I didn’t quite use all of it after two coats of paint. And I didn’t prime this one since I was using a dark color over dark stain. If I had chosen a light color, it would’ve taken more coats of paint or else I would’ve primed it first.

RELATED POST: Curio Cabinet Makeover

Painting the 1st Coat:

Here’s my favorite thing about this paint – it has excellent coverage. If I had been more careful, I probably could’ve gotten away with one coat! And it’s super smooth. There are a few brush strokes and one tip about satin paint –   It’s noticeable when you go back over an already painted spot.

I did run into a problem when I finished and got it all put back together. You can see in the pic above that the darker stain color is on the insides of where the drawers go. When I put the drawers back in, you could still see that different color. Not cool.

So here’s the easy fix. Paint your new color onto the insides a bit. Like this:

Now it looks like it was meant to be!

And since this is enamel paint, it dries to a very hard finish and doesn’t require a sealer! Sign me up! Sealers are my least favorite part of furniture refinishing. I spiffed up the wood by rubbing Restor-A-Finish over it to bring it back to life. This stuff is amazing and I use it on almost every wood piece I refinish.

Now it’s the perfect amount of updated while still keeping some of the vintage charms.

Thanks for checking out this handsome dresser makeover. Don’t toss out old stuff just because it’s not your style anymore. Update it with paint! Here’s another great example: Sideboard Makeover

Happy Painting!