Dresser Before and After

This is a picture of my new dresser. It was a $30 Craigs List find. (I ADORE CRAIGS LIST). I just love the carved details on the drawer fronts and that it goes all the way to the floor. The rest of the furniture in my living room have legs that show. I purchased it with the intent to paint it, but mentally went through several colors before deciding on the right one (orange and fuchsia were in the running but I kept coming back to my defined style statement). The dresser was in a suburb far from my home, but near a friends house. He picked it up and took it to work with him in downtown Chicago. There it was transferred to my brothers vehicle and brought home to my house in Evanston. Having friends and family with bigger cars / SUVs sure is nice.

This is what the dresser replaced. I loved the look of the small table. And it kept that side of the room open and airy feeling, but I just needed more storage. I sold the table on Craig's List for $30 (but had many interested buyers. I should have relisted it for more money.) I initially paid $5 at Goodwill for the table 6-7 years or so ago, so I definitely got my money's worth out of the deal.

The dresser stayed in its brown laminate state for about 3 months until I got around to painting it. Here is the after. I sanded the laminate with a fine grit sandpaper, wiped it down, primed it and put two coats of aqua on it. I already had the paint, but I wish it had a higher gloss than the eggshell. I love the light aqua against the dark turquoise walls. I still need to move the clock up and accessorize the wall, because the table it replaced was much smaller. I've since spray painted the knobs silver, but kind of wish I had left them the original antiqued brass color. An antique glaze would look fantastic on this piece, but that is definitely not the look I'm going for. Although I have thought about a silver glaze. I wouldn't want it to look shabby chic but rather hollywood regency - ish. The way it is is fine for now.

So here is the funny part of this redo. I don't have a garage, or basement or any outdoor space where I can paint. That leaves painting inside. Here's what it looks like to paint in the living room of a 650 sq. ft condo.

Ah, fun times. But I'm very happy with how the dresser looks painted aqua and the extra storage space I gained.

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