Once upon a time, almost a half a century ago, in a far away state, were two little boys …
the first born in 1956 and the second in 1959.
They were the best of friends, playing together and always helping their parents as much as they could. They were the apple of their parents’ eyes …
A family of simple means in simpler times. Back then you used what you were able to acquire through hand-me-downs and friends and only had the necessities. Furniture was functional, not necessarily purchased for its curb-appeal or because it matched another piece of furniture. That would have been a luxury.
Such was the case with this dresser …
This was the dresser that the brothers shared when they were small. As the boys grew older, got married, and moved on, the dresser remained at their parent’s home. When mom and dad passed on, we acquired most of their belongings. At first glance you might think that this dresser would be high on the list of Goodwill donations. There’s nothing fancy about it. It’s mostly made of thin pine wood. As you can see, it’s quite well used and definitely wearing the battle scars of two lively boys and many years of use. No, it wasn’t going anywhere. There was a bit too much sentimental value attached.
Now it had a new home, and this little vintage dresser needed a make over, an EXTREME make over.
I armed myself with all the necessary tools …
- Sand paper
- Sander
- Tack Cloth
- Paint Brushes
- Paint
- Finishing Wax
- New Hardware
… and went to work.
The destination for this new dresser was going to be our guest room. The overall theme for this room is bright and cheery, and since it’s downstairs and right off our main living space, it would probably get a few seasonal updates here and there as well. There’s also that underlying theme of “vintage” going on. So the color nominated to adorn this classic beauty was RED, Classic Red. And since I’m having fun with this, the inside of the drawers I painted orange, Valencia Orange to be exact. I used Valspar Signature for the Red and Valspar Ultra Paint & Primer for the Orange, both from Lowe’s.
Everything was going smoothly until it came time to paint the drawers. You see, there was a little problem.
Apparently, over the years, our boys collected lots and lots of colorful ink pens and markers. Can’t quite imagine what exactly they were doing with them, but they definitely left their mark. I sanded it down as much as I could, then applied a couple coats of primer before the orange. I thought all was well, but when I went out the next morning this is what awaited me.
Hmmmm …. it looks like some of that ink was NOT going to cooperate! After much googling for a remedy to this dilemma, and a quick trip to the local big-box-all-purpose-it-sells-everything-under-the-sun store, I came back armed with a few bottles of this:
A little dab here …
A lot of dabs there, thanks to my sweet son, always willing to help …
and, voila … we have a pretty orange drawer minus all the ink stains!
Our precious treasure went from old and blah, to sleek, smooth, and fun! It’s amazing what a little bit of paint, some wax and new hardware will do.
Amazingly enough, the exterior only needed one coat of paint. I love how some of the undertones of the natural wood came through. I didn’t even need to distress it, which was my original plan.
I’ve dressed her up with a vintage table runner that my mother-in-law gave me. I don’t think she embroidered it, but I know she had it for a very long time. It’s been well taken care of, but does have a few signs of wear.
So now, the younger brother gets to enjoy the dresser all the time.
And the older brother? Well, when he comes to visit, I might let him use it, as long as he doesn’t fill the drawers with any more ink pens!
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