Oh my gosh!! I’m so excited to share this masculine dresser makeover with you! I gotta share a little history to give you a sense of how much I wish I would have done dresser makeover WAY sooner. This is my hubby’s dresser and he bought it many many years ago…and I disliked it then…and I have disliked it ALL of these years. I’ve tried to get rid of it, (of course that meant convincing him and that was a NO GO) I’ve tried to hide it in the closet, I’ve tried and tried and I’ve tried to figure out something so I didn’t have to see this dresser.
Then I thought of painting
Shortly after I began painting furniture, I mentioned painting it. I received an ANGRY look! BUT, after some time (like a couple of years) I really began to push the issue. I wanted to revamp our bedroom and I was just at my wits end. I needed to make over this dresser somehow. I procrastinated and pondered. He really likes the wood, and I’m trying, slowly but surely, to eliminate all of the oak (that I used to love) from my house. To be honest, there were parts of the dresser that had some beautiful wood grain but others that were dull and lifeless.
Then I figured it out!
It was the hubby’s dresser so I wanted it to have a masculine feel. I was planning to paint my bed black (that was a whole lotta scary in itself, I’ll have to share on that later) so why not compliment the bed with the dresser. I didn’t want too much black in my room so I decided I would only paint the dull lifeless areas of the dresser. I’d leave the drawers and the top as they are. Once I had that realization, I of course looked on Pintrest to find some inspiration. Who can resist that?
I Jumped In
Once I made a decision on the look of the dresser make over, I got started right away. I was a little afraid to let the hubby know I was painting his dresser, even though he had softened a little to the idea. He did balk, a bit, I think he just decided to trust me.
First things first, I began the drawers and taping off the top of the dresser. I had about 1/2 of an 8oz jar of DecoArt black chalk paint on hand, usually don’t use this brand for painting furniture, but I had waited so long; I wanted to get started right away. You can find this brand at both Home Depot and Hobby Lobby. Next I needed to wipe down the dresser before beginning to paint. It didn’t take long at all. By the time I finished one coat of paint, the area where I began was ready for the next coat. In a little over an hour my masculine dresser makeover had 2 full coats of black chalk paint!
The next day, I added 3 coats of varnish. I chose a water based polyurethane made by Varathane. I really like this exact one because I feel it dries the clearest…honestly, I’m not sure ANY varnish dries clear when you put it on white but this one is pretty clear. It comes in a few different finishes, but I chose the matte finish for this makeover project. I let it dry for 2 days before putting the drawers back in. Because the dresser is so old, the drawers glide on wood guides and I knew they would be rubbing on the painted area between each drawer.
What to do with the hardware?
I decided to keep the original handles and hardware but they would need some updating to coordinate with the new look of the dresser. Honestly, I think they’re not the original, original handles but they were on the dresser when we got it. I was a little apprehensive about trying to remove the keyhole hardware. However they came off easily enough with a butter knife. I think the butter knife is the original women’s tool! Even though I have many actual tools I still revert back to the butter knife at times. I slid it under at the edges and gently pried them up, doing my best not to bend the metal. I painted them with satin black spray paint. They looked great after that! This masculine dresser makeover was truly coming together, it was looking beautiful, not feminine at all, but most definitely beautiful
I love it when it all comes together.
I did absolutely nothing to the top of the dresser! I stained the area around the handles where over the years the stain had worn off due the the rubbing and vibration of the handles. I used what what on hand because I knew it would match and it took less than 3 minutes!
I’m so happy I painted this dresser, I loovvve it now! Like, I sat in my room and just smiled today! My daughter suggested I swipe it for myself now that it’s all pretty and every thing…you should have seen the husband’s face when I mentioned that…ya, I don’t think he’s gonna give it up. But that’s ok, I’m just glad I get to look at it in our bedroom.
I wish I had a better picture of it but my bed is in the way! Actually, I really want to roll it out into the hallway, move the hallway furniture and stage it to take a perfect picture…but I think the hubby may send me to the looney bin!