$5 Dresser update!

Hello!  I have another post on the heels of my vanity update.  Our bedroom is very nice, but quite plain.  We purchased this dresser when we realized we couldn't hold out any longer.  I don't know where you stand on the whole IKEA debate -- do you love it or hate it?  I absolutely love it, mostly because I'm in my first home, so I have no previous experience buying furniture.  It's all so expensive and still boring/ugly!  I love IKEA's colors, designs, and sturdy construction.

My father and mother, God bless them, helped me put together almost all of our many IKEA purchases while Mr. M was at work.  My dad's one of those jack-of-all-trades, crafty, DIY repairmen types who's opinion I trust more than any other about craftsmanship and quality.  He says the designs are well-put together, especially for their price.  I'll probably keep buying their stuff for years to come!

Anyway, the one drawback I see to IKEA is how popular they are!  Everyone has it, or knows when it is IKEA.  I don't want my home to look like every other newlywed couple!  For this reason, I decided to glam up our dresser for my starting improvement.  I've seen this hack but frankly didn't like how clear the lines were.  It was just too structured and cutesy for me.  However, it gave me ideas.

I used to hate gold, but for some reason picked it as one of our wedding colors.  Since then, it seems it's back in style.  All the examples on Pinterest coalesced into my final product!

SUPPLIES

Folkart acrylic paint (pure gold) - I owned left-over from my wedding, but it costs about $3 for a full bottle
Sponge brush - I owned a whole pack, but I only used one, which couldn't have cost more than $1
Tape - We bought this for about $2 on sale at Office Depot about a year ago

We washi-taped our dresser immediately after we built it.  He had his side to decorate, I had mine.  It was nice, but clashed too much for me.

Directions:
There aren't really any!  I used the tape already on the dresser to tape off the edges, poured the paint onto the sponge box, and then dabbed it on!  I liked the brush effect I got--reminded me of a Rothko consistency.  You may want to do yours differently.  It also depends on the back color.  This dresser has a lovely, porous consistency, so it didn't need any sanding or prep, and really sank in beautifully.  The knobs were easy to change with the same paint.

BEFORE

PREP

FINISHED PRODUCT

Have a beautiful day!

Vanity Re-Do, Part 2

Hello hello!  I've been out of town and busy with quite a bit of school work (grad school), so I honestly haven't had a chance until now to post the finished product.  I have to say, I've looked at my fair share of furniture renovations, and always thought they looked so simple.  This was manageable work, but now I possess new-found respect for all of these people who put their work out there for the internet to judge.  I'll look at all of their projects with much more humbled thoughts!

First of all, I said I needed my husband to help me separate the frame from the stool padding.  He helped alright.  I didn't see the screws that attached through the bottom of the frame!  How silly!  Once I unscrewed them, it was SO much easier to pry off the rest of the staples and get that old lady fabric off!  Don't you love the mess?

I found this fabric for a different project, but decided I'd rather use it here, because it'll go so well with the shade of the vanity.  I used quite a bit of coverage, because I didn't want to have any wood exposed.  My future children will use this eventually!

With an extra set of hands, it was easy to use my new staple gun and attach the fabric as tightly as possible.

My corners are REALLY ugly, mostly because, like I said before, I'm very impatient.  I am not fastidious about stuff like this...

I also had to finish spray painting the actual frame.  It looks extremely streaky here, but that's just because it was still drying.  (This is a necklace compartment on the side.)

Here's a view of all the mess while it was drying.  That's my husband walking out of frame in the background.  Excuse the messy garage.

For finishing details, I actually used a cheap acrylic paint to "update" the hardware for now.  I'm putting the vanity in our bedroom, where I have already used the same paint on our dresser (the next post!), so I thought it would match.  Unfortunately, different hardware means different reaction.  The gold here is pretty cheesy-looking, but at least it matches.  To paint easily, take a paper plate or cardboard and poke the screws through so the knobs stand up fairly well.  This makes it easier to get all the exposed angles and let the dry evenly.

Finally, here it is in all its glory!  I love it!

Total Cost:
Vanity                    $0           Already had it!
Spray paint            $10         Approximately, since I needed three cans
Sandpaper             $3           Approximately
Cloth                     $0           Already had it!
Breathing mask      $8            I got a nice one, so I can reuse it
Drop cloth             $1            I bought a pack of three for $3, but only used one
Screw driver          $0           Already had it!
Acrylic paint          $0           Already had it!
Staple gun             $14          I had to buy one, and the staples, but I'll definitely reuse it!
Spray paint            $4            I provided a link to this one, which I LOVED!  Kept my hands happy!
handle

Final thoughts / tips:
1. Don't cut corners.  I really tried to drop steps as I went along, including sanding less and less with each part.  This showed through, at least for the first spray.  I also realized later I could have removed the mirror from the frame and get a better coat, but didn't do it then.  This was a mistake.  I ended up having to anyway, because you could see the unpainted wood reflection at the edges.

2. Let everything dry properly and cure.  I accidentally scratched off some paint about an hour after the first coat, but about 24 hours later, I couldn't make those scratches anymore because it had finished sealing.

2. Spray a second coat.  The first time, you could see sanding marks.  Not cute.

3. Have fun!  I am extremely proud of my first venture for the blog.  I feel like a real innovative, crafty person!

Have a beautiful day!

Vanity Re-do, Part 1

Good day to you all!

My first project is one I have seen a few times on Pinterest and many of the gorgeous blogs online.  I've had this vanity for about 10 years, so when Mr. M and I got married, I thought I'd bring it to our new house and eventually find a great place for it.  However, I have yet to make it work anywhere because it's just too dark for my tastes.  (Unfortunately, I forgot to get a real before pic, so hopefully you can settle with this one.)  It's beautiful, and I'd like to give it to any daughters I have one day, because it's extremely sturdy, but I can't stand to wait that long with this thing!

I've long admired the House of Smiths blog for the tips provided, and I really applied this one for my job today.  I am going to spray paint my first piece of furniture!  From what I've done so far, this should be quite simply applied to many types of furniture, including desks and tables.

Materials:

Drop cloth - I used a cheap plastic one which moved a lot, maybe you'd be better going for heavier
Sand paper - I used this one here, which worked fine, but I'll definitely be getting a sanding sponge next time.

Dry cloth - Any old rag to wipe off the furniture after sanding, because you don't want any dust in your paint
Screw-driver - Just used to remove hardware
Tape - My vanity has a mirror, which I did NOT want to get paint on, so I taped it off.
And of course you'll need spray paint!

Steps:

1. Remove any hardware from the vanity and take out all drawers.  You want to do this right, so you'll need to get all the possible surfaces.  Don't do it with drawers in, like I thought I would originally!

2. Sand down any surfaces that you think are even remotely glossy.  I don't know if this step can be skipped, but I didn't think so.

This is a drawer sanded and wiped, ready to go.  All the gloss isn't gone, but I thought it'd be enough, mostly because I'm impatient.

2. Wipe thoroughly.  I mean it, don't miss those curved edges, or else!

3. Spray!  Use those tips I linked from the House of Smiths.  I did use this handle to work more steadily, as well as keep my hands away from the nozzle.  (I bought it from Home Depot for like twice as much!  Boo!)

Really don't be afraid of spraying, I'm so imperfect about it, I was worried I wouldn't use the tips I've read well enough and end up with streaky, ruined drawers.  Not true!  This spray paint/primer is SO forgiving!  Look at that top picture, so beautiful!

4. Repeat for all surfaces involved.  It did take me about two hours to get everything prepped and sprayed, and I'm not done.  It wasn't hard though, just slightly time consuming.

These are the legs to a small stool (shown later) that came with it.  If those tops of the two on the left look shiny, it's just because it's still drying, not glossy.  It's very matte.

When I taped this mirror off, I used a bag from Home Depot so I wasn't wasting, especially since, as you can tell, it took a LOT of tape to get perfect edges.  Be precise, you don't want to let the paint get on your mirror at all, or any wood to show through the paint.

Now here's why it's a two-part post.
1. I ran out of paint and it seems my local Wal-Mart doesn't carry this brand.  Home Depot is not close enough to make a trip right now.  I'll get it this weekend.
2. I can't get this fabric off the stool top!

It was attached with staples and then wedged under the wooden base for the legs.  I have no idea how the base is attached!  I stuck a butter knife under it (which I was using to get the staples out), and found NO glue, screws or nails.  It's like it's on there like magic.  I'm going to ask Mr. M to look at it.  Once I get it off, I'll finish the stool and paint the actual vanity body.

Until next time, have a beautiful day!