Something Old Turned into Something New(er)

About a year ago we were gifted an old waterfall dresser from Shane's Aunt Mabel, who was holding on to it for her mother... in other words, this particular dresser isn't the newest being from his great grandma and all.  We brought the dresser home, where it hung out in our "someday we will get around to it project room."  It did a fabulous job storing board games and art paper.  More recently we have been breathing new life into our basement.  The tiny bedrooms have merged into one great big one.  Insulation has been installed, new ceilings put in, and a new plank wood floor to come-- but that is for an entirely different post.  Moving on, the furniture that was hanging out in our neglected basement needed a good talking to.

Me and this dresser both knew the day of transformation was coming.  For the past few months I've been exploring possibilities as to what I should do with it.  Should I paint it?  Should I not?  Because I am all about sharing ideas, here are a few that I dug up around the internet:

Here is some wicked stenciling--

and lastly, a major pop of color--

The missing veneer on our dresser certainly isn't as noticeable as the above image and the inlay, oh the inlay, was gorgeous.  A picture couldn't do it justice.  I finally decided I was going to go with something along the lines of the brown and gold painted drawers image.  However, plans tend to change when my parents come over.  With their creative skills and a few years of experience with this sorta thing on me, they were able to give me a few pointers on what you could do in order to preserve the natural beauty (and wear) of the dresser.  So, I'm here to tell you how it is done.  

The first step, and the most obvious of steps, is to clean off the debris.  Use some mild soap and water to do so.  When the piece is dry, give it a light sanding (if you feel like it), to help smooth out and unify the discolored areas.

Now is the time to bust out the good stuff.  You can buy this Formby's build up remover for a couple of bucks from Menards. If you compare the left to the right, you will see how much richer in color the left side is.  With that much of a difference, the product is still super gentle.  Just make sure you are going with the grain, no matter what.  If a shark is eating your leg, you've still gotta go with the grain.

While the build up remover was doing it's thang, it was time to move on to the hardware.  The handles were placed in a glass dish filled with Tarn-X after being scrubbed a bit with steel wool.  If you can, find an old toothbrush laying around to really get into the grooves.  It would be smart of you to wear some gloves too.  Human's aren't made from metal.  Unless your The Cyberdyne Systems Model 101 Series 800 Terminator. 

Here is a little before and after action, with the after being on the right.  Pretty.

Once the Formby's was dry, it was time to brighten up the piece.  I used a cherry stain (about $2.00) from Menards and applied it using a rag.  That's right folks, I still went with the grain.  It took me about three coats to really brighten up the piece, but this will vary depending on how deep in color you want to go.

This photo was taken while the dresser was still a bit tacky.  So much for patience.  There are a few chips taken out on the veneer on the bottom of the third drawer, but I think it adds character to this well-loved piece.  

In the end, this piece only took about $5.00 to make beautiful again... well, it was always beautiful.  It just needed uh, a little make-up.  I am all about making old things look newer again, because let's face it, they don't make furniture like they use to.  Now we can enjoy this little lady for many years to come.  Happy Monday.