Let There Be White

I have this thing for old / vintage furniture. The way it is built is amazing. It’s solid and heavy. The craftsmanship is absolutely beautiful. The dovetailing on the drawers, the curvy lines and the built-in keyholes are just things that you don’t see on furniture made today. (Why was there locks on the dressers back then? Were they afraid someone would steal their underwear?) This stuff was built to last and if you find one today, it’s a real treat! The only down side to old furniture is that sometimes the finish on it isn’t always what one would like.

I usually don’t prefer to paint old furniture if the finish is nice but if the finish is bad, I don’t mind freshening up the piece.

(You can see where the finish was starting to peel off on the top…also, the look on my dogs face as I head towards him with a paintbrush…he stayed the same color however.)

I had this beautiful dresser sitting in my foyer for several years. I absolutely loved the look of it with the exception of it’s orange color…and peeling finish.

Oak furniture is some of the most beautifully made furniture but as it ages, it turns orange…which totally doesn’t go with the look of my house. The foyer always seemed dark and closed in. I didn’t want to get rid of the dresser because I really, really liked it. so with some hesitation, I decided to give her a paint job.

I used the color Simply White by Benjamin Moore but mixed in the Behr brand paint from Home Depot. After a couple of coats of paint and some light scuffing, I sealed it with a matte sealer.