Regal Navy Blue with Custom Legs

I love this piece!  I think her colour is so regal, rich and inviting - you just want to pull up a throne, finger snap to the butler and feast on your roast pork and cognac. Add  the stunning gold hardware (all hail thee rub-n-buff) and Queen Elizabeth may as well pop round for some tea and scones.  Im hearing trumpets in the distance and I think I just saw a unicorn trot by saddled by an armoured knight.

 
This piece started out life in pretty good condition but was bland and boring. No one would pick her out of a lineup, that's for sure.  She needed love.  L-O-V-E I say!
 

 
I have had this tint 'blueberry twist' sitting on the shelf for a while now, and I finally blew the dust off the lid and decided to give it a go.  I mixed the tint into my dulux diamond and turned into a chalk paint. 
 

 
It got pretty decent coverage which sometimes dark or bright colours can be temperamental about.  Ive had some bad luck with reds that take about 7 coats to convince you that they are in fact paint and not stain.  Three would have been enough, but I decided to go for four as I wanted it to be perfect, plus I accidently mixed up too much chalkpaint and figure I might as well use it up as I find the DIY stuff doesn't have the longest shelf life.

 
Mr. Chuckle's was called in to lend some expertise and help me add the custom legs which I painted out gold prior to attaching.  The difference is amazing.  Those legs are little tools in a magician's kit.  I always marvel at how remarkable a transformation is when you add legs to a stumpy piece.  It stops looking like a 'dresser' and starts looking like a piece of furniture; fit for any living area in the house.  
 

 
These new stilettos take the piece to 37" tall now.    Whistle whistle.

I didn't use wax, instead I finished with satin polyurethane which makes for a wonderful finish.  It has a great sheen without being cheap looking or showing every little blemish.

 
I used some chevron paper in navy and turquoise and modpodged it to the inside drawers for a bit of whimsy.

 
Rub n buff was conscripted into action and used on all of the original hadware.  I love gold at the moment, I know it isn't for everyone (or every piece) but I think it is catching and making a comeback.

 

Moving this piece was backbreaking even with my backbrace on (yep, I wear a backbrace - safety first boys and girls).  I do my refinishing in the workshop (garage) and we bring pieces in to the house to photograph, but Im in the process of creating a staging wall in the garage because the constant shifing of furniture is starting to take its toll.  The garage won't be quite as flashy as the walls are not in perfect condition, but Im hoping that I can swing it somehow.

 

And to end on a bright note, I saw a flower today while out on my run.  A real live one!  I had to do a double take because for a second I thought someone stuck a fake one into the ground.  Spring has finally sprung!

 

And the Before!

 

One Dresser - Two Different Ways

In a previous post (here) I talked about how lucky I felt when I found a particular dresser that had slipped through my fingers a few months previous.  I painted it up in a teal/turquoise with lots of highlighting and distressing and I was so happy with it!

 Fast forward a short two weeks later and I couldn’t believe my luck when I found the same dresser again!  ‘Woop-Woop’ I wailed at my good fortune.  ‘Raw-Raw’ I cheered at the reasonable price.  I picked it up and soon found a person who wanted to provide it with a loving home.

She decided she wanted it painted in pure white to pop off a textured gray wall she had, and although that would not have been my initial choice (you know how I love those blues and greens!) I have to say, that I think it looks incredibly elegant and chic.  The raised and recessed detailing capture the shadows and play with the light so much, that it wasn’t necessary to highlight with another colour.

It took a lot of primer and paint for coverage though (one of the pitfalls of white).  After sanding really well, I primed using Zinsser Cover Stain because it has great adhesion.  I then topped with Dulux Diamond in pure white (my go-to paint).  I used a satin finish as I prefer a lower sheen on my white furniture (apart from factory finished furniture – in that case I love super glossy).

On my previous piece I buffed up the hardware to a soft gold using a sanding block.  The future mother of this baby-girl was more partial to silver though, so I decided to use spray paint.  

I am going to detail the steps I took in a separate post, but to be brief, I scuffed up the hardware with sandpaper, sprayed with Krylon Metalic silver, and then topped it with black glaze to age it up. I then sealed it in with a spray sealer.  Im very happy with the result.

One downside of this dresser was that she was a little on the short side – she only stood a meagre 30” tall.  So like the other turquoise one I painted, we decided to custom add a cute pair of stilettos to this girl – enter Mr. Chuckles for some expert help. 

I sourced a pair of vintage legs, and repeated the same process as I did on the dresser – sand, prime, paint, seal and we attached them using brackets.  The height makes all the difference in the world in my opinion!  I love legs on dressers, and have added them to many now.  It’s a fair bit of work, but the result is so worth it!