Thursday, February 7, 2013

A Mid Century Dresser Refinished

Ok. I think I am beginning to have an obsession with Mid Century furniture, especially dressers. I found this beauty on Craigslist (remember the Zinsser catastrophe?). 

I thought she looked great, but she was emitting a yellowish glow that wasn't very attractive and made her look older than she really was. She needed a face-lift. Since this dresser was modern and happenin' in the 60s, she needed to be modern again. So, it was obvious she needed a white body and natural walnut colored drawer fronts. 

Bassett Mid Century Dresser
Before continuing with this post, you probably should read this to see how her transformation began. 

 Anyway, to fix the bleed through I was seeing without having to start from scratch, I sanded down the enamel I had sprayed on and left all the other coats in tact.

I then mixed a batch of home-made "chalk paint" using plaster of paris and painted 3 coats on the entire dresser. This worked like a charm. I then put 3 coats of Minwax Polycrylic on the front and 6 coats on the top and sides. I wanted this baby to be protected. I discovered a trick to using the Polycrylic without getting those dreaded bubbles. You may want to check this out because if you are like me, you are always fighting bubbles.

I didn't like the yellowish hue on the drawer fronts, so I stripped them using Citristrip (which I love). I found that all the yellow was in the polyurethane top coat and the wood underneath was a beautiful walnut color. I added another coat of walnut stain and protected them with Polycrylic. 

Well, here she is complete. What do you think?
Refinished Mid Century Dresser



Refinishing a Mid Century Dresser




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