Two Dressers and A Bench…before & after the paintbrush

I have been terrible about remembering to take “Before” photos ever since. That changes today. I want to share a few transformations of 2 dressers and a bench that will be available in our upcoming market on March 19-21 giving you plenty of time to figure out exactly where these will fit in your home.

I started painting furniture before Joanna Gaines was born, I think. My grandma actually was painting furniture long before I was born, too. I remember that we had an old bookcase that had seen better days in our living room. My mom was going to give it to our church rummage sale. She gave everything to our church rummage sale. Even things that I was still using. But, that is another story for another day. My grandma suggested painting it black enamel. My mom was doubtful, but It was beautiful when she was finished. I wish that I had a before & after photo of that…who knew it would be such a thing over 40 years later???

Dresser Makeover #1

The first “Before” is actually more of a “During” picture. I did forget to take a photo before the painting commenced. The original finish was a shiny, blonde veneer finish. Probably from the 1950-1960’s. Can you picture it? Here it is painted our creamy white while still in the workshop aka the old kitchen at the mill.

Still in the “workshop” but finished. We decided to do a bit of a fun MCM-inspired design with a little bit of gray paint. We kept the original hardware because it was just that awesome.

I got it styled and on the floor

What do you think? I love the pop of color the mustard colored pillows add with the gray and cream

The pendant light is a little askew…

Dresser Makeover #2

Here is an actual “Before” picture of this golden oldie. This little guy has got to be well over 100 years old. I really wanted to keep this wood and not paint it at all. It’s hard to tell in the photo, but it’s been well-loved. At least it has been well used. It had several gouges and some mystery stains and such.

I love the detailing and the fact that it still has all of its keyholes. And, yes, all of its drawers, too. The drawer is somewhere on the workshop floor.

Now it’s priced and on the floor looking all pretty. I just noticed that you can see my hands in the mirror, oops! Also, not the best cropping I’ve ever done of a photo either. Hopefully, you can get the gist of how it looks now. We kept the original hardware on this one, too. At least it’s the original hardware that we got on this piece. I think the top drawer hardware was replaced somewhere along the line.

From Bed to Bench

Lastly, my favorite. I wish I would have gotten a before, before picture of this stunner. This is the bench before we added the seat and started painting.

I don’t know if you can tell, but this was a headboard, the back, and matching footboard, the sides cut in half. The middle of one of the side rails was taken out and made to fit in front. I’m sure this is well over 100 years old, too. It is a half-size bed. Prior to 1960, beds came in 3 sizes. Just not the sizes you are probably thinking of; twin, half, and full. Can you imagine sleeping with someone in a full-size bed every night??? And, who exactly was sleeping in a half-size bed?

Rick, who is my friend Linda’s husband, was the mastermind behind my vision. I gave him all of the pieces and told him I thought it would be an amazing bench. And I was right…it is an amazing bench!

Check out some more furniture before and afters here on my friend, Julie’s blog, Red Head Can Decorate.