I stumbled upon this old dressing table on FB Marketplace. This was the bedroom furniture to own in the 90's! Being melamine, it was bound to have a number of imperfections because it just isn't a quality product that's made to last forever. It had certainly been a well used and well loved piece of furniture but it was still structurally sound and had potential to be transformed into something new and modern.
The Vision:
To turn this white, outdated dressing table, into a wood look chest of drawers, with custom legs, to lift it off the ground slightly and long, sleek matte handles for that small touch of modern and aesthetic
The Process:
I began by thoroughly cleaning the piece, to remove all dirt, grease and grime. I also removed the mirror completely because hat wasn't going to be used at all.
This piece would have normally had plastic handles, in a chosen colour installed but all the handles were already gone on this one, so I just filled in the original holes to get the drawers ready for the new long black handles I'd chosen, to give this piece the much needed face-lift it deserved
Once the filler had dried in the original handle holes, the light sanding process began. This was to lightly scratch the surface, just a little bit, to ensure the paint primer had something to 'grab' onto. I used Zinsser water based primer for this, in the colour grey because I wanted to take advantage of the grey showing through the paint. This helped me to create the depth and dimension of 'wood grain', that's visible in real wood
To create a 'faux wood look', this piece was hand painted with a natural hair, stiff bristled brush. This is to ensure that texture was left in the paint, as, real wood already has natural texture in the grain. During the painting process, a few different paint colours were used, layered on top of one another, to create the depth, shadow and highlight, to replicate the appearance of what solid wood furniture looks like. As seen in the image below.
The real game-changer was the choice of handles. Out went the old plastic ones, replaced with sleek, matte black handles that instantly elevated the aesthetic. It's incredible how such a simple change can completely redefine the character of a piece of furniture.
The custom legs......as seen in the image above This subtle alteration not only added height but also created the illusion of added space, making the piece more visually appealing. It's fascinating how small adjustments can have a significant impact on the overall look and feel of a furniture item!
The final result and my vision in reality!
So, the next time you come across a seemingly outdated piece of furniture, don't overlook its potential. With a little imagination and effort, you might just uncover a hidden gem waiting to be revived!
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