Our Hopeful Home: Thrifted Pine Dresser Transformation

Even in uncertain times like these, we still need to prepare for the future as best we can. And if you have a college student at home, you might not have a clue as to what the upcoming fall semester will look like for them. Regardless of the uncertainty, those apartments, campus houses and dorm rooms still need to be furnished and stocked with the necessities to get the kids through -- no matter what happens.

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We were recently told by both our daughters' colleges that they will indeed be welcoming kids back to campus in August, albeit to a whole new world this time. Regardless, they will both be needing furniture. Luckily, this month's Thrift Store Upcycle Challenge has prompted me to get moving on finding some thrift store furniture for them. Then I can breathe new life into it all!

The Rules

Upcycle an item(s) from a thrift store, resale store, or garage sale into a new piece of decor.

There's no monthly theme.

There's no budget to stick to.

Meet the Hosts

Home Right large spray tent thrifted pine dresser

Both daughters need dressers. So far we've managed to find one for my oldest. She picked it out in 5 minutes, which was nice. And it cost all of $20.00 which was even nicer! Once we got the simple pine dresser home from the thrift store, we placed it in my HomeRight Large Spray Shelter that was set up in the garage. I was in such a rush to get the project going that I failed to take pictures prior to taking off the drawer pulls.
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Here she is up close and personal. The poor thing really needed some TLC. First, I sanded down the rough spots and then I filled a few gouges with wood filler. Once that dried I sanded those areas down and got to work priming.

First I primed all three drawers, and then I primed the body of the dresser using a paint brush. For primer I used what I happened to have on hand -- Zinsser Bullseye 1-2-3 Plus primer. I wanted to be sure that there was no wood bleed through the white paint that was to come.

The plan was to spray paint the entire thing with my Home Right Finish Max paint sprayer. Unfortunately, the sprayer was clogged for some reason and I did not have the patience to deal with that so I just painted it the old fashioned way -- with a paint brush lol. I used one of my favorites -- Rust-Oleum Chalked Ultra Matte paint in Linen White.

And after two coats here she is. I actually had to paint the top of the dresser with three coats in order to fully cover the wood bleed I could still see coming through. But three times was the charm. NOTE: I chose not to wax the top of the dresser, although many people would have done so. Waxing helps to seal in the paint and protect it from nicks and dings, especially on high-use surfaces like this one. But my daughter said she was okay with it since we were going for an imperfect farmhouse look anyway. Plus she promised to use a pretty white galvanized metal tray I gave her on the top of the dresser to minimize wear and tear.

tarnished Chippendale bat wing bail pull

I at least made sure to take a "before" picture of the drawer pull prior to cleaning it. This style is very classic. It's called a Chippendale bat wing bail pull.

And here it is after cleaning. Back when I was painting our kitchen cabinets I also needed to clean some hardware. Then it was simple -- I used some TSP liquid and a little elbow grease. It worked great for my kitchen cabinet hardware. But these bail pulls were a bear to clean. TSP just didn't didn't do the job. So I tried Bar Keepers Friend Soft Formula and in this instance it worked pretty well. I still had to scrub and scrub with a sponge, but I think I achieved a good result. Not fully bright and shiny but with just a tad of patina.

three drawer pine dresser Chippendale bat wing bail pull

thrifted painted pine dresser wooden tray ironstone pitcher purple flowers

I truly think the hardware adds just the right touch, kind of like adding jewelry after getting all dressed up. I had to style it inside the tent because it was soon to be loaded onto a van and transported to my daughter's college house. I still think it looks pretty -- looking all farmhouse-y what with that whitewashed wood tray with handles and some pretty greenery, not to mention the vintage ironstone.

The beautiful purple faux flowers are from the Dollar Tree. The cloche on the right is from an estate sale.

galvanized pail wooden handle faux green plant burlap

I absolutely love this little tin with wooden handle I got on sale at Hobby Lobby a few year ago.

vintage ironstone pitcher purple flowers farmhouse decor

I'm happy that my daughter was happy with how this tuned out. Hopefully it will serve her well for many years to come. Or at least through her junior and senior years!

Well, that's it until next time, friends!

I hope you've enjoyed reading about my
Thrifted Pine Dresser Transformation
and that I've inspired you in some way.

And now for more thrifty goodness!
Check out what my fellow upcyclers created below!

Our Thrift Store Upcycle group of bloggers is looking to expand -- and we need your help! Why not consider joining in our thrift store upcycle challenge on the last Thursday of each month? Make some friends while having fun and share your love of DIY with the world. It’s a win-win! Sound like something you’d be interested in? Just leave a comment at the end of this post with your contact info and a link to your blog. Someone will get back to you right away. We can’t wait to meet you!

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