Dresser and Desk Makeover

Smart Girls DIY has moved to SmartGirlsDIY.com and this post can now be found here

I love craigslist!  Who doesn't right?  My oldest daughter, Zoe, as you can tell from the pillows, needed more drawer space + more shelf space + a bigger desk.  So I sold her antique dresser and vanity on craigslist for $300 to a woman who was beyond thrilled to get the pieces.  I bought them on eBay about 5 years prior.  Then I turned around and bought the world's biggest desk (well maybe) and a nice tall chest of drawers for $150.  The furniture had been HAND MADE and was definitely great quality.  Don't get me wrong, I love Ikea, but there is a time and a place for everything. But I was not diggin the finish.  My hubby HATES when I paint nice wood (heck even crappy wood) but he must be getting used to it by now, right???

Before {yes I am embarrassed}

 After

This is what the set looked like when we got it home.  There is also a hutch for the desk that you can't see in this picture.

I got busy sanding outside, but I wasn't sanding it to get rid of imperfections, I was sanding it to take off the gloss finish that had been applied when the wood was originally stained.  So I used my palm sander with low grit/ high number sandpaper, like 200 grit.  The higher the grit the smoother the sandpaper, because "grit" refers to the number of abrasive particles per inch of sandpaper. On the other hand, the lower the grit the rougher the sandpaper.

 

Smart girls find someone to help them lug all these pieces inside and upstairs.  This is the perfect job for my hubby.  Then, I turned my bedroom into painting headquarters. What was thinking??!!

I am a big fan of these little yellow pyramids to keep the piece you're painting off the floor.  That way the piece doesn't stick to the floor and you are able to get all the way to the bottom/edge.  You can always make your own.

I spray painted the hardware pink! 

Last step was to attached the top with wood glue.  So funny, because Zoe was so excited to get her stuff in there she didn't even wait for the top to be glued down.

And finished...  Excuse the crap, this is definitely not a staged picture.

Meanwhile on the other side of the room...

 Desk area before {wow the embarrassment}

After 

That giant space on her wall is for her Pottery Barn Teen knock-off bulletin board, but it isn't finished yet.

Thanks for reading!  What do you think??

        Smart Girl