Nice Knobs

I'm finally getting around to posting some pictures of the project Jordan and I have been working on for several weeks!  This last Winter we acquired an old dresser from some friends, and this Spring we finally finished working on it!

Jordan got an awesome Skil saw for Christmas and this thing has been very handy to have for this project (and many future projects, I'm sure)!

This is the "before" picture of the dresser.  I'm sorry I don't have a better shot but it was a little cramped in our garage.

The first task was to attach legs to the dresser.  I think the raised height looks very elegant and legs add so much character!

The bottom of the dresser had existing holes to attach legs.  I thought this was a stroke of luck but unfortunately they were very rusted and didn't seem to fit the screw size of the new legs. In the above pictures, Jordan is removing some of the old hardware underneath the dresser.

To attach the legs, Jordan used a cool attachment that could be nailed into the bottom of the dresser for more security.  I don't know what this is called but it was a pretty ingenious design.  The skil saw was perfect to make sure all the legs were even so that the dresser would be level.
Right: Almost any hardware store sells pre-made table legs in any length.  I think we opted for 6 inch legs.

I'd done a LOT of research on paint and that's probably the main reason it took us so long to tackle this project.  I absolutely wanted to avoid as much prep work as possible (motivation by laziness).  Since the dresser was stained and finished, I did NOT want to spend hours sanding that sucker.  To remedy this, we decided to use a chalk paint.  It's chalky in texture but is not necessarily chalkboard paint.  

Annie Sloan chalk paint adheres to surfaces extremely well with very minimal prep, which was right up my alley.  Annie Sloan's website, HERE, is full of tips and instruction.  She uses this paint on wood, metal, and even some fabrics!

Top Left: We used a light sanding block to grind off stubborn grime around the drawer hardware but that's just about all the sanding we had to do.  We wiped everything down with a damp cloth to make sure we didn't paint over any dust.

Top Right:  Annie Sloan's two part paint system consists of paint and then wax.  I chose her "Paris Grey" color and used a clear wax to seal our work.  Annie Sloan also offers a dark wax if you want a more antique look.

Bottom: This is a "before" picture without the drawers.

Even though we didn't have to do a lot of preparation to the surface of the dresser, there is still a lot to do to prepare our work space.  To protect the floor we put down plastic and then we had to tape each drawer and drawer slot.

Finally it was paint time!  We did a total of two coats and still have about a third quart of paint left over...perhaps there is another project in our future!

Above are a few progression pictures.  Jordan was a trooper and helped SO much!  He literally did a lot of the heavy lifting.

These pictures are after the first coat of paint.  Chalk paint tends to be thick so a little goes a long way.  The AS system allows you to thin out the paint with water so it's really flexible!

Bottom Left: Annie Sloan does not offer many colors to chose from, but I do like her color pallet.  Since she offers both a clear wax and a dark wax, you can customize the paint to fit your needs.  "Paris Grey" is the bottom left square in this color card.

After two coats of paint, two coats of clear wax, and several hours of work, we finally finished!  I also wanted to update the hardware on the drawers and I'm very happy with our choices!

We went with dark handles found from Home Depot for most of the drawers and then found some cool mercury drawer pulls from Hobby Lobby to use on the middle ornate drawers.  I'm very pleased with how the project turned out!  Above are a few close ups of the hardware.

Lastly, this is our "after" picture!  

It looks so clean and pretty!  Plus, we have all kinds of extra storage space!

Whew!  I'm glad this project is done!  Happy painting!