Flip or Flop
Well this turned out to be a flop. I redid the dresser and this is how it turned out. I hope this version has better luck.
I picked up this small Stanley dresser on Facebook Marketplace. I tried something a little different on this one. So lets see of this is going to be a flip or a flop.
Stanley four drawer dresser before makeover.
Materials and Tools Used in this Project
Krud Kutter
Bondo Wood Filler
SurfPrep 3”x4” Electric Ray Sander
DeWALT Orbital Sander
Sherwin-Williams Emerald Interior Acrylic Latex Paint - Stone Lion Matte
Varathane Ultimate Polyurethane, Matte - Water Based
Varathane Gel Stain - Kona
Preparation
Different project, same steps. Take before pictures, clean, and sand. As always, I used Krud Kutter to give the dresser a thorough cleaning and then used a vacuum to clean the drawers and the inside of the dresser.
When I took out the drawers, I did find quite a bit of stuff left behind. Behind one drawer I found a key and fob. Hope they don’t need it! I sanded down the entire piece using my Surfprep sander starting with a 120 sanding sheet and worked my way up to 220. All that was really on this dresser was a topcoat - no stain or paint so the job was easy this time.
The dresser was really in pretty good shape except for one place towards the bottom that would need to be fixed with some bondo.
Once this is repaired, we will be ready for paint. I decided to do a tan wash on the top and the drawer faces. I used Sherwin-Williams Emerald Interior Acrylic Latex Paint - Stone Lion Matte in a 1 part paint to 4 parts water ratio. I used a gel stain from Varathane in the color Kona for the rest of the dresser. Since I used an oil based gel stain, I had to let it dry at least three days before I could top coat. I used the water based Varathane Ultimate Polyurethane in a matte finish.
Final Result
This was a pretty easy makeover for the most part. Every time I use gel stain I swear never to use it again. I am not a fan. It has a long drying time and I really don’t like how it goes on. Since it sits on top of the wood, you need to be careful how you wipe it off or it will look blotchy; at least in my experience. Maybe I just need more experience. Since I had to make a repair using bondo, regular stain will not absorb into that whereas gel stain, much like paint, will cover it up. My wife is not a fan of this one and we will see how it sells in the Tampa market. Flip or flop? We will soon find out.
