10 Quick Tips to Refinishing a Used Dresser

Have you seen the latest trend of refinishing and repurposing old and used dressers or furniture? It's a lot of fun to give new life to old treasures.

My husband and I inherited my Mom's old desk from when she was growing up. It is a beautiful Oak, but was once covered in a thick shellac and out dated. After hours of scraping, sanding, and restaining, the desk was once again beautiful and 6 years later, we still use it!

Through that refinishing adventure and Whittney's experience, we have come up with 10 quick tips to refinishing those pieces that need a facelift.

Here we go!

1. Get relaxed. Let your creative juices flow! Listen to your favorite music, sing, and dance around! Don't stress about what the end result is going to be, enjoy your time creating, and let it happen.

2. Choose colors that you like. Pick something that you want to use as inspiration, whether it is a pillow, a piece of fabric, a chair, or a picture. Use something that you love the colors, style and feel of, it will help you stay on track to your goal and give you a general direction as you work.

3. Give yourself plenty of time! Don't set a due date that is unreasonable. Always be realistic, you don't want to you add stress because you just don't have time to finish everything, always remember, it takes time for paint to dry, you might not be able to finish with wet paint.

4. Work in a well ventilated area. Don't give yourself a headache, or make anyone in your home sick by painting with all the doors and windows closed. Make sure you open everything up to get those powerful fumes outside!

5. Don't be afraid of distressing. Paint one color as your base coat, and use a contrasting color as your main color, then sand away the top coat in some areas to bring out that base coat color! Don't be afraid of sanding those edges, and flat surfaces.

6. Accessorize with fun knobs! Show your personality with decorative knobs, or exciting designs on your piece.

7. Don't be afraid to start over. If you start disliking where your creation is headed, start again! Don't settle, take a step back, refocus, and begin again. Maybe the second try it will be just what you imagined!

8. Add surprises! Put colorful wallpaper on the sides of drawers, so when you open them, there is a pop of color, or a fun design to add to the total effect.

9. It doesn't have to be perfect. Imperfection is key. Distressing, and showing your personality is going to give you the opportunity to loosen up and truly enjoy yourself.

10. HAVE FUN! Don't worry or stress, creating your masterpiece is your time to be creative, get dirty, and laugh.

And just for fun...

11. Show it off! Don't forget to display your newly revamped piece proudly. Decorate it and show it off to everyone. You are going to be the envy of all of your friends!

I hope that this list is helpful, and that it gets you excited to work on your own project you've been putting off. Jump in feet first, and show us your finished products!