I am going to be completely honest with you, when I look for furniture, I make sure the pieces have good bones. The outside condition doesn’t really matter to me, I go into this KNOWING I want to paint it. Rarely do I look for pieces that I don’t want to paint. This however was the exception. She needed a little love but not the paint kind of love.

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The first order of business is to clean this huge piece of furniture. This is what they call a knockdown wardrobe. I come apart in pieces for easier transport and to fit the smaller staircases and hallways of European homes.

How to Update an Antique Wardrobe

Dixie Belle’s White Lightning is what I used to clean this piece. I went over it twice with this solution, making two separate batches of the cleaner. Man was she dirty!! After you clean a piece of furniture you need to ALWAYS go over it with clean water to remove any residual cleaner left. As a result you will have a better surface for paint or wax to adhere to.

How to Update an Antique Wardrobe

Next, it was time to use the NEW Big Mama’s Butta in Orange Grove. My home has smelled of citrusy goodness for days now, so really this was a two fold operation. One, refresh and rejuvenate the wood. Two, get it un-musty while making g my home smell divine. Okay that was three wasn’t it? Anyways I digress.

How to Update an Antique Wardrobe

The next step was to highlight this pieces details. Of course I didn’t want to use paint so while the Big Mama’s Butta was still wet I worked some magic with the gilding wax. Therefore giving the piece a glowing look.

For more details on this updated beauty, head to Bella Renovare by Crys’Dawna here.

How to Update an Antique Wardrobe

About the Author

Dixie Belle Paint Company

Dixie Belle Paint Company provides a line of chalk mineral paint that is high quality, easy to use, and most importantly priced so every DIYer can create and discover the joy of painting.

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