If you love timeless charm with a bold twist, this project is for you! In today’s guest blog, Lee Ann from Creative Moments takes an ornate vintage dresser and gives it a brand-new look with rich color, elegant detail, and all the character you’d expect from a true one-of-a-kind piece. Using her favorite Dixie Belle Paint products, she shows how creativity and a few thoughtful design choices can completely transform an old dresser into a stunning showstopper.

(The following is an excerpt from Creative Moments. Read the full article here.)  

These ornate dressers always catch my eye knowing they will be stunning painted.

Ornate vintage wooden dresser with intricate carved details and decorative metal hardware, shown in a workshop setting.

Step 1: Clean

First step was to remove the hardware, crazy how much lint and fluff accumulated underneath the hardware over the years.
Close-up of a hand holding vintage ornate drawer hardware removed from a wooden dresser drawer, showing the back of the hardware and screw holes.

Once the drawers were removed. the inside was vacuumed out well.

Vacuuming the interior of a wooden dresser to remove dust and debris during furniture restoration.

Then it was time to give a deep scrub. I mix white lightning cleaner in a bucket of warm water with a bit of Dawn dish soap. Using rags and scrub brushes I get in every nook and cranny inside and out, top and bottom to be sure all the past dust, dirt and grime is gone. Wipe with clean water for a final step.

A wooden dresser in a workshop being cleaned with a red bucket of soapy water and cleaning cloth nearby during furniture restoration. Close-up of a hand wearing a pink glove cleaning or scrubbing an ornate wooden drawer front with a blue brush, surrounded by multiple similar drawer fronts in a workshop.

The hardware was scrubbed well too, rinsed and dried well.

Close-up of a hand wearing a pink glove holding an ornate brass drawer pull and scrubbing it with a blue brush over a red bucket filled with soapy water in a sink.

Step 2: Prime

The edges were sanded with a  sanding sponge to be sure everything is smooth. The sanding dust was wiped with the damp cloth.

Person wearing pink gloves sanding the inside frame of a wooden dresser during furniture restoration.

It was now ready to add color – or is black actually no color or is that white and black is all colors mixed?
Ornate vintage wooden dresser with intricate carved details and decorative metal hardware, shown in a workshop setting.
This is the first time I am going to spray Dixie Belle Paint products.
NOTE: While the dresser was on its back on the furniture mover I hand painted the base with the grey Dixie Belle Bonding BOSS to be sure everything was covered on the underside.
Using a paint filter cone the gray Dixie Belle Bonding BOSS was poured thru it to be sure nothing will clog the sprayer. A bit of water was added to the primer as well.
The primer was then sprayed on the dresser and left to dry 24 hours.
Hand pouring Dixie Belle BOSS into a plastic container next to an open jar of BOSS and a cordless power drill, set on a black paint tray on a washing machine. Gray primed dresser with ornate carved front panels, elevated on two wooden blocks, set against a white fabric backdrop.

Step 3: Paint

Anchor Dixie Belle Silk Mineral Paint was put in the Wagner Flexio 5000 paint sprayer tub using a fresh paint filter cone.
Open jar of black Silk All-In-One Mineral Paint labeled "Anchors" next to a white container with paper funnel, wooden stir stick inside paint jar, on a black tray near a washing machine control panel.
This is the first coat sprayed on.
Long wooden dresser painted glossy black with detailed carved panels, resting on wood blocks inside a spray paint booth.
As you can see there are some lighter areas but a second coat was sprayed on after first coat dried.
Long wooden dresser painted glossy black with detailed carved panels, resting on wood blocks inside a spray paint booth.
The drawers were pulled out and using a small flat synthetic brush,  Anchor Silk Mineral Paint was brushed all around the drawer edges. This was repeated for two coats as well.
Hand holding paintbrush applying black paint to the front of a wooden drawer, the inside of the drawer is natural wood, dresser painted black.
I actually chose to take the drawers completely out to paint these edges.
This also allowed for the dresser body to have the inner edges painted as well. All these details give a professional feel to the finished paint job.
Hand holding paintbrush applying black paint to the tops of three wooden dresser drawer fronts in a workshop setting. Hand holding a paintbrush applying black Silk All-In-One Mineral Paint to an ornately carved wooden dresser drawer front in a workshop.

Step 4: Apply Big Mama’s Butta

To make the drawers slide with ease, Big Mama’s Butta was brushed on the drawer runners using a dedicated  La Petite Brush.
Did I mention it comes if lovely smells too? This one is orange grove.
Hand holding a paintbrush applying Big Mama's Butta protective finish to the inside edge of a drawer in a wooden dresser.
The drawers were put back in place and the giant dresser moved to my garage doors for a bit of staging seeing hauling it into my house to stage photos would be a lot of work and increases chances of dings while the paint is fresh.
Black painted wooden dresser with ornate raised panels and decorative gold accents, styled with two small topiary plants and a candle holder on top.
We hope you’re as inspired as we are by this incredible vintage dresser makeover from Lee Ann at Creative Moments! Her eye for detail and love of color shine through in every brushstroke. Whether you’re drawn to the bold finish or the carefully layered design, this piece is a reminder of what’s possible with a little vision and the right products. Be sure to follow Lee Ann for more beautiful transformations, and explore all the tools she used by visiting your local Dixie Belle Paint retailer or shopping online!
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Bedroom, Furniture Makeovers, Guest Author, How To