Today’s project comes from LeeAnn at Creative Moments, who always brings fresh creativity and thoughtful techniques to her refinishing work. In this guest tutorial, she takes a solid wood dresser and gives it new life using a few of her favorite Dixie Belle Paint products. From prep to paint to the final protective touches, LeeAnn shows how simple steps can turn a tired piece into something beautiful and useful again. Follow along as she walks through each stage of her process and shares helpful tips you can use on your own furniture flips.

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

Before and after of a wooden dresser makeover painted white with Chalk Mineral Paint, styled with a decorative horse figurine and plant.

In this tutorial, I’m sharing how I completely transformed a solid maple, Canadian-made dresser into a fresh, modern piece that’s both timeless and functional. Originally a tired chest of drawers, this sturdy maple beauty got a full makeover — from sanding and priming to a crisp classic white finish and new stainless steel bar and knob hardware.

The result? A clean, elegant dresser with five easy-glide drawers that looks right at home in any bedroom, guest room, or entryway. Follow along to see each step of the refinishing process and how a little paint and hardware can give solid wood furniture a brand-new life.

Wooden dresser before makeover, showing natural finish and brass hardware, photographed in a garage setting. Wooden dresser before makeover, showing natural finish and brass hardware, photographed in a garage setting.

Step 1: Clean

A deep scrub is always my first step after removing hardware and vacuuming the dresser and drawers out. I like to use white lightning cleanermixed in warm water with a dash of Dawn and scrub EVERY side of this piece then rinse well and wipe dry with a clean towel.

Several wooden dresser drawers laid out on a garage floor being cleaned and prepped for a makeover, with cleaning supplies visible.

Step 2: Sand

I sanded the drawer fronts with my Festool orbital sander ETS REQ 125 as my original plan is to expose the gorgeous maple grain.
However the original hardware has left a ghost image from being on for years and this is very hard to stain over light without it showing. Time to pivot to plan b.
Person using an electric sander to sand wooden dresser drawers in preparation for a furniture makeover.

Step 3: Paint

Plan B will be a classic white paint makeover. To assure the paint sticks well to this smooth original finish I used a smooth micro roller kit and a medium flat synthetic chip brush to apply 2 coats of white Dixie Belle Bonding Boss.
Applying a coat of white Bonding BOSS to a wooden dresser drawer using a paint roller during a DIY furniture makeover. Several dresser drawers and the main dresser body primed with white Bonding BOSS, ready for a DIY furniture makeover.
This is the newly released warm creamy white called elderflower from the Dixie Belle silk mineral paint Countryside Collection.
Open jar of Elderflower Silk All-In-One Mineral Paint surrounded by floral decoupage paper and small decorative accents, ready for a DIY project.
After the first coat of this beautiful color was brushed on with an angled 2″ synthetic brush was dry, the paint was given sanding with a 220 grit sanding sponge to keep the surface silky smooth. Then a second coat was applied followed by another sand once dry.
Sanding a painted dresser with a sanding sponge, with other drawers prepped in the background during a DIY furniture makeover.
I love this paints built in top coat and primer making it the perfect one step paint.
After the 2 coats of paint were dry I like to be sure the edges look professional removing any residual paint on the edges with my carbide scraper.

Step 4: Apply new hardware

New hardware will complete the updating makeover of this piece.
Freshly painted white dresser with silver hardware, styled with a silver horse statue on top and a potted plant beside it, showcasing a complete DIY furniture makeover. White painted tall dresser with multiple drawers and silver hardware, showing a clean DIY furniture makeover from Creative Moments.
Thank you to LeeAnn from Creative Moments for sharing this inspiring makeover and demonstrating how Dixie Belle Paint products can bring new energy to well-loved furniture. Her step-by-step process makes refinishing feel approachable for any DIYer. Be sure to check out more of her tutorials and projects for additional ideas. Whether you’re updating a small piece or tackling a full room refresh, Dixie Belle has everything you need to clean, paint, and seal with confidence.
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Bedroom, Furniture Makeovers, Guest Author, How To