The Apple Street Cottage

Yes, another dresser has been transformed by decoupage.   I found this one on a garage sale site and it was not in the best of shape: So, out came the sander and what did I find? Poplar, not the best wood. In case you missed it the last time... Poplar is and inexpensive hardwood. The tell-tale green tint gives it away.  It is usually painted because poplar is notorious for being 'blotchy' when stained. If you'd like to see the last poplar dresser I found, you can click HERE . I began this project with new napkins.  That's right, the drawers are done with napkins.  I have a full tutorial HERE . In the interest of full-disclosure, this dresser started out with pink paint but it fought me every inch of the way.  The final result was this chocolatey (that's a word, right?) brown with the pink showing through the distressing.   I made sure to paint the edges of the drawers to give it a 'finished' look. All in all, I'm p...

It's been a bit of a whirlwind around here with cutting and sanding.  Winter will be here before we know it and it will be too cold for those activities!   So, I bring to you - this little chest of drawers that was advertised on a garage sale site: This is a small chest, only about 40 inches tall, but perfect for small-space living.  Advertised on-line, it looked like this: It had that lovely orange, 1940's look, but it was solid wood.  The original plan was to paint it black and give the drawers a lovely stain to show-off the wood grain.  Out came the sander and here's what I found: Poplar!   Poplar is and inexpensive hardwood. The tell-tale green tint gives it away.  It is usually painted because poplar is notorious for being 'blotchy' when stained.   On to Plan B!  After all, it was solid wood and and the drawers were dovetailed. The chest itself was painted with 2 coats of Ink Chalk Paint (available at ...

As you know, we sold the Cottage and moved.  Did I mention that our buyer also bought most of our furniture?  Yes, she did, and we were in dire need of someplace to put our clothes.  After much discussion, the decision was made to buy an unfinished piece for me to finish.  Since the new place is small, we started out with one unfinished chest of drawers. This is how it was delivered: Yes, I forgot to take that 'before' picture again, so I had to find an image online! The top was stained with dark walnut stain, followed up with 3 coats of satin polycrylic. I know you've heard me say I'm not a fan of polycrylic, but that's for tables that get heavy use.  (If you want to read that sad story, click HERE ).  Since this is a dresser, polycrylic is a great choice. Once the top was done, I primed and then painted the dresser in Silver Lining Chalk Paint.  Before I started the drawers, I brushed some walnut stain on those edges so it would...