![\"Lemon](\"http:\/\/ridiculousredhead.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/09\/Lemon-dresser-makeover-ridiculous-redhead-before-.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\nSince I couldn’t strip it while pregnant, I sanded everything down. \u00a0That of course is my least favorite job and after, I realized that the sander was right by my belly – and the kid’s head! \u00a0On the bright side he sleeps through lots of noise now. \u00a0Here is a picture of one of the drawers so you can see the grime and ruined finish.<\/p>\n
Once I started sanding I realized that the old finish\/grime covered up all of the grain in the wood. \u00a0Many times furniture is finished to minimize grain but I really love to show that off. \u00a0I remember running into the house covered in sawdust with a big belly yelling about how pretty the grain was. \u00a0Don’t worry, I wore a mask since usually the most toxic part of my job is dealing with the old stuff I’m taking off.<\/p>\n And here is the after in Lincoln’s room. \u00a0It took me so long to take pictures because by the time I got it in the room he was almost here. And then I was kind of busy.<\/p>\n Here is a shot with all the baby stuff set up: the changing pad, the spray bottle for the cloth wipes, the coconut oil (used as tushie cream) and the box with his cloth diapers. And yes that is a wine crate. \u00a0I worried people would comment on using wine paraphernalia in a babies room but then I decided I didn’t care. \u00a0It was the perfect size and it wasn’t like there was still liquor in it. \u00a0I have two of these and will one day make them into some kind of furniture. It used a sheet of cork underneath so it didn’t scratch the top.<\/p>\n The other thing I realized when i was sanding the dresser was it is solid maple. \u00a0That sounds and is awesome to a point. \u00a0 It’s great that is will take the abuse of a\u00a0little kid banging on it but\u00a0maple is a hard wood and can be a lot more work to sand than pine. . \u00a0It also doesn’t take stain no matter what you do to it. In the pictures above you can see a bit of the dark baseboard trim that I refinished a couple of years ago. \u00a0That has two coats of stain and is many shades darker than the dresser that received three! \u00a0The dresser looked so dark until I brought it in next to the baseboards.<\/p>\n By then I didn’t care. \u00a0This thing weighs a ton and the only place I could work on it got sun at points of the day. \u00a0If the wood was still warm and I applied stain, it would almost cook and dry in place even if I sprayed it with water first. \u00a0That meant I couldn’t spread it out or wipe off the excess. \u00a0That meant that I sanded and stained the top three times. \u00a0Yes three. \u00a0I think I ended up applying 7 or 8 coats of stains over the course of the project. \u00a0Thank God it was real wood and not veneer so I had some wiggle room. \u00a0Here is the top once it was finished with all the grain I was so happy about.<\/p>\n Here is more grain on the drawers.<\/p>\n I know it’s not for everyone but I really just love the natural beauty of wood. \u00a0I used Safecoat Durostain in Walnut and Vermont Natural Coatings Polywhey in layers of gloss and satin because I couldn’t decide.<\/p>\n The handles were a point of stress for awhile and still haven’t been worked out. \u00a0I wanted something more modern to match the rest of the nursery but the holes for the hardware are an old size and hard to find. \u00a0Since there are so many drawers it could have cost $150 for hardware! \u00a0My mom and I tried to be inventive because we like to be resourceful. \u00a0We\u00a0frustrated all the boys at Home Depot and Lowe’s who thought we were crazy while standing in the plumbing aisle trying to match copper fittings together. \u00a0We hadn’t found the perfect solution and it was getting too close to a baby so I painted the old hardware with CeCe Caldwell’s Beckley Coal and Vermont Naturals floor finish in satin. \u00a0It works for now but now that I am writing about this I’m getting enough ideas to drive TB crazy.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Linking up at:<\/p>\n My Repurposed Life<\/a><\/p>\n Redoux Interiors<\/a><\/p>\n Miss Mustard Seed<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n