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Old World Dresser

by

I call this piece my Old World Dresser.

 

 

My eye is always drawn to unique pieces of furniture, particularly ones I know are hand-painted. Wisteria magazine, for me, is a heavenly walk down painted~furniture lane. I was recently inspired by this one, and this one.  No doubt you can see their inspiration in this Old World Dresser.
This piece is one of those rare finds in my area, an original Drexel Heritage.  The lines are beautiful, most of the hardware was there, but it needed quite a bit of detail work before I could paint it.

One side was missing a trim piece, so rather than try to mimic the original, my husband removed the piece that was left and fashioned two new, matching pieces of trim instead.  His attention to detail continually impresses me…just look at that beveled edge.

The top of the dresser was laminate (why ever why, I just don’t know) and the edges were ripped off.  We puzzled over what to do for quite awhile before opting to wrap the laminate with mdf trimwork.  Although not as durable is a good solid piece of wood, this solution provided a beautiful tie-in with the other detailed lines of the piece, and it also gave me an architecturally interesting surface on which to paint.

 

But wait…there is more.  A little rectangular detail was also missing from the left front leg…no worries if you have a talented, willing Fix-It man at your house.

After some filler and paint, you would never know it was different.
I’ve painted quite a few pieces of furniture now and am noticing a difference in the way I approach this past-time I call my art. Can I share with you for a minute?
One, I’m becoming bolder in what techniques I will try, ie, waxing, distressing differences, playing around with brushstrokes.
Yes, brushstrokes.  Did you even know there were differences? 🙂
Two, I recognize a willingness to allow the art inside of me to express itself even if the original idea seems impractical, time-consuming, or risky.  This recently new freedom is bringing its own sense of fulfillment and contentment as I learn to value the art I create instead of seeing it as extraneous to my more “important” tasks.
I can’t help but think each of these differences will produce beautiful works, the purpose for which Ephesians 2:10 says we are artfully created by God.
That said, this dresser was a different process for me in that I allowed myself to branch out and do some new things, like crosshatching my brushstrokes for more texture and handpainting in and around the drawer panels.

 

I also played around some more with Annie Sloan Dark Wax.  I ultimately Dark Waxed this entire piece ~ a risky stretch for me (I’m conservative by  nature), but strangely liberating as well.  In the risking, I learned so much about how to apply it, how it works with a good brush, and when/how to buff as you go.

An invaluable experience, really.

I’m thankful today for the way God is showing me the vast depths I’ve yet to learn ~
yet even more grateful for His abundant grace for teaching me at all.
Jaimee

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  1. Melanie, LostandFoundDecor.com says

    It's gorgeous! And looks exactly like that beautiful dresser from Wisteria that I was actually drooling over just last night. I'm impressed with all the wood work repair you did also. Did you happen to share what colors you used? Maybe I just missed it. If not, I would love to know. Thanks!

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