I was browsing the Habitat for Humanity ReStore one day, as I often do, and a dresser caught my eye. The store employee told me they had just put her out, and I knew she wouldn’t last long. I debated the entire drive home, since we already had so many projects going on, but I loved this dresser! I emailed The Boy to ask when Cindy (the truck) was available, and called as soon as I got home to buy her. Here she is on her way home:

I am not sure why all furniture is female, but that is just the way it is. I always get very excited about starting a new project, and forget to take good “before” pictures, so this is the best I’ve got. Sorry! The back is stamped with “R. H. Macy & Co. N.Y.C” which you might know today as Macy’s. I made sure it wasn’t an Antiques Roadshow make-me-a-millionaire antique, and although it isn’t, it is definitely a neat piece of Americana. The drawers get subtly larger as you go down, and smell faintly of cedar. I really debated what to do with the dresser for quite a while, because the veneer is beautiful, but was in pretty rough shape. Gradient color is very popular right now – I did it with the changing table and really like it – but I thought it would be a shame to paint all of this beautiful veneer. When I inspected further and realized that the drawer fronts were in pretty good shape, I decided to paint the base of the dresser white, and do gradient on the drawers – in stain! Then it was time to work.

I sanded the base just to smooth it out, and sanded the drawers enough to remove the finish, being careful not to sand too much (veneer is thin!). The Boy even got in on the action:

I wanted to see the different stains on the wood to decide which ones to use, so I sanded part of the top of the dresser, and The Boy played bartender.

I was smitten. The base was painted, the drawers were stained, and I swooned. It really turned out great. I picked very small and subtle drawer pulls, so they would not stand out. I took a few pictures without the flash, since it shows the true stain colors better, but then I took a few with the flash.

I love the way it turned out, and I would love to keep it, but we don’t have anywhere to put it. Although I cannot name her, my suggestion to her new owner would be Shades of Stain.

Shades of Stain is for sale!