My Dressing Table Reno

I am so in love with my updated dressing table!

I have had an old Target dressing table for a while and while it was nice, the quality was a little lacking. Finally the leg broke off if it when I moved it and I knew that I needed a super high quality piece that would stand up to abuse and always look beautiful.

So, after some convincing my mother gave me her mother's old dressing table that had been hiding out in their shed for years. If you want to talk about something that stands up to the test of time take a look at this beauty.

Yup, I'm not even sure what that white stuff on there is, but it was caked on. There was a mirror on the top, but the wood was peeling off, and I may have used too much water when washing it, because I couldn't get it back into the slots. So, in the interest of safety I've put it into storage in hopes I'll get back to it and repair it later. And, after a little cleaning and some test paints I settled on a blue grey paint.

After a few coats (I'm an avid spray painter) it was looking good, but I realized that there was just too much grey. So after about five colors (yeah, I tested that many) I decided that I wanted to add a pop of color to the small drawers on the table.

And here's the final product! I went with the gold drawers and added in glass knobs to make things a bit more girly. I also put plexiglass on the two sides to protect them from spills and drops. I'm so happy with the outcome!

This Chair Right Here

Is my favorite project.

And I know you aren't supposed to have favorites, but I do, and this is one of them ...

It's a papasan that I got a yard sale for FOUR DOLLARS.

That's right kids. Four dollars. Buying one in the store now would set you back at least $250. And while I did spend more than I may have wanted to on getting it back in shape, the investment was well worth it.

This is what it looked like when I purchased it from an older gentleman who just wanted it out of his way.

Yeah, so not my style. I asked my mother for her thoughts on it and she followed the "some things should be left classic" route. It's one of the few times I disagreed with her.

So after some soul searching I decided to go for mint green with a white cushion. I have been so into mint and ice green lately. Not really sure why though.

So for this project I went a different route and decided on the spray primer. This was way above my hand painting skill set. So after a few light coats of primer and Valspar spray paint I ended up with this little beauty.

I have to say I'm kind of in love with how it turned out. I'm going to have to update it with some daylight pictures as I am just not feeling the view right now. 

I need some photography lessons!

I hope you love it as much as I do!

Love,

The Budget Home Blogger

My New Red Desk!

Ok, so this took me WAY too long, but I finally got around to finishing my red desk! I was looking for something to put into our loft to make it look more "finished" and I was having the worst time.

I went to Pinterest and started looking at desks. These are my inspiration. But they were expensive.

So I went to my old faithful. Summer yard sales and started shopping. I started with this great desk:



I found it at a home where I'm still regretting not getting the awesome dressing table I found, but that's for a whole other day.

It took a few months, but I finally found time to work on it as it got a little warmer. By work on it I mean prime it and let it sit on a table in our workshop.

I like to hand paint primer even though I am an avid spay painter. I've done a few pieces with a brush or roller, but as I am sooo not a professional it never comes out right. 

Spray paint works for me once you get a great coat of primer down. I also use a finishing gloss to add shine and protection. 

While I try my best to wait between coats, I usually only give it about an hour or so to dry. With the finishing coats you can do thin ones pretty close together. I say use the manufacture instructions as they know best.

But as the weather got cooler and I lost prime spray painting time I decided to get it moving, and after a couple cans of red paint it was finished!

Here is a look at the finial project:

I have a post coming later about the chair. It's most likely to be called "Don't Spray Paint in the Cold"

I'm so happy with how it turned out, and while it's mostly a show piece I love how functional it looks and the gold and red work really nice together.

Love,
The Budget Home Blogger