Dresser.

Well, ladies and gentlemen.... The time has come. The dresser is (nearly) finished!

So you've all seen this picture, and I know the anticipation of seeing what's underneath the tarp is absolutely torturous.

But, in my excitement, I forgot to take a picture before I took the drawers out (oops). Here she is though. Isn't she great? Complete with animal-themed drawer pulls.

So first, we removed the drawers and the hardware from the drawers that we were still planning on using (we are only using two of the six drawers). Then we got to sanding. Power sanders are your friend in this tedious process. And so are face masks (or in our case, dish towels tied around our mouths/noses to protect us from the dust).

I hand sanded the drawers and all the crevices that were unreachable by the power sander. You don't have to make it look perfect. Remember, it's a DIY, it doesn't have to look professional.

And here's this gem of a picture that my husband said I had to include. Anyway, moving on....

If you buy a dresser and it has these pretty little details, you'll end up hating them for the duration of the sanding/painting process. But when it's done, you'll love them again, I promise.

Then we tested the paint (....I got too anxious to wait....).

Oh, and about removing shelves.... Not the most fun I've ever had. I started by breaking the board that supported the middle drawer (it wasn't hard since it was made of pressed wood). Then I proceeded to hand saw the middle support beam (not sure what to call this, but bear with me), this part was a treat. When we finally got through the piece of wood, we hammered the sides out until it came completely off. Then we took off the tracks that the drawers slide on. This part required unscrewing one screw, and pulling the nails out from the back side. Make sure you get all the pieces, or it will really mess up your paint job.

This process with leave holes in your wood. Don't worry though, we will fill them in.

Then we cleaned her up! I vacuumed the inside, and the hubs wiped her down with a wet rag.

And then she looked like this! Not too shabby.

And then we painted. I am loving our light teal color choice! Although the pictures don't do it justice.

Then we painted the inside.

Remember those holes? We filled 'em. Make sure you sand after this step. Well, unless you like your wood to look lumpy. And then just paint her up!

Ah, look how great she is. Now we just need the drawer pulls.

Money Breakdown

Dresser........................ $40

Gallon of Paint.............. $26

Paint brushes.................$10

2 jars of Wood Putty........$7

8 knobs...................$11 (give or take)

Total.............$94

But, we have about 3/4 of a gallon of paint left (you probably only need a quart for this project), 3/4 of a jar of wood putty, and a free side table. Plus, a beautiful TV stand. And that, my friends, is priceless.

Next job is the side table. Then, curtains! Can't wait to post more about those DIY projects.