Hi Friends!
When I find a piece of furniture to refinish, I have several options – paint, stain, paint/stain combo, or leave the original finish as is. For example, mid century modern pieces often have wood veneer that is exceptionally beautiful. Even though painting the entire piece would be lovely, as a very general rule, I like to refinish the wood – at least in part – when possible. On the contrary, there are certain styles that I believe look most beautiful painted. In my opinion, French Provincial furniture fits into the latter category. Those pieces are elegant, sophisticated and the perfect candidates for paint.
When I spotted this French Provincial lovely at the Goodwill, I knew exactly what I was going to do with it. Yep, paint. Here it is getting ready to go in my spray tent.
Before
This dresser was in great shape, with the exception of the usual bumps and bruises to the existing finish. It is made by Unagusta and is from the Sans Souci collection (which means “without worry”). Just a beautifully crafted piece.
Steps
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I removed the hardware, and then prepped the piece as usual. I primed with Zinsser B-I-N Primer Sealer and then sprayed two coats of Benjamin Moore Advance in a color called “Silky Smooth.” I love this color! It is a very soft, subtle and creamy blush. It’s very warm and not at all juvenile, although it would be gorgeous in a nursery. It pairs well with cream, gray, and black. I used a satin finish, which has the perfect amount of sheen for this piece.
I cleaned up the pulls with Brasso Metal Polish and now they really stand out against the lighter color.
After
This dresser came with a large mirror. I decided to paint the mirror to coordinate with the pulls. I used DecoArt Elegant Finish Metallics in Champagne Gold
I’m not always a fan of attached mirrors, but I think this mirror looks fantastic with the dresser. I actually prefer it with the mirror. It has brackets on the back so it can easily be removed and reattached. It also has D rings on the back, so it could be hung separately on a wall.
I hope your week is off to a good start.
Take care, friends.
Susan
Linking with A Designer at Home
Susan, this is absolutely lovely! I’m personally a fan of the mirror! Would you mind telling me what kind of sprayer you have? The finish looks perfect! Great transformation!
Hi Susan,
I have the same question about the type of sprayer you use. The dresser looks lovely, the finish is perfect. I’m gathering information on re-finishing furniture and have a very large project to re-finish my complete bedroom suite. Have’t done anything like this before, but an excited to see what I can do. Just makes sense to recycle instead of throwing out!
Hi Susan,
This is absolutely gorgeous! I do love how you painted the mirror to match the pulls, fantastic! Is this piece for sale by chance?
Hi! Thanks so much! Yes, the dresser and mirror are for sale. Listed on Seattle Craigslist today.
Absolutely Stunning Susan!! I haven’t yet ventured into spraying, but with pieces like this it may be sooner than later!! Thanks for inspiring!
Maxine
I’m not a big fan of mirrors but I think the contrast of the paint on the mirror with the dresser is beautiful. So pretty.
I just love it. I am a single mom and am new to updating furniture which is quite different from painting walls. I am using one of your two tone pieces like you I love to see the grain in the wood and I didn’t want to paint everything black. I have ordered my General Finishes and excited to start. I am studying your instructions as your pieces are absolutely beautiful!
That is great! Yes, painting furniture is very different from painting walls. You picked great products – General Finishes is amazing. Don’t hesitate to drop me a line if you have questions. Good luck!
Gorgeous piece, Susan! Tell me, have you had any problems with BM Advance and the long dry times? I still struggle with tiny floating airborne lint landing in my drying finish – be it paint or topcoat. And I am not using finishes that take 24 hours to fully dry! I am spraying in a booth now so should be minimizing this problem. I do have an outtake fan and a screened air source but those tiny lint guys landing on my projects are definitely frustrating! I haven’t tried Advance but have a gallon of it ready to go!
Hi Jennifer! I don’t really mind the long dry times with Advance since I rarely have time to do more than one coat in a day anyway. I occasionally have issues with lint, etc but using a booth does help.
Hi Susan! This is such a beautiful work you have done. The finish on the dresser is so perfect, did you use any top coat for the glossy look or did the silky smooth is a glossy finish itself? I have a large French provencial dresser need to refurbished. was looking for same kind of finish. I would appreciate your help in this
Thank you, Salima! A topcoat is not necessary with Benjamin Moore Advance. Once cured, it is quite durable. I did not topcoat this piece. I do add a topcoat when I know that a piece will get extra wear, like a desk or table. In those cases, I topcoat with General Finishes High Performance topcoat, which is water based and does not yellow. I hope that helps. Good luck with your project! Susan
Hello. I am hoping to restore my mother’s french provinicial bedroom set to use in my daughter’s bedroom. The wood is in excellent structural condition, but my younger sister (who has special needs) used sharpie pen and duct tape all over the dressers. Can you help me with tips for fixing it up? I would be so grateful. It is a very special and sentimental bedroom set.
Hi Amelia, So lucky for you to have a great French provincial set from your mother! Restoring it is a great way to honor her. As you can imagine, each piece of furniture is unique and the steps to restoration are different for each one. The steps also depend on what you would like to do with it. I have lots of tips and instructions on my blog that can hopefully help you. Thanks for stopping by! Susan
I love the color of your walls!! Would you mind sharing what shade it is?
Thank you! The paint color is Benjamin Moore “Pale Smoke.”
What about the trim color around the window next to the dresser?
Hi Charyl – the trim color is a custom color, but very close to Benjamin Moore “Cloud White.”
Hi, Susan!
I was wondering, when you say that you prepped the piece as usual, what do you mean? Is there any sanding involved? I have a few French Provincial pieces that I’d like to redo, but I was hoping there wouldn’t be any sanding involved, although, I’m pretty sure there will need to be, especially on the tops of the pieces as they don’t seem to be real wood.
Hi Mandy – My usual prep is cleaning, vacuuming, filling gouges/scratches with wood filler, sanding and priming with stain blocking adhesion primer like BIN. A good final finish on painted pieces really depends on the prep work. I highly recommend taking your time and doing a good prep before you even start painting. The amount of sanding you need to do really depends on the piece. Good luck with your project! Susan
Hey, Susan, your piece was so beautiful I was inspired to rehab my own! I wish there was a way for me to attach a picture! However, I love the flower arrangements and I am trying to locate the vase, where did you find it, or what is the name? I appreciate the assistance 😊
Hi Brittney! I am so happy to hear that I inspired you to rehab your own furniture. That means so much to me. The vase is from many years ago (more than 10) from Restoration Hardware. You might be able to find something similar if you search for “vintage flower bucket.” Thanks so much for taking the time to leave your kind comments! Susan
Hi Susan,
I loved your piece so much I was inspired to rehab my own!! I wish there was a way for me to upload pictures! However I loved you flower arrangements you used and have been trying to locate them! Would be be able to tell me what type of vases you used or where you bought them?