A Beautiful Bright and Modern Bassett Dresser Makeover

A beautiful vintage Bassett dresser gets a fresh modern look with a high contrast, two-tone makeover. 

I know, I know, many of you are cringing and shaking your head at the thought of painting a gorgeous vintage Bassett dresser.  Believe me, I had all intentions of leaving this beautiful piece in its original condition, but sadly there was a little too much damage on the body and bottom drawers to leave it as is.   There were also a few knicks on the top three drawers, but the detail on those drawers was just too pretty to cover up.  Giving this classic piece a two-tone makeover was the best of both worlds and allowed me to keep some of the beautiful original wood while giving it a fresh modern makeover.

I really loved this piece in our entryway and wanted to keep it (surprise, surprise!), but figured it probably wasn't the best idea since I recently kept the gorgeous oak dresser.  I have such a bad habit of wanting to keep every piece I update, but I guess it's a good thing that I love what I do, right? 

SUPPLIES USED TO TRANSFORM A VINTAGE BASSETT DRESSER

Affiliate links have been used 

- General Finishes Snow White

- General Finishes Finishing Wax

- Dewalt Orbital Sander

- 100 grit sanding pads

- Zinser Shellac Primer

- 2 1/2" Purdy paint brush

- Inexpensive paint brush (for primer)

- Lint free rag or wax brush

- Old English for dark woods

- Simple Green

- Paper towels

I was on my way home from buying lockers when I decided to stop in Goodwill to see what they had.  To my surprise, I spotted this beautiful Bassett dresser that I was no way leaving without.  I snapped a picture of the price tag then half ran to the cashier to pay for it before anyone else did.  Determined to bring it home that day, I literally rope-a-doped it on top the lockers and carefully drove home.   Let me tell you, that was a STRESSFUL 20 minute drive, but I made it home with everything in one piece. 

The top of the dresser is laminate (as is most MCM Bassett dressers), so I needed to rough it up a little before painting.  I used my Dewalt orbital sander and 100 grit sandpaper and lightly sanded the body of the dresser as well as the four bottom drawers.

Since I was painting the dresser bright white, I added two coats of my favorite primer before applying 4 (yes, FOUR!) coats of General Finishes Snow White.

I finished off the dresser with a coat of finishing wax then touched up the wood with Old English for dark wood.   I ended up using the Old English AFTER taking pictures, but trust me when I say it made a huge difference and blended in the knicks and brightened the wood beautifully.  This stuff is seriously amazing!

Earlier this week I shared my favorite sources and tips for buying used furniture and I mentioned that I always look for dovetail drawers.  The beauty of Bassett dressers is that they usually always have dovetail drawers, which makes them such a great quality vintage piece.

I really do love how this vintage Bassett dresser turned out.  The two-tone gives it a modern feel while still keeping some of the original vintage vibes.  It was so hard to move it out from my entry and back into the garage, but I know it will make a beautiful addition in its new home.

Are you interested in buying this piece?  It will be available July 20th-22nd at Sweet Clover Barn in Frederick, MD. 

SWEET CLOVER BARN

4051 STANFORD CT

FREDERICK, MD 

     

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