Mr. Q and I picked up this dresser the eve before Christmas Eve, and it couldn’t have gone more smoothly.  I was taking a bit of a leap because the craigslist ad for this one had one tiny, dark picture that just showed about half of the dresser, and one line of text that said “Old dresser for sale.”  And that was it.  But the price was right, and it was only about 20 minutes away, so we went for it.

I love these kinds of CL transactions.  I show up on time (I always try to show up on time), the seller is waiting for me, the dresser is empty and ready to go (in this case, already sitting out in the breezeway), I look it over, the drawers work, the hardware is all there.  I hand over the cash, we load it up, and are heading back home, all literally within about five minutes.  Slick.  And I came home with this.

It was in fairly decent shape, but the finish on the top was looking pretty rough.  There are a couple of spots with veneer problems too.  Definitely nothing that a little paint and wax can’t fix though.

I knew right away that this was the perfect candidate for milk paint.  It needed a chippy, distressed, authentic farmhouse finish.  For some reason I really felt like going with a lighter color on this one.  I’ve done a lot of black lately, and maybe because it has been so gloomy here, I just needed to lighten up.  So I decided to mix up another batch of the mint green milk paint that I used on the minty fresh vanity last summer.

I think it helped create the perfect vintage look for this one.

I considered highlighting some of the detail with white paint, but once I had it painted I realized that I prefer the way the design looks all in one color.  It reminds me of a butterfly.

  The top had to be stripped, even if I was going to paint it.  There were numerous water rings whose outlines would have shown through the paint.  Once I had the finish stripped, the wood was so pretty I decided to just wax it with the CeCe Caldwell dark wax.

This was my first effort at stripping something other than just a flat surface (because of that detailed back piece), and I was very happy with the result.  You probably don’t remember this, but one of my New Year’s resolutions for 2014 was to work on my stripping skills (ha!) and I feel like they have come a long way this year.

Are you digging my vintage wallpaper background?  I have to chuckle a little, but just last week my friend Sue and I both admitted that we have a problem in common.  We both tend to hang onto our favorite ‘supplies’ rather than using them.  Do you do that?  Sort of hoard those things that really speak to you, even though you just keep them stored away somewhere?  This wallpaper is one of those things.  I really love it, so I hesitate to actually use it on something.  The color was perfect for behind this dresser though, and I’m still considering using it to line the drawers … except I’m not sure I can part with it.

In fact, I would prefer not to part with this dresser either.  In case you haven’t noticed, this is exactly my style.  Vintage, with a little bit of curvy feminine detail.  Just enough chipping to look aged without being over the top.  Yep, I love it.  But, there is no room in the inn, so this one will have to be sold.

Oh, one last thing, did you notice the original drawer pulls?  Their shape mirrors the shape of the raised detail on the upper two drawers.  I had to keep them for that reason, even though I considered replacing them with clear glass knobs.

So, what do you think of a little fresh wintergreen for brightening up some otherwise rather dull winter days?