A couple of weeks ago nnK (my neighbor across the street) purchased this mid-century modern dresser via Craigslist.
Once she got it home though, she asked me if I wanted to buy it from her and paint it. I’m not sure why she decided not to keep it herself. Perhaps because the finish was in kind of disgusting condition.
Sure, it looks OK in that photo, but here’s a close up that gives you a better idea of how gross it was.
Can you see all of that grime on there? It had also been written on a few times and had plenty of scratches and dings. All of this is by way of saying that often a piece can look pretty good from a distance in the ‘before’ photo while up close and personal it looks pretty bad.
As nnK handed the dresser over to me she suggested I paint it in Fusion’s Park Bench, my favorite shade of green for mid-century pieces. But I’ve got a different piece that I’m currently painting in Park Bench, so I told her I wanted to paint this one pink. She wasn’t too thrilled with that idea. In fact, at first she tried to tell me that I could paint it any color but pink.
However, I’m pretty sure that she knows me well enough by now to know that once something belongs to me, I’ll do whatever I want to with it.
So I handed her the cash for it, and then I painted it pink!
Well, technically, first I sanded it down and cleaned off all of the grime with some Krud Kutter kitchen degreaser. Then I painted it pink.
This is Fusion’s English Rose, but I prefer to call it Millennial Pink (simply so that I can jump on that bandwagon since it’s so popular right now).
I used some Brasso to clean up the original hardware and it shined up quite nicely.
My Vanilla Strawberry hydrangea is covered in flowers this year, so obviously I had to use some of them to style these photos.
The flowers start out white and gradually turn pink over time.
The colors in the hydrangea were a perfect match for the colors in the caladium that I have in one of my window boxes, so I had to add a sprig of that too.
Thank you to Fusion for providing the paint that made this makeover possible.
I have another mid-mod piece in the works this weekend, but I also have another piece I’m working on that is much more ‘me’. So be sure to check back next week!
Oh, and remember, if you are local and in need of a Millennial Pink mid-mod dresser, be sure to check my ‘available for local sale‘ page for more details.
q is for quandie 
It’s beautiful. MCM is never going to go with anything I have in my house, but you certainly do fabulous job of trying to change my mind. I loved seeing your flower arrangement too. It’s so pretty.
LikeLike
Thank you Becky!
LikeLike
Fun color for that big old dresser. I love the little pointy drawer pulls, too! As usual you did an outstanding job turning Cinderella into a fairy princess. I love those hydrangeas, do you dry them for inside arrangements or wreaths? Thanks for sharing, would you mind telling us which pieces have sold recently?
LikeLike
I currently have a bunch of dried hydrangeas in a large wooden toolbox in my dining room window (but have plans to change that up this weekend actually). I also use the hydrangeas in my window boxes and planters outside for the winter (you can see how I use them here). As for which pieces have sold, as I mentioned on Monday I only sold one piece in July. That was the small grey table with the stenciled top. Then the first week in August I sold that gorgeous black bed, as well as a dresser I’d had on hand for almost a year(this one)! And after writing Monday’s post, this week I sold two pieces. The glass fronted bookcase and the midnight blues dresser. So things are looking up! And as you can see, all 4 of the pieces I’ve sold recently are more vintage farmhouse style rather than mid-mod. I already have a potential buyer lined up for the grey mid-mod pieces that I shared on Monday though (fingers crossed, you never know with Craigslist), so I still have to say that those pieces seem to sell more quickly. So I think I’ll continue to paint a mixture of styles!
LikeLike
What a beautiful shade of pink! It looks so soft and pretty. I love the shape of the piece too. Wonderful makeover Linda. 😊
LikeLike
Thank you Monica! It is a lovely shade of pink. Not too pepto bismol.
LikeLike
I would have never thought about using pink on a piece like this, but it is absolutely beautiful!.And that flower arrangement is breathtaking. What type of brush did you use on this?
LikeLike
Thank you so much Monica! I love pink on the mid-mod’s (here’s another that I did earlier this year). I am a simple gal when it comes to brushes. I just use Purdy brushes from the hardware store. For this piece I used a Purdy with nylon bristles, the 2″ Nylox angled brush.
LikeLike
I loved this post today. I too am painting a MCM dresser and I am struggling with painting it Pink ( my favourite is very similar, it is called JUNO by FAT Paint and is being discontinued ) or Park Bench Green or the casing white and the drawers natural as they were ( medium toned brown with a high gloss finish). I had to paint the stunning hardware a matte gold as the brass finish was coming off. I am leaning toward the natural drawers so I don’t have to take the high gloss finish off. I am very tempted to go all green though. Hummmmm. I will have to see what you do with yours next week. I love your plants. The colours are stunning.
LikeLike
Well, the Park Bench green has been an amazing seller for me so far. All of the mid-mod pieces (5 and counting) that I’ve painted that color have sold very quickly. Of course, it depends on your market. But the younger crowd who buys on Craigslist in the Twin Cities seems to love the green!
LikeLike
wow, this shade of pink is unbelievably beautiful! Through the years, my two hydrangea bushes completely croaked. I miss them so much. White tinged with blue.
LikeLike
The hydrangeas that come in blue shades are very difficult to grow successfully here in Minnesota, and by ‘successfully’ I mean to get blooms. Did you know that the Endless Summer hydrangea originated right here at Bailey Nurseries in Newport? When they came out back in 2004 they were supposed to be the first blue hydrangea that would reliably produce blooms in our climate. I was so excited to finally get some blue hydrangeas! I put in two of them. Last year I had about 2 blooms on each. This year, none! Not a single stinkin’ flower. Here is an interesting article about the Endless Summer’s. Put in some Limelight’s or the Vanilla Strawberry. There is a house right across the street from my office window that has a huge Vanilla Strawberry next to their driveway. Take a look at that one the next time you drive down 15th.
LikeLike
Beautiful work.
LikeLike
Thank you!
LikeLike
This one is yummy, like bubble gum pink!
LikeLike
Bazooka!
LikeLike
Looks sooo purdy!! lol
LikeLike
Ha, good one 😉
LikeLike
So pretty! This would be wonderful in a little girls room! Those knobs are very cool!
LikeLike
Perfect for a girl’s room!
LikeLike
Maybe bk was hoping to buy it back if you painted another color? Just a guess. I am not at all a pink person but I looked back at the Fusion Millennial pink painted with the brass handles and I love that combo. Is this English Rose the same as the Millennial pink or a bit darker? I predict a quick sale for this one.
LikeLike
Both of the pieces are painted in English Rose. I’m just calling it “Millennial Pink” because I discovered that it’s a thing. And basically Millennial Pink looks to be about this same shade of pink, so it fits.
LikeLike
I kinda thought that’s you were saying
same color just calling Millennial Pink.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’m a soft pink girl through and through and love this. My five year old granddaughter would love this as well. Beautiful.
LikeLike
I think there are still plenty of us pink lovers out there, right Maureen?
LikeLike
This piece is beautiful! My daughter wants to paint her 10 year old daughter’s dresser and bed. The pieces are white. What paint and finish would you recommend for this furniture, knowing it will be used by an active preteen/teen? Thanks!
LikeLike
You said the pieces are currently white, but what kind of finish do they have? It is wood painted white? And if so, do you know what kind of paint? Or is is a laminate white? The products and methods you use will depend somewhat on what kind of finish you are painting over. Give me some more info on that and I’ll do my best to give you a better answer 🙂
LikeLike