Before & After: Karrie’s Antique Dresser Rescue

Written by

Adrienne BreauxHouse Tour Director at AT Media
Adrienne BreauxHouse Tour Director at AT Media
For more than 10 years, I've led Apartment Therapy's real home content, producing thousands of house tours from around the world. Currently, I live in my maximalist dream home in New Orleans, Louisiana, with my partner, a perfect dog, and a cute cat.
published Jan 26, 2014
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Post Image
(Image credit: Karrie Franks )

Karrie first found this dresser at a local thrift store for $50. She felt it was a bit pricey because of its badly banged-up condition, but she had fallen in love with the lines and the size; it would be perfect in an entryway, used as a side table or in her office as a printer stand.

(Image credit: Karrie Franks )

From Karrie:

Originally I was hoping to just sand it down and keep it natural with a clear-coat but the wood veneer was in bad shape and breaking apart, so I had to rethink my approach.

I decided to patch and repair the body of the dresser and paint it white — the drawer fronts were in great shape so I was able to add a nice white horizontal stripe which allowed the natural wood to show through. I fabricated new leather pull handles with scraps from a local leather shop and brass rivets. I’m really happy how it turned out, and it works great in our modern home.

See more inspiring before and after photos on Karrie’s website.

Re-edited from a post originally published 1.26.14-NT

Thank you Karrie!