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Before & After: Beat-Up Tallboy Dresser Makes Waves

Tara BellucciNews and Culture Director
Tara BellucciNews and Culture Director
Tara is Apartment Therapy's News & Culture Director. When not scrolling through Instagram double-tapping pet pics and astrology memes, you'll find her thrift shopping around Boston, kayaking on the Charles, and trying not to buy more plants.
updated May 4, 2019
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Worn wooden cabinet with open door, set against a brick wall, labeled "Before."
(Image credit: Simon J Coulson)

This tallboy dresser had been relegated to a garage to store junk, but Polly saw some potential. Inspired by the beach, this dresser got a wavy makeover.

(Image credit: Simon J Coulson)

From Polly:

I got this beat up old tallboy from a lovely lady on Gumtree. She used it for junk in her garage. I kew the draws and feet would make it a really interesting piece to upcycle and I have been wanting to try a really different paint technique for a while.
I live on the Sunshine Coast so the beach and ocean are a big part of my life, this was my inspiration and as I work for a Annie Sloan Chalk paint supplier (vintage village life), I was keen to see how this would turn out with there paint.
I sanded lightly to remove a bad varnish job and painted the top half in Provence and bottom in Napoleonic Blue. Then one side at a time I painted the last coat of both shades and just wet the brush and blended until I was happy with the result. I used the clear wax to finish and kept the original handles as they were in good condition but the hinges did need replacing.
I love it and can’t wait to try it again on an other piece.

See more photos on Polly’s blog.

Thank you Polly!