Another 80's makeover!

I haven't been posting too much lately because it's Christmastime and I've just been so busy, I haven't been doing much, but I did manage to complete a custom job for someone.  These have been few and far between for me, but they are starting to get more popular.  I like it.  And, although I've been pretty lucky at it, it feels nice to not have that pressure to have to sell something.

She brought me a cute little dresser but it was sooooooooo 80's.  You know what I mean, that 80's orangey wood.  Good quality but not so pretty to look at.  She wanted it for her little girl's room.  And, this really doesn't do it for a sweet little girl, huh?

This was a bit different from most of the pieces I have done in the past.  She just wanted it painted white, but not distressed.  I have to admit, that made me a bit nervous.  It's easy to hide flaws and mistakes by distressing, because a mistake can turn into something pretty.  But, no room for mistakes here!  The first thing I did was get out my trusty Floetrol.  This is a great additive to paint that reduces brush strokes.

You can find it in the paint section of any hardware store.  It does slow down the drying time, but it's worth it. 

Also, as easy as it is to want to slap on some thick coats of paint, the trick to a smooth finish is very thin coats.  I primed this with some Kilz primer, sanded a bit, then used 3 coats of paint.  I sanded just a bit but was afraid that it would take the paint of the edges and didn't want that.  But, I sanded just enough to somooth it out a bit.  Then, I topped it with 2 coats of wax since this was going in a kids room.  She also wanted cute little glass knobs, so on they went...

Closer up of the dresser itself:

I think it looks much better and perfect for a little girl!