Design-It-Yourself: chest of drawers

Photo: Bemz

Do you have an old chest of drawers that does the job but isn't so pretty to look at? Transform it yourself to reflect the look of the room where it lives or even take centre stage. This will cost less than replacing it and keep you eco-friendly in the process. Plus, the end result is a one-of-a-kind creation, like the one above. Here are some ways to do it:

Photo and credit: Livingetc May 2010 issue

GO RETRO: Sand and paint the chest in two coats of gloss paint, excluding drawers. Make a template of the drawer fronts, cutting the shapes out of wood veneer using a craft knife, and stick them to the drawer fronts. Measure the width and height of each drawer and cut two lengths of moulding for each measurement, mitering* the edges. Paint the mouldings in gloss white and glue onto the drawer fronts once dry. Drill holes in each drawer to attach the handles. In the picture above they have wrapped Ikea Metrik handles in white electric tape.

*mitering means the corners are fitted together with the ends of two parts cut at 45 degrees and joined together to form a 90-degree turn.

Photo and credit: Livingetc May 2010 issue

GO GLAM WITH MIRRORS: Cut your wallpaper into sections to cover the side and top of the chest and apply using plenty of wallpaper paste. For the sections of the frame between the drawers, cut strips of wallpaper with an extra 1 cm to fold over the edges. Apply paste and smooth onto the frame. When dry, varnish to seal. Order mirrored glass panels ensuring you give accurate measurements for the knob holes. Attach the panels with mirror adhesive. When that's dry, add your knobs (don't tighten too much or the glass may crack), pop the drawers back in and presto - you've gone from drab to fab!

Photo and credit: Livingetc May 2010 issue

FUNKY FUN: Remove the knobs and paint the chest, including the drawers, in the color that will appear at the base. Twice! Once dry, paint a rough guide line for where you'd like the middle color to begin. Paint up to the border of your top color then overload your brush with paint. With the bristles pointing down, lightly press it into the edge of your guide line so that the paint drips smoothly down. Then do the same again with the top color. Paint the knobs to match the corresponding color. Very Playground!

Photo and credit: Livingetc May 2010 issue

3D UTILITARIAN CHIC: Enlarge letters in your chosen font to suit the proportions of your drawer front (these can be formatted in Microsoft Word or Adobe Illustrator for example) and get them cut in MDF. Remove the drawers and paint two coats of gloss on the front, sides and top of the unit as well as the drawer fronts and edges. Stick each letter on with wood glue. Add castors for a modern-utility finish. Beauty meets functionality.

Photo and credit: House & Garden June 2009 issue

ROMANTIC COUNTRY: (sorry about the glare - this photo didn't scan well) Sand down all the surfaces and paste on the paper, smoothing out trapped air bubbles. Apply two coats of clear matt varnish and finish with decorative ceramic knobs. Tres chic.

Photo: decor8

What about this one? It screams sophistication, grace and is utterly stunning. You'd need to be a dab hand at painting, that's for sure, but the transformation is spectacular!

 

Here are some examples of blog-postings where people show off their personalized chests (of drawers!). Find out more about them here, here and here. 

Do you have a make-over you are proud of? Send me a picture to blog[at]bemz[dot]com or upload it to our Facebook page and we can feature it. 

Comments

[Double Glazing Evesham]

Chests of drawers have traditionally been made and used for storing clothing, especially underwear, socks, and other items not normally hung in or otherwise stored in a closet.