Do-it-yourself restoration of an old chest of drawers

Many lovers transform old things, breathing new life into them. Having spent a little money and personal time, you can independently restore the chest of drawers, making it more modern and suitable for the interior of the room.

We’ll tell you how to do it yourself.

Materials and Tools

Before carrying out restoration work at home, the necessary tools should be prepared. In this case, the process will be faster.

Materials and tools that will be needed for work.

• Sandpaper, it is better to use fine-grained.
• Sander.
• Brushes or paint roller.
• Paint and tray.
• Putty for woodwork.
• Applications and stickers (in case of additional decoration).
• PVA glue.

It is also recommended to prepare new mounts and a drill for their installation. With the new mounting hardware, the chest of drawers will last much longer.

reference. The list may vary depending on personal preferences for furniture restoration.

Preparing a chest of drawers for restoration

The final result directly depends on the preparatory process. The chest of drawers that we are restoring should be thoroughly prepared for the transformation. This will speed up the restoration process and help extend the life of the product.

• First of all should empty all the boxes from other things and objects. Old handles and fixtures must be unscrewed. If desired, they can be left, treated with paint to obtain a new, more attractive color.
• The surfaces of the chest of drawers are thoroughly wiped from dust and dirt.. To do this, use a special detergent to clean the wooden furniture.
• If the boxes are decorated with carved elements, dust can accumulate in the openings and cuts. For a more thorough cleaning, you can use a toothbrush.

Tip. It is better to refuse modern alkaline cleaners. This can damage the chest of drawers. For cleaning, a solution with laundry soap is suitable.

• Using a grinding machine, we process the surface of the dresser, carefully removing the old coating. In hard-to-reach places we connect sandpaper to work.
• If the fastenings are loose, they can be unscrewed and treated with PVA glue for reliable fixation. Slats for moving boxes can also be changed to modern runners.
• The surface of the furniture is treated with the first primer.. Leave for at least 12 hours until completely dry. Thereafter apply a second layer, leave for another 12 hours. In this case, work should be carried out outdoors or in a well-ventilated area.

Important! The primer can dry up to 24 hours. It depends on the composition chosen. The necessary information is indicated on the packaging.

Preparatory work is a rather long and laborious task. For a high-quality and effective result, you should perform all the steps in turn. Otherwise, the process will not have the desired result and will be in vain.

Options for restoration work

In order to return the furniture an attractive and bright appearance, there are several methods.

Dyeing

The most popular type of restoration is staining. Painting work is the simplest method for changing the image of furniture. New paint will help to refresh the dresser and harmoniously fit it into the interior of the bedroom or living room.

The chest of drawers can be painted in a different color, use several combinations, apply bright drawings of a different shade on top of the main paint.

Important! All work is carried out exclusively in the fresh air.

Operating procedure

Before staining, it is necessary to clean the surface of the chest of drawers from the old coating. You can use acetone or a special cleaner here. Using a brush, apply the cleaner to the surface. Experienced craftsmen apply a food wrap, which they tighten the surface for 5-10 minutes. In conditions of cessation of air intake cleaner or acetone is much faster.

Important! When working, do not forget about a respirator and gloves to avoid injuries.

After the necessary time has passed, remove the film. After such "conservation" the paint easily leaves the tree. In hard-to-reach places, you can use a spatula or a brush dipped in acetone.

At the second stage, it is necessary to prepare the dresser for staining. For this we use grinding machine. With its help, it is easy to remove the remnants of the old coating and smooth all surfaces. In hard to reach places we use fine-grained sandpaper. After grinding, we process the dresser with putty.

After preparation, you can proceed directly to staining.. Pour paint into the tray, a small roller or brush (if desired) is suitable for work. We process surfaces with paint, let dry. It is recommended to apply two coats of paint for a richer shade.. The result is fixed by varnish processing. The inner surface of the boxes can be processed in white or beige.

Aging

Now very popular furniture made in the technique of "aging". If desired, a painted chest of drawers can be decorated using the technique of imitating antiquities.

After processing, the paint is erased in some places with sandpaper. Upon reaching the desired result, the surfaces are coated with wax. You can use an ordinary candle. The chest of drawers is ready. It will become the main decoration of the room and will attract the attention of each guest.

Additional decoration

Decoupage technique is also not inferior to positions. With its help, you can achieve a complete renovation of furniture.

In this case additional elements are used for decoration. It can be applications, stickers, logos of various brands or popular music artists. Drawings and applications are chosen at will.

As a decor also you can also apply collages of colored paper, clippings from newspapers and magazines or photos.

Many craftsmen also use unnecessary rolls of wallpaper, lace or rags of fabric. When making additional accessories, you can fully open and show your imagination.

After the preparatory process and staining, you can proceed to the design of accessories.

• Cut out the elements of jewelry, approximately place their position on the surface of the dresser.
• Wrong side of pictures we process PVA glue, a similar action is done with the chest of drawers.
• Place drawings on the surface, let dry.
• In order for the fittings to look more natural, it is necessary to remove the gluing edges as much as possible. To do this, gently rub the surface with sandpaper.
• Large items harmoniously look on drawers, on the sides or on the top shelf. Small details can decorate corners.

Repair work

Antique furniture items not only need to be updated in appearance. To upgrade, you will need to perform various repairs.

Restoration of fixtures and fittings positively affect the appearance and significantly extend the period of use.

Another option is alteration. The chest of drawers can be converted with the help of several auxiliary rails, redo boxes. With this approach, the product undergoes a thorough transformation, radically changes the appearance.

Antique handles, in case of their tight installation and absence of damage, can be slightly updated. This will require only bright paint. Gold or silver look especially impressive. After painting, carefully handle the pens with paint using a thin brush.

For a more comfortable use should replace old rails with new runners. We remove the old runners, mark the location of the new ones. Using screws and a screwdriver, we fix the runners on the surface of the boxes.

Useful Tips

• During repair and restoration you must first change the fasteners, and then proceed to design appearance.
• Removing the old coating in the preparatory process is necessary. If you ignore this paragraph, the restoration process may be in vain.
• Do not forget about protective measures. Work in the fresh air, gloves, a respirator will help protect against serious harm to health.
• Apply a primer, paint or varnish only after the previous coat has dried. Otherwise, stains or cracks may appear. Then the work will have to be started anew.

A small but roomy chest of drawers has become an integral part of the design of any room. However, many products do not differ in attractive appearance or price. In this case, you can apply a few skills and restore the old chest of drawers. Such an interior item will stand out for its uniqueness and originality.