Under $20 Dresser Makeover!

This weekend was cold but BEAUTIFUL outside! Which made it the perfect weather for this pregnant lady to work on making over a dresser for Norah!  Just to remind you I purchased this 'beauty' at an online auction for $6!! YES that is correct! $6!!!

It was the perfect size and had plenty of small drawers that Norah can easily open herself.  I was super excited when we won it!!  First up we (read: ryan) hauled the dresser outside and Ryan sanded the whole thing down.  Originally I had planned on painting the whole thing white but after the finish on the dresser came off SOOOO easily we changed out plan. 

Side Note: Ok I just spent 10 minutes trying to get these photos the right way and when they are turned the right way they end up being stretched and blurry... argh!! So you'll just have to deal with 2 sideway pictures!

The new plan was to stain the top of the dresser and then prime and paint the rest white.  I started by staining the top with a Minwax stain and seal in one. We had a can left over from when I helped a friend stain her bed.  This was after one coat... it always looks ugly after only one coat!!

Then using Zinsser Stain Cover Primer I primed the sides and front of the dresser as well as all 9 drawers. I managed to get that all done during Norah's nap on Saturday!! 

Then Sunday morning I did a second coat of stain on the dresser and painted about 5 drawers before having to head off to baseball and gymnastics.  So during Norah's Sunday nap I painted the rest of the drawers and the dresser with their first coat and did a second (and final) coat on the 5 drawers I had painted in the morning.  Then I sat in the sun enjoying the warmth for about 10 minutes before the little lady woke up!

I finished painting the drawers when Ryan decided to take Norah to the park for a bit later in the afternoon!  After it dried we lugged (not the right word because its actually an incredibly light dresser) it upstairs and I put new knobs on the dresser. I had picked as many of these lovely handles up at a warehouse sale months back!! I used a few for the play kitchen I made for a friend (here) but I had a tonne left. They look exactly like these but I used lime green and grey ones with white polka dots. They are ceramic knobs and I have found them online for around $3.50 each. I however picked up as many of these as I could for a whopping $0.69 EACH!!!

 I didn't have enough of one colour so I alternated the green and grey knobs and love how cute it turned out!!

Just so you don't have to scroll here is a before and after photo!

Now I just need to move Norah's current dresser downstairs to make room for this baby! She loves it!!!

As for a cost break down:

Dresser - $6

15 Knobs (at -$0.69 each plus tax) - $11.70

Primer - Had on hand from one of many projects

Paint - leftovers from one of many projects

Stain - left overs from one of many projects

Total Cost - $17.70!!! I couldn't be happier!!!

And to leave you with a pretty photo, we took Norah to the park to fly a kite Saturday morning and she couldn't have been happier about it!!!!

Weekend Updates

Last weekend we took a step back to enjoy the GORGEOUS weather that we were finally presented with!!  On Saturday morning we were randomly all up ridiculously early so we headed to High Park to check out the Cherry Blossoms. Oh they were soooo pretty!! It was fantastic to get out!!

Then we went home to play in the backyard. Thats when I came up with a brilliant idea!  I have been missing out vegetable garden in from our old backyard so I decided it was high time we created a garden in our new backyard.  I knew the perfect spot was right next to our fence because in the summer its one of the few places that gets sun since our huge tree covers almost everything!!  So while Norah ran around playing in the backyard I grabbed a shovel and started to dig up and till about a foot wide section all along the fence.  About 2 feet along I realized I was STUPID for starting this... holy crap tilling up grass and dirt is a LOT of work!!!  But I kept at it!

While I was sweating away, Ryan started to pull up the stones that were in front of our shed. I don't know if they did a crap job of laying the stones or if years of frost has moved them but they were a mess!! Many toes and little knees have been scraped and bruised on the uneven stones that were there. You can kind of see the unevenness in the photo below, but in some spots the stones are about 2 inches up!

Ryan pulled them all up, planted grass seed and then started using the stones to edge in my new vegetable garden.

Here is a not so finished photo of my garden.  I did end up tilling the ground more plus we added some new dirt to the top but I couldn't be happier with it!!!  Mind you I was EXHAUSTED by the end of the day!!!

I tried to get a picture of it from the deck however since the sun was in a bad angle all you can see is shade!!  Ultimately the garden goes from where Ryan is standing to about a head of the shovel in the far left of the picture below! Thats almost 30 feet of garden right there!!! I've got loads of vegetables to grow this year!!!!!

Then after it was all said and done it was time to relax!  We turned our hot tub temperature down low so Norah and I can enjoy it as well!!!  Norah LOVES it!! She calls it her mini pool!

This weekend we are hoping to actually install the basement floor for the LAST time!!!  Fingers crossed!!  If the weather cooperates I have a dresser to paint as well.  I picked this lovely lady up at an online auction for a wonderful $6!!!!!  We just have to pick it up Saturday and she's all mine!!! I plan to paint her white and put some fun new knobs on. I may even do a fun purple accent on the drawers... not sure yet!  Its for Norah's room so we can get rid of the one that is broken!!

 Have a great weekend everyone!