Transformation - part un

The sanding and re-painting of the furniture for Maddie's "big girl" room has begun. It sounds a lot more dramatic than it is - really it's just a dresser and bedside table. But since I haven't actually done any furniture restoration in about 10 years I was feeling a little nervous about these projects.

Because it's the smaller piece and I was a little unsure about my painting prowess (my past furniture restoration projects always involved me stripping the paint and sanding down to natural, not the other way around), I decided to start with the side table.

Here's the "before":

(not really a full before, as I forgot to take a picture before I started sanding - but you get the general idea)

Post-sanding:

(and while I'm happy to be owner of an electric sander - those legs needed to be done by hand - fun!)

After the 2nd coat - which I just finished: 

(I don't paint at night - natural light helps you see all the mistakes you're making so much better)

Sadly, it's going to need a 3rd coat for sure. And I need to go get a fine sanding block so I can fix some of my drips and other mistakes. In retrospect, I think this piece would have been much easier just to spray - the legs are killer and no matter how careful I am, they are not going to look "professional".

For those of you judging this preggo woman for painting :) you'll be happy to know I'm using Benjamin Moore's "Natura" line - it's zero VOC and apparently very washable (as I opted for satin finish vs. semi-gloss but still wanted the durability of a gloss). It's also the most expensive paint I've ever bloody bought in my life. $67 for a gallon. But we also have the wainscoting in the Sprog's room to paint, and I've been meaning to paint the rest of the trim in the house (as the brilliant homeowners previous to us decided to repaint all the doors + trim in a flat, stark white - which looks lovely but stains like hell).

So there you go, that's the progress report. The Hubs is going to sand down the dresser tonight (I've trusted him with this job after he complained I was having all the "fun". It's basically all straight, flat surfaces, so he can't screw that up, right?)

Oooooh - and because I'm no good at keeping secrets - check out the adorable knobs I found for them!

Adorable, non? I think they'll sweeten up the pieces considerably. Can't wait for Miss M to see the surprises we have in store for her when she gets home from Gramma V's.

xxoo.S