DIY Pink Dresser
Hey friends! I’m back with a makeover that’s out of my comfort zone, but I’m so glad I did it! Here’s our DIY pink dresser makeover with BB Frosch paint powder and latex paint.
Get more DIY dresser makeovers here!
I love these dressers with all of the ornate detail. They aren’t usually the best quality though. This one is made of mostly laminate, some MDF, and a little bit of real wood.
Let’s just say that I spent way too much on it, but I couldn’t pass it up because of the detail on those drawers!
Supplies Used for DIY Pink Dresser
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- Krud Kutter
- Wood Filler
- Foam Sanding Pads
- Clear Shellac
- Behr Latex Paint in the Color Cranberry Cocktail from Benjamin Moore
- BB Frosch Paint Transformer Powder
- Waterbased Polyurethane
- Gold Spray Paint
- Multi Tool (fixing the drawer track)
- SurfPrep Sander (Use code RAY10 to get 10% off your order)
- Respirator
- Fuji Q4 Paint Sprayer
- Staalmeester Paint Brush
Fix Drawer Track
One drawer was a little wobbly. The front of that drawer track was worn out, so we tried to just flip it around and screw it back in.
The track sat up too high though, so the drawer couldn’t go in all of the way.
So I cut a notch out of what was now the bottom front of the track so it would sit down like the other end had before.
That was the ticket! Now it works great again! Check out this post to learn how to fix old dresser drawers.
Then my husband unscrewed the hardware and cleaned the dresser off with Krud Kutter and a damp rag. Learn more about how to prepare furniture for painting here!
And he filled in a couple of spots with wood filler. Learn more about the best wood fillers for furniture here.
Remove Dresser Base
I really wanted to put a new base on this dresser, so we flipped it over and unscrewed the old base. Check out this custom wood bases video to see the kind of base I wanted to put on the dresser.
And then I stared at it for a while and we tried to figure out how we were going to do it.
We could cut the sides off, but they are made of MDF, so we didn’t feel good about attaching a new base to those.
We thought of a few different plans, but when it came down to it, I wasn’t up for the challenge this time. So we put the base back together.
Then my husband sanded the wood filler… and the base… and some hard spots on the top. And then cleaned everything off again.
Prime Dresser For Paint
Then he moved it into the spray room and sprayed 2 coats of clear shellac on it, waiting at least an hour for it to dry between coats.
Since this dresser is mostly laminate, we didn’t need to worry about bleedthrough. But we did need to worry about the paint adhering.
This shellac somehow does a really good job of making paint stick to slick surfaces. And we didn’t want to have to scuff sand all those details. Not gonna lie.
See this how to paint laminate furniture test that convinced me that shellac is a great primer for laminate furniture!
How to Make Chalk Paint with BB Frosch Paint Powder
This time I used regular Behr latex paint in the color Cranberry Cocktail by Benjamin Moore.
You might want to check out my Benjamin Moore Advance Paint Review here.
And I mixed it with some BB Frosch paint powder. This stuff basically turns latex paint into chalk paint. I’ve used it once before and I really liked it.
Check out my honest BB Frosch paint transformer review to learn more about the features, and pros and cons of this product.
You can also turn latex paint into chalk paint with this little trick we used on these rustic blue nightstands in this post on painting furniture with latex paint!
Check out this post if you’re wondering what is the difference between chalk paint and regular paint.
So they say to mix the powder with water until it’s the consistency of donut glaze. They have exact measurements on the back of the container as well.
Then you mix it with the paint. I added some more water to thin out the paint so I could spray it. Get the details of how to spray paint a dresser with chalk paint here!
Spray Pink Chalk Paint onto Dresser
Then I sprayed the paint. I think I may have thinned the paint a little too much, but it was still workable. And honestly, my sprayer was giving me fits.
That doesn’t happen very often with this sprayer, and usually, it just means that I need to replace some things and give it a really good clean. So I did that between coats.
Read more about the Fuji Q4 Platinum paint sprayer here!
Then I sprayed the second coat…the spray was a lot better…but I sprayed too much. Look at those drips! So I stopped halfway through spraying and brushed out the drips before they could dry.
Then I let the paint dry, and I sprayed another, much lighter coat all over.
After that coat was dry, I sanded the paint a little. Between brushing the paint, and the extra gritty texture (I think from the BB Frosch), it needed a good sanding.
By this time, I was running out of paint, but I needed to paint over everything that I sanded.
I put the small container on the sprayer so then I could spray a smaller amount of paint without it running out when it couldn’t reach what was left in the bottom of the bigger container.
And then I sprayed 2 really light coats. Thankfully this paint dries pretty quickly!
Topcoat Pink Painted Dresser
The next day I put some polyurethane and a little bit of the paint in the sprayer. And I sprayed a coat of polyurethane all over. Learn more about the best polyurethane for furniture here.
Then I sanded it ever so lightly to smooth it out. And then I sprayed 2 more coats of polyurethane all over. Check out all of my tips for spraying polyurethane here!
Updating Dresser Hardware
Between the paint drying, I worked on the hardware.
First I cleaned it so I could see if I could get them gold without any paint. I got it close, but I decided to paint them to make them look really polished.
Read this post to learn how to clean old furniture hardware.
So I primed them, and then painted them very lightly with this really pretty gold spray paint. Read this blog post for more information on how to paint drawer pulls.
Check out some more gold painted furniture here.
A couple of days later I put the hardware back on, and moved it upstairs to take photos.
And here’s what it looks like now!
More Before And After Makeovers
Click any of these “before” photos below to view the “after” of that makeover.
This bold of a color kind of terrifies me. I usually stick to blues, greens, and neutrals.
Every once in a while I go outside of that (like on this post on painting a china cabinet purple). But I love it on this piece! Check out more pink painted furniture ideas here.
If you love bold colors like this, check out some purple painted furniture ideas here.
I typically change out the old hardware, but with these really ornate pieces, I like to leave the big chunky hardware. What would you have done?
As far as the BBfrosch powder, I don’t remember it being like this last time I used it, but I didn’t like that this paint was so gritty. More gritty than chalk paint usually is.
Maybe it was something else and not the BB Frosch? I don’t know. I’ll have to test it again. But it did adhere very well!
That’s it for me today, I’ll see you next time!
DIY Pink Dresser
Give your old furniture a pop of color with this DIY pink dresser. Here's how to chalk paint laminate furniture.
Materials
Tools
Instructions
- See if there are any damages on the dresser and repair them. Unscrew dresser hardware and clean the dresser off with Krud Kutter and a damp rag. Fill in any holes with wood filler.
- Spray 2 coats of clear shellac primer onto the dresser, and wait at least an hour for the primer to dry between coats.
- Mix paint transformer powder with water until it’s the consistency of donut glaze. Now, add in your pink latex paint. You can also add some more water to thin out the paint.
- Spray pink chalk paint onto the dresser. If you sprayed too much, stop and brush out the drips before they could dry. Let the paint dry, then spray another, much lighter coat all over. After the 2nd coat dries, sand the paint smooth a little then paint 2 really light coats over everything you sanded.
- Seal the pink painted dresser with waterbased polyurethane. Sand it ever so lightly to smooth it out and then spray 2 more coats of polyurethane.
- Clean the hardware, prime them and spray with gold spray paint. Attach the hardware to the dresser.
Recommended Products
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More Dresser Makeovers
- Pink Vintage Dresser
- DIY Mustard Yellow Card Catalog Dresser
- Grey Chalk Paint Dresser
- Chalk Painted Black Dresser
- Painted Light Blue Dresser
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I absolutely love these ornate dressers. Can you do a video on how to properly do the dresser liners?
I might have been reading cross-eyed, but did you say there was a way to turn latex wall paint into stain so the grain was visible ? to be sealed for durability ?
Yeah! I just thin it out with water until it is the consistency of stain. Then when you put it on raw wood, it stains the wood. I topcoat like I would topcoat paint. Hope that helps!