I bought this dresser at an estate sale a few months ago. When I brought it to my studio I had already formed the beginnings of a great plan. As I started the process of sanding away the layers of paint my plan had to change. The story of this piece is a mystery but the final result lets your mind wonder on what the painter intended. As I took it apart and sat the drawers to the side I noticed 3 colors of paint on the inside back of this piece. I assumed they decided on the yellow because it was yellow top to bottom. I went over my plan in my head and prepared all the items I needed.
The first step in my plan was sanding all that paint away on the top of the dresser. I was going to take it back to the raw wood and at some point stain it. I was also going to do the same thing to the drawers sanding and then staining. The knobs and the rest of the dresser body was going to be painted black. I planned on doing one of my artsy idea’s on the top. Yep it was going be that easy and then all my plans went out the window. What happened was the patina started to show through as if it was just sitting there waiting for me to come along and bring it out. As I sanded the yellow paint away the green and white that was also in the back of the dresser started showing. It was like the original owner knew someday an artist would come along and shabby chic it. It was totally set up for me to bring out its beauty. Before it was just an ugly dresser that needed a better plan, now it was becoming a piece with an untold story I wanted to bring back. I feel in love with this little yellow dresser with every inch of the sanding that brought out the patina.
I wanted to give it a little bit of the artsy treatment, cause why not. I started with the stencil on the top and that lead me to the strips down the front. It needed more I just needed to walk away until it came to me. It did and I love the outcome. When I was at Magnolia back in May with my daughter I found these wood cut outs of pine cones and oak leaves. No surprise they were on the clearance table and just the right price. Wasn’t sure what or how I was gonna use them but I’m so glad I bought them. These wood stencils are the jewel of this dresser. I’m often asked how I plan out stencils, design and the over all look. I don’t really have an answer it’s just a feeling, something that stirs in my head and I go with it. Sometimes I walk away for a bit, sometimes even a day or two. When I go back and look at it I know at first look done or it needs more. Stenciled pictures, words of meaning and sometimes free handing art makes a piece special and different. This piece is all of that and very Blue Happy.
This dresser is already up at Doc Holliday’s Emporium 113 S Birmingham Wylie Tx.
