Lime Green Dresser Makeover Tutorial

Every year, around this time I start craving a little green in my life. Spring is a ways off and I'm still enjoying the snow, but when it comes to sprucing up our interior, I'm feeling green. While I'm busy making some changes in our family room (that include a little green) I thought we could take a minute today to re-visit one of my favorite green DIY projects. It is part of a makeover I worked on a few year ago. To see this complete room makeover (including before and after photos) Please Click Here.

 This DIY project is the work of two hard-core DIY warriors; my clients Sarah and EJ.  This project exemplifies  "when there's a will, there's a way".  Sarah and EJ ran through fire to complete this dresser makeover for their twin 3 year old twin boys room.    

Here is a look at the inspiration board I created for the boy's new Vintage Surf Bedroom through my online consultation service.    

Sarah and EJ got to work immediately on their design plan.  The room turned out great, you can see the reveal here. Today I'm focusing on their fabulous dresser makeover that was part of the custom plan we created for them.  These guys never shy away from a project.  Using the inspiration board as their guide, they hit Craigslist to find a great dresser, large enough for twins. It didn't take long for them to find an extra long 1970's dark wood dresser for $100. 

It was very similar to this dresser...

They had a great piece now they needed the perfect paint color.  To get the perfect shade of green, I "chipped" my inspiration board with my Sherwin Williams ChipIt! tool.  Here were the results...

Bam.  Lime Rickey it was. 

Let me set the scene, Sarah and EJ have busy lives.  Both professionals, not to mention parents to four small children.  Although they requested we include some DIY projects in their design plan, they don't have a lot of extra time to work on them.  No worries, they had it all planned out.  Grandma would take the kids for an entire weekend while EJ got to work on carpentry projects in the bedroom and Sarah would knock out the dresser makeover.  

The kids left for the weekend with Grandma, time to get started.  

The house was quiet, there were no little ones underfoot, it was just Sarah, EJ, their power tools and... an unexplained power outage.  

  

It didn't stop these two.  They had to make hay while the sun was shining, in this case, the sun was a flashlight. 

Here is the project tutorial...

The first step was to remove all the hardware and give the piece a good sanding (hand sanding this time, no electricity for a power sander...man they are tough).  

 After the sanding, it was wiped down with a damp cloth to remove the dust.  

A sponge roller was used to apply a coat of primer (Zinsser or Kilz latex primer).  

Then came two coats of Sherwin Williams Lime Rickey Semi-Gloss latex paint. 

After the paint was completely dry, Sarah applied a mixture of glaze and stain to the piece, one section at a time, wiping away the excess as she went along with a cotton rag.  

The stain mixture was one part stain to three parts glaze.  

The stain/glaze top coat toned the bright color down a notch and also provided a nice, shiny, protective finish.  There is a very detailed step by step tutorial over at Sweet Pickins {click here}.  She uses a similar glazing technique and wrote a wonderful "How To" article.

The original hardware looked great with new color which kept this piece authentic and even more budget friendly then we originally thought.

When a dresser turns out this fabulous, it must have a companion.  Sarah continued her thrifting adventure at the Salvation Army where she found this bookcase.

 It also received the Lime Rickey treatment.  

After the power outage debacle,  Sarah and EJ took vacation time from work, and "Grandma Of The Year" agreed to take the kids for a full week so they could wrap up the bedroom makeover.  This time, nothing could stop them.

Except jury duty.  

These two are my DIY room makeover hero's.  With all of the hoops they had to jump through to pull this room together; jobs, four little ones, power outages and jury duty,
they made it look way too easy.  It is one of my all time favorite furniture transformations.  

Thank you, Sarah and EJ, for letting me share your project.  Thank you,  JulesK Photography for providing the beautiful family portrait.  

For information on my affordable online design service, Please Click Here. 

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