During the pandemic we have all learned to make lemonade out of the truckload of lemons that have sent our way lately. I am grateful to be able to purchase items online since live auctions have been tabled in our area, but I really do miss being able to see items before I buy them. I bought them in two separate lots in an online auction. I was fairly certain they matched, but the photos weren't that good and I was questioning why they wouldn't have been sold as a set if they did indeed match.
When I picked them up, I was happy to see they did match! Of course none of the hardware matched each other, but it was a good opportunity to add those vintage glass knobs to my stash.
I am sure they were originally part of a larger piece of furniture, probably a vanity with third piece connecting these two and a mirror along the back.
One thing I couldn't see from the online photos was the amount of wood missing on the back edge of the top of both cabinets (probably from where the mirror had been attached at one time). I knew I would be painting these so I was able to use some scrap wood and trim to fill in the gap. I patched it all together with wood putty and then sanded it until smooth.
I sanded the cabinet to smooth out the old finish which was flaking off. I removed the drawers and set them aside.
I used Waverly chalk paint in the Elephant color to paint the cabinets. It covered it really well in just one coat.
After it dried, I used a 60 grit sandpaper to distress it pretty heavily. I used Varathane Crystal Clear Polyurethane in a Satin finish to protect the piece. It gave a depth to the color of the paint. Exactly what I was looking for!
I wanted to do something different with the drawers. I had several sheets of this scrapbooking paper in my stash. It complemented the Elephant color paint really well. I was able to cut the dimension of two drawers from each sheet. I varied the section of the paper I used for each drawer so no two drawers were exactly alike. I coated each drawer with ModPodge (matte) and applied the paper. I applied a coat of Modpodge on top of the paper as well. It didn't wrinkle at all and the paper adhered to the drawer really well.
As you can see the design of the scrapbooking paper meshed really well with the paint. I sanded the edges of the drawers a bit to distress them.
I would have preferred to use vintage glass knobs, but I didn't have six that matched in my stash. I ordered these knobs from Hobby Lobby (always wait until they are half off!). They look like mercury glass and I thought they would look great on these drawers. I installed these on each of the drawers.
I was really happy with the way these turned out. They were battered and bruised. I am glad I purchased them. I am not sure I would have done so if given the chance to inspect them prior to bidding. I guess there is a lesson in there somewhere. Even if something isn't what you thought it would be, it can still turn out to be spectacular!
They can be used as night stands, side tables or just tucked here and there for additional storage.
I put these in The Standard in Bourbon last night. I used them in the Spring-themed window. I received a call this evening from The Standard letting me know they had sold already! Nothing to complain about here...
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