May 28, 2010

Intervention!

Help me. I am in a decorating quandary.

About a month ago we found this dresser on Craig's list. I was perusing the free section of Craig's list and saw this gem. I loved the seeming strength of it with the six legs, and I loved the shape of the legs. Someone in this house should have shapely legs.

I really wanted to act on it, but I honestly had no idea where we would put it. A short while later Kevin yelled down from the office, "Did you see that free dresser on Craig's list?" I like to call that a green light, we are simpatico. Many times I see great free items on Craig's list, and I have to control myself because I could easily fill this house with furniture like one of those people on the A&E show Hoarders. Oh, my.

We contacted the owner and set up an appointment to go and pick up the dresser. When we saw it we knew that we had hit the jackpot. This sucker is solid wood, not particle board. Kevin suggested we use it as a television stand in the family room. I bristled at the thought for one reason only. We had bought a beautiful armoire when we lived in North Carolina.

I have not yet chronicled here why we moved or my feelings concerning our move back to New Jersey, and I won't now because I will become all maudlin. I will only say that the armoire represented our life there and the thought of getting rid of it would take some getting used to, and some letting go of the past. I have been doing that recently and decided that we should use the dresser.

We moved the armoire out and the dresser in. From the beginning I had the thought to paint it black. Or white. Or maybe green. Or possibly leave it in its original wood. Clearly, I have no idea what to do with it. Indecision is a new neighborhood for me. I am very good at making decisions and going with them. But this dresser...it confounds me. So I need your help.

What should I do with it? And don't say, "Take clearer pictures of it." I am half blind in the morning.


I am open to anything. Painting. Sanding. Refinishing. Changing the hardware. So please, hit me with your best ideas. I know the knobs are broken, we have the missing pieces. I was thinking of using these drawer pulls from Anthropologie on the top drawers and them doing something different with the ones on the bottom so that we don't have glass overkill.


Help!

Please.

Thank-you.








15 comments:

Beth Hollmann said...

Sadly, I, too, am decoratingly challenged. I love the original wood, though, and would leave that alone. I do like the glass thingies that you chose for the top drawers and would love to see what you pick out to coordinate with them if you go that way! Just wanted to add my input about the wood - leave it the way it is, no painting.

Laney said...

Beth, my husband will be happy with your vote! :-)

Thanks.

Donna Boucher said...

You must find out if it is worth $500,000 before you alter it.

You know those people are always wreaking things...and losing out the big bucks.

So first find out if it is something those twins on Road Show would freak out over.....

I do like the wood.

I would like it if you put the tv off to the right and
put taller things on the left side. Or a grouping of four pictures on the wall and candles or shells or books on the dresser.

I think if you arranged things with a little flair
the color wouldn't matter.

It's a beautiful piece. FAB FIND!

Anonymous said...

I agree with NOT painting! My dh and I have spent many hours scraping paint off of beautiful wood.

It is gorgeous the way it is, really. Even the broken knobs add to the character, imo. We look at scratches, broken knobs, etc as part of its life. There's a story there, ya know?

Anonymous said...

Ack...that last comment was me! =)

Aggie

Laney said...

OK, so we are not painting it.

I am going to change the hardware.

Donna- I know it needs something more on the walls and the piece itself. I am just in the beginning tweaking stages. :-)

Amy said...

Dude. Paint it black. Glass knobs.

Like this:

http://woolyknitsnbits.blogspot.com/2010/03/transformation.html

http://luluandtutz.blogspot.com/2010/03/spring-is-peeking-through.html


There is a lot of inspiration here:

http://www.gussiedupfurnishings.com/sold-dressers.html

nice find!

Laney said...

Amy-
I *LOVE* that one on the Gussied up site! That was what I had in mind.

Donna Boucher said...

You have such good taste....
I can't wait to see the finished room!

Laney said...

Thank-you, Donna.:-)

Dy said...

I might cry if you paint it. But I'll try to do so quietly, way over here, so you can't hear me. That's beautiful wood!

It would look pretty awesome w/ some black wrought iron knobs - either Mission style, or maybe something more elaborate a 'la Southwest Navajo geometric lines. That'd be cool. But the wood looks like it's in good shape, and it's purty... *sniffle*

btw - *fist bump* You rock! I'm proud of you.

AND, I have Craigslist Envy. The free stuff on ours is, um, nothing like that. :-S

Alaina said...

I am one of the Chit Chat girls and you really do not know my and I am going to agree with Amy about the painting it. Black. I think it would look sharp even with the glass knobs.

Laney said...

ROFL, Dy! Did you just fist bump me? :-D

Laney said...

Alaina- I not only know your blog, I love it! Thanks for the help.:-)

Alaina said...

Laney, I mentioned your blog on my blog and I am showing some pieces of furniture I painted black. I hope you do not mind, if you do please let me know. Alaina