Craigslist Colonial Dressers: Planning

Before I found this beautiful piece on a Salvation Army trip...



I had contacted a seller on Craigslist about these two not-so-pretty matching dressers.

For $15 a piece, the price couldn't be beat for a matching set. I'd been looking for a matching set for under $50 since the original Dresser Upcycle (before pic below).



And while they're definitely not in the best shape, they have potential. They're missing knobs, the bottom portion of the longer dresser is cracked all the way through and dangles, and the wood is pretty yellow. But hey- I would replace the knobs regardless, wood glue is pretty cheap, and a few coats of paint can fix the color.

If you've guessed that these guys will end up grey, you'd be right. I was debating navy blue for a minute, but ultimately, grey will match everything else I ever really want to do with the house, and it's a great neutral color.

This time, I'm going with Behr's Moonquake grey in an eggshell finish with primer pre-mixed. Less coats, less time, more happy.


I'm getting two gallons of this color for a few reasons:

• More paint to do more projects with a guaranteed match
• Extra paint for dings and scratches
• Paint names change often, and unless you have a lid with the mixing instructions, matching can be a pain in the butt. I can almost guarantee I'd lose the lid by that time. A can of paint is much harder to lose.
• If I ever want to paint a wall or room in this color, I'll have at least a start.

Now for the replacement hardware. I have a soft spot for silver, brushed nickle, and stainless hardware. I also like really simple, clean lines.

So naturally, the 3" & 5" versions of these caught my eye:

Now it's just a matter of picking out the knobs for the center drawers. I need 10 knobs & 9 pulls total, so cost is also a big factor. If I were to get "lucky" and have my drawer pulls 3" center-to-center, I'd be spending about $60 on the pulls alone.

So I have the pulls all picked out (at least from Home Depot), but I'm very undecided on which style knob to choose. Should I go with the square knobs, & spend about $30....

...or the round knobs, & spend about $30 as well?

Or do I completely forget the ones at Home Depot, & not spend almost $100 on hardware?

I have a feeling that Amazon & eBay will come to the rescue in the near future. They have many similar styles, and at a discounted rate. They have the round ones for $1.00 a piece on eBay (with $2.50 shipping...but would that really be per knob? I'd hope not)!

If there was more than one of these left, I'd be all over it for $0.99!

But I really love the little detail on these- problem is that they're "antique silver," which is darker than the other's I've looked at. But there are other pulls I can get that are simple and clean (if the size is correct), and they may stand out better against the paint. Plus, if I go this way, I'd only be spending about $75 (including tax and S&H) on hardware, and have extra knobs to spare.







To be honest, I'll probably end up with the Amazon options, for cost's sake. I might find the exact kind styles that Home Depot had for much cheaper, too. I'll just have to wait and see.

Either way, once these dressers are finished, they'll look way different. There may even be a surprise or two in the works to add a pop of personality to them (I know, everyone else is wrong thinks grey is boring).

These will be the main focus of the new guest room, though so they have to look great!

Which knobs/pulls do you think I should use? If you have other suggestions, comment a link to the product below or on the Facebook page with today's post link! While I do like the idea of simple lines, some interesting shapes or designs might be neat to incorporate into this project. The room will have a lot of bright colors, so any help is appreciated!

See you all soon! :)