Sometimes I take a chance on a piece of furniture.  The chance I take is that, while it looks good in pictures it might be beyond repair (with my skills and tools), but I decide to go get it despite the fact that it's an hour-long drive away.  Yep.  I sometimes drive for an hour each way to pick up a "free" dresser.  Granted, I can often combine several errands into one trip, but it's still a chance I'm taking.  Gas isn't cheap, and if the piece is DNR (Do Not Resuscitate), then I've wasted gas/money.  But, I do like an adventure.  And, some days I need a reason to get out of the house, leave the dishes and laundry behind, get in the SUV, sip a cup of coffee and put on a podcast.  It's almost like a mini-vacation.  I like to drive, when there is no traffic.

This dresser was one of those chances.  Its pictures made it look real purdy.  According to its previous owner, all the drawers worked perfectly, and it was in fine, used condition for $40.  OK.  I'm game for a drive.  I'll take a chance.  But, when I came face to face with the beast, it appeared to be covered in a veneer so thin and so cheap looking that I could've sworn it wasn't much more than wallpaper or self-adhesive drawer/shelf liner.

I really should have taken more pictures of just how cheap the finish was on this beastie.  But alas, this is the only one I took!  The lines were so enticing.  The hardware looked lovely, and since I had driven all the way, excited for a new project, I couldn't say "no thanks."  I bought her, took her home, roughed her up and listened for her to tell me how she wanted to be dressed.  It took a little while, and sometimes I wasn't sure it was going to work out, but with the help of some fabulous primer (Sherwin Williams Adhesion Primer), a sweet orbital sander and a bit o free time, I uncovered her beauty!

I'm not going to do a full tutorial on how it all happened, but I will say that I had to come up for a plan to deal with the brass hardware.  Because of the initially cheap construction (probably assembled at home), some of the drawer handles had been glued in and would not come out!  I couldn't really paint the drawers without also painting those glued-in pulls, so I went with it!  I tried to give them that antique patina type look that I've seen on other more authentic looked French Provincial pieces.  This is what happened....

I am happy with the result.  Here is the beastie all dressed for the ball.  I think she is a beauty.

What do you think?  What color would you have chosen?