DIY Dresser

Here's to the DIY-ers and Pinterest-born crafters! My boyfriend just moved into a new apartment, which means very little because he's at my place all the time. Why? Because boys cannot nest. Or prioritize. His surround sound system is fully installed, yet he has no dresser for his clothes. PS3 hooked up? Yep. Walls completely bare? Ditto. Don't let me misrepresent him - he is, despite this behavior, a responsible and fully functioning, often much more mature than me, man in his late 20's. And a wonderful guy. But he has also, in earnest, asked me to explain why people hang anything on their walls.

So, his apartment has become my project. It now houses the various and sundry things I wasn't presently using, including a rug, small kitchen table, chairs, extra dishes and pans, and a shower curtain. We found this basic but well-made little dresser on Craigslist last weekend for $30, and I needed to make it attractive but still man-room appropriate. Aside from a fun project, the whole situation also gave me an excuse to go to Home Depot and play with paint and wander around for a couple hours. A favorite pastime of mine. Let it be noted that I did not sand this thing first and it totally didn't matter. I was careful to use the fancy seal-it-up-so-everything-doesn't-stick-to-the-dresser-and-ruin-the-paint spray after the two coats of paint had dried.

Here's the before (basically...I forgot to take a photo, but here's what it looked like):

In progress (after first coat of paint):

After:

And those are his weights to the left. He is a boy. Can you tell the white mirrored wall piece is also from me? Not exactly manly, but he didn't complain. And the dresser will look much more impressive with, ya know, actual items on it. Like a lamp. But look at it now, anyway! Red and everything.