Stripping & repainting drawers/wardrobes

BeenieCat

Hi, i'm [STRIKE]a bit [/STRIKE] very skint at the mo but decorating my bedroom as best i can on such a limited budget before baby comes!

Around 6 yrs ago when i was starting from scratch alone with my newborn DS, i was given 2 sets of drawers and a wardrobe from a friend and i've had them ever since! One of the sets of drawers was in good shape so i painted them with white gloss and they're in son's room.

I have the rather unattractive wardrobe and other set of drawers and i would love to replace them to match my (bargainous) solid walnut bed which i got from a local shop that deals in catalogue rejects/returns. But looking at prices of even the cheap Argos stuff i'm not going to be able to afford this for a while.

So i'm wondering if it's going to be worthwhite to try and do something with them, but i have no idea where to start! They're currently a grey type colour and the handles are awful.

No idea if i could replace the wardrobe handles as they're like a circle inset (think 70's).

So would i need to strip them down to the bare wood? Is this is easy as people say? Bear in mind i'm 7.5 months pregnant and don't want to take it on if i can't finish it!

A better alternative would be to get someone to do it for me!! But i have no idea where or what to look for, and don't know if it would be worthwhile, moneywise??

Any thoughts?!

latecomer

I would normally suggested using Nitromors which is a nasty paint stripper (bad fumes) but given you're 7.5 months pregnant I dont think that would be a good combination. I'm sure you can probably get less potent paint strippers (maybe enviromentally friendly ones if there is such a thing?) but its not something I know anything about.

BeenieCat

Oh i remember using the Nitromors on the set that my Ds now has, still have the tin in the shed though it's probably no good after all this time lol!

There wasn't much paint on them though from what i remember, so it wasn't too huge a job, but i glossed them ones and want these ones to be a walnut colour!

susieb1967

what about sending it to one of those places that strips doors etc in huge skips of caustic? it would depend on what sort of wood they were made of, and how good a quality they were, as they can split in the caustic-but might be worth a phone call?
btw I used nitromors when i was heavily pregnant and doing up house at time- just make sure its in a very well ventilated area-this method really depends how much time you have on your hands! dont forget you will have to sand it down afterwards then apply a finish-all time and energy you may not feel like using at the mo!!

latecomer

OP says they are very skint so sending them off probably isn't an option.

BeenieCat

Thanks susie - i believe i was still preg with DS when i did the other set too! I must have been in nesting mode, that needs to come again - soon!

Any idea how much that costs?

markie1980

Easiest thing to do to spruce it up abit would be give it a light sand and a coat of paint, the color of your choice.

I'm sure something could be done with the handles too, but it's difficult to suggest what without seeing them.

BeenieCat

Hmm i'll try and post a pic so you can see how truly ugly they are. Just installing Nokia software now cos i've lost my bluetooth thingy.

My head says bin them, but the moneysaver in me isn't liking the idea of paying £100+ for a chest of drawers :eek:

This is my bed, i got the king frame for £140 :money: It got rejected by the originial customer cos of a teeny chip in the wood that you can't even see!

http://www.houseoffraser.co.uk/null+Hudson+Collection/HUDSNCOL,default,pd.html?cgid=12

BeenieCat

Gawd they look even worse on the pic LOL. :eek:

See what i mean about wanting to bin them? I've had these eyesores for years lol. But they were free so definitely keeping in line with being MSE :rotfl:

Clicky thumbnails

susieb1967

hi
all depends on where you live-doors cost about £18-20 in the northwest- thats why I suggest ringing them to give you a quote and of course to see if its possible! the chaps i have dealt with in the past have been v helpful and assessed and advised about stuff to be dipped, taken it away and delivered it back. you have to go with a reputable firm as, with most trades, there are some cowboys-good luck

a little more info
http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=2008101

Doozergirl

The chest of drawers is good. The wardrobe I'm not so sure about as it's pretty featureless and you'd really want those doors to be aligned properly. You can buy wood filler which really honks but it will fill those big holes - you will have to sand that down properly as well to get it looking decent. I'm really not sure about the wardrobe though - I'd be inclined to get something off ebay that looks a bit more solid with less awkward handles and paint that.

Can't see the point in stripping it all back as long as you sand it well - I paid £15 for a little electric sander which is well worth it because I'm lazy.

Because they've already been painted you can sand them down - do this well to get rid of all those chips etc. and then use a primer/undercoat. Then you can paint them whatever colour you like. Don't try to match them to the lovely walnut - match them to some curtains or cushions for the bed. Make that the feature colour. Do not use gloss paint - use eggshell which is a much more flat finish - you'll never find gloss painted furniture in the shops!

There's a thread somewhere where I posted up what I did to my chest of drawers, I shall look for it. I used crystal handles from Oliver Bonas and B&Q - Focus has cheaper ones than I paid.

EDIT: Here's the thread with the results of my endeavour.
http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=2012041