1930s to 2020s dressing table makeover

My Nan had this dressing table custom-made in the 1930s, so where in Brunswick. It was then given to my mum as a wedding gift in the 70s and was heading to the local op shop last year before I saved it. I sanded it back to raw timber, the varnish was hard to remove. Replaced the handles with some bling and gave it a white gloss paint. I love the result and have since started more projects.

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KatieC

Hi @Gnomes75,

First, let me extend a warm welcome from the Bunnings Workshop community. It is wonderful you have decided to join us and share your dressing table makeover. You'll find Workshop is a great place to get inspiration and advice on all things DIY and garden. If you should ever have questions about the forum please let me know.

You have done an incredible job upcycling this gorgeous dressing table and "blinging" it back to life! Did you sand it all by hand or did you use a tool? Any advice you'd like to give to someone tackling an upcycle project of their own?

We are definitely loving that you caught the bug and will be doing more projects, we cannot wait to see them.

Katie

Gnomes75

Thanks so much Katie I’m quite proud of the result.

I purchased a Riobi orbital sander and used that for most of it, used Disc master to work through different grits. I had to hand sand in the corners. I highly recommend using dust masks and safety glasses when sanding and also wearing gloves to protect your hands. Go slow and ensure you use a fine grit disc at the end for a better result. Use an undercoat before painting.

I learnt a lot from this project but patience was the biggest lesson.

KatieC

Hi @Gnomes75,

Thank you for the great tips! I can imagine the orbital sander worked like a charm. Really great job.

Katie

Baretta11

@Gnomes75,

You were lucky this was a solid timber unit as allot of them are veneered.

It's so nice to be able to hold on to something like this in memory of family and your mum especially in this instance. I feel very strongly about such things and I have one of those old bevelled mirrors with a windmill etched into it that belonged to my mother in law and I managed to get some new clips which were hard to get. Did you have to replace your clips?

The mirror now hangs on the wall beside hubbys side of the bed so he can look at it from time to time and remember his mum.

Well done with the project.

Cheers,

Barbara

Gnomes75

Thanks Barbara yes it’s very special in my heart, I was very close to my nan and I know she’s watching over me loving what I’ve done. I didn’t replace the clips but I probably should have. I was a bit critical of the workmanship underneath, it’s like they used whatever was around in parts but the end result hid all that. I’m always looking at old furniture now and picturing how I could up cycle it.

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