Painting waxed furniture.

This unit had seen better days to be honest. I had to fix a drawer bottom which kept dropping out, the screws were all a little loose and there were bits and bobs missing all over. Still, fearless Girl Friday attacked the project with gusto, determined to give it a makeover (also, there was no way in the world I was going to spend hard earned cash on a new one) and a new lease of life.

Not bad, but not great. This chest of drawers had been stored in a damp flat for a couple of years and had some unsightly greyish green dusty mould marks. Urgh. Not exactly inspiring. I was especially careful to use a mask when sanding this one as I was not enamoured with the thought of mould spores taking up residence in my lungs. It had a very slight wax finish, so needed to be sanded back to bare wood to make sure that the new paint would adhere properly. This I did after removing the handles, if not with relish, then with a sigh of inevitability. 

You will find jobs along the DIY path which you will enjoy and jobs which you will endure. For me, machine sanding is dull and noisy, I tend to leave it to Poppy when I can. After sanding, I coated the whole piece carefully with two coats of my trusty Ronseal Knot Block, Primer and Undercoat. Again, great product. Then for the fun bit! Choosing lovely colours to bring out the best in it. Two coats, as always.

Muy bella! With colours from the Craig and Rose 1829 acrylic line in Eau-De-Nil (meaning Nile Water, revoltingly enough. I have never felt the need to paint anything in the colour of a muddy river), Regency White and Tapestry Green. I'm a big fan of pastels. They're easy to change, easy to accessorise and all go together well. I used the original handles again as they seemed quite suited to the new personality of the chest.

All in all, another simple change which required little financial input, just a smidgen of elbow grease and a pinch of patience. Try it yourself. Be brave, give it a go and always save your old tins of paint. It's amazing how often an inch of paint in the bottom of a tin can come in handy for touch ups or small projects.