Sometimes, friends, you are just in the right place at the right time. Yesterday I happened to arrive at a local shop within a couple hours of Fusion’s new colors arriving in store. I couldn’t resist buying a couple of those gorgeous new shades. I also knew immediately that the antique dresser we were working on needed to be painted in Enchanted Echinacea.
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The Before
We picked up this sweet, old dresser last week from an elderly couple for only $25 (we didn’t negotiate – that’s what they were asking!). It is a true antique, held together with square head nails. It had a few bumps and scrapes, as well as a couple different colors of paint on the inside of the drawers. As much as I love a clean, pristine paint finish, I really felt this piece should keep some of its history.
Preparation
If you haven’t tried it, mineral paint is awesome to work with! It requires little prep, goes on smooth and silky, has fantastic coverage and amazing durability when it cures. Read more about mineral paint and our review of Cottage Paint mineral paint here.
We began by cleaning the dresser and giving it a light sand. I know, I said mineral paint has little prep, but we always sand our pieces first. Sanding not only gives a piece a little tooth to help the paint stick but it also lets you find small scratches or dents you may want to repair before painting. Luckily my new tack cloth order from Amazon had arrived so cleaning up the sanding dust was quick. Tack cloth is a must for us since damp rags always seem to leave a residue behind which is NOT good for your paint finish.
Because we wanted to keep this dresser’s “history”, we did not fill the scratches or recreate missing mouldings or even paint the inside drawers.
Fusion’s Stain and Finishing Oil
We sanded down the tops of the dresser. After some effort there were still small traces of white paint in the wood grain. We made the decision to leave the white traces there, knowing they would show through the stain, just for a little more character and interest. We applied Fusion’s Stain and Finishing Oil in Cappuccino on the dresser tops. The wood took the stain a little darker than usual but it still turned out quite lovely. You literally have to go with the flow – paint and stain flow that is – when you refinish furniture!
The color: Enchanted Echinacea
Enchanted Echinacea is a beautiful, natural, pinkish, terra cotta color. I’m not sure Stuart was a fan when I took it out of the bag but he admits now that it “looks good” on the dresser. To be honest, I think it is the prefect color for fall and I can’t wait to use it again when we’re working on an autumn piece.
Final touches
We only needed two coats of mineral paint to get nice, even coverage all around. As I’ve mentioned before, mineral paint is awesome! We decided to do some very light distressing with some sandpaper so the paint coat would look a little more worn to match the dresser tops. The pulls got a good scrub with Barkeeper’s Friend.
The after
Enchanted Echinacea’s natural, warm color is perfect for antique wood furniture. The rustic rose hue of this antique dresser is bold but doesn’t scream or compete for attention. Paired with dark oil stained tops, we think this dresser would fit in well with many different styles.
We get asked a lot about how to style a piece. I always say you should start with something that is meaningful to you and work with what you’ve got. In all our photographs you’ll find various items from around our house and, when possible, flowers from our yard. This week our lilac bush was just starting to bloom so that’s what you see in this photo!
What do you think of Enchanted Echinacea? Have you had a chance to try any of Fusion’s new colors yet? We’d love for you to leave us a comment below!
I love the piece offuniture you painted.
I would love to try something to paint but it scares me to death
Thank you Jane! It can be intimidating to start but try with a piece your not too attached to. You’ll get the hang of it in no time! Let us know if you try it and how it went.