Scavenger Chic

Water Stained Maple Dresser Makeover

• By Joan
• April 24, 2024
• 3 Comments

Water Stained Maple Dresser Makeover

Last week’s project was this cute little vintage dresser.   It was on loan to me from my sister’s boss who was looking for a makeover.  For sentimental reasons, he still wanted the character of the dresser to remain intact but the dresser had taken a beating over the years starting with him as a child and going thru his kids.  Maybe even longer, not sure I got the entire story.

The drawer pulls could remain and he did like 2 toned.

That sanded part is me jumping the gun to see how easily the finish comes off  before I had a chance to take a before pic.

The dresser had taken a beating over the years but I have definitely seen worse.

Somebody could use a coaster  🙂 .  No worries, those lighter rings sanded right out and I’ll show you in a second what became of the larger ring.

This was our inspiration piece from Christina Faye Repurposed.  And while this piece has spindle legs and more detail on the drawers, I’m pretty sure I can achieve a similar look.

The drawers and the top of the dresser sanded so easily.  I used a fine grit sandpaper  (240) on an electric sander so as not to gouge the wood and to leave a beautiful smooth finish.

Use a lint free cloth to remove all the sanding dust.

For the sides and wood in between the drawers I roughed up the wood with 80 grit sandpaper.  I didn’t need to remove all the finish because I’m going to paint in those areas.  I’m just giving the paint something to adhere to.

Again, get rid of all your sanding dust.

Most of the watermarks did disappear after the initial sanding, though  that darker water ring still remained.

To the internet….did you know that mayonnaise left on a watermark for about 15 minutes should help reduce the stain?  It was worth a try.  I did have mayo in the refrigerator.

After wiping the mayonnaise off, I could still see the stain but after one more light sanding it was barely noticeable.

I painted the sides and the front with black chalk paint and lightly sanded the edges after the paint had a chance to dry.

One coat of clear wax followed by one coat of antique wax and the painted parts of the dresser were complete.

Now for the rest of the dresser.  Maple is notoriously not an easy wood to stain.  It’s a hard, tight grain so stain doesn’t easily penetrate the wood and it doesn’t go on evenly.  I still wanted a nice rich color, that’s where TransTint comes into play.  TransTint is a dye and not a stain.  While the tint is expensive, about $30, this little bottle will make up to 2 quarts of dye when you mix it with alcohol or distilled water.  I’m using the dark walnut dye.

By the way, use plastic gloves as the dye will tint your hands as well as your wood.

Since I have always used stains, I hit up Youtube to give me the lowdown on all the ins and outs of using a dye.  I would suggest you do the same as it comes with super handy advice, such as wetting your piece beforehand, grain raising,  presanding, keeping a wet edge and working quickly.  I’m sure there was more sage advice that I’m forgetting, but the whole process went very quickly and I would definitely use the dye again.  I guess I will have to, since I have 2 quarts of the stuff sitting around.  🙂

The bottom right drawer is with one coat of the dye.  If you want the wood to be darker you can add more dye to your liquid.  

As the dye dries, the finish appears very uneven, this is just where the dye has yet to dry.  If you put the dye on evenly it will dry evenly.  You should wait a couple of hours or overnight before applying your final finish coat.

The dye has dried and I’m ready to apply my nice shiny finish.  This  is Watco, dark walnut danish oil.  The oil also has a tint to it, so if the dye was not rich enough for your liking, this oil will also provide some color.  Apply with a soft rag and let dry.  You may need to buff with fine steel wool in between coats to remove any wood fibers or grit. Wipe off any leftover steel wool fibers and reapply  the oil until you get the finish you desire.  I ended up using 3 coats.  

I find that if you leave your piece out in the sun the oil dries so much faster.

This cute little dresser turned out so beautiful, I would love to keep it for myself.  Hope you like it Greg.

Until next time, stay inspired.

Related posts:

Recycled Post Lamp GPS Coordinates Pillow diy Heap of Change Challenge : Workbench Storage Junky Valentine Hearts