Dresser turned bar.

We have a space in our basement that was meant to be a home for a bar; unfortunately, we never made it a priority to spend time or money on building it. 

We've just thrown in whatever table or cabinet we had to make it functional. It worked, but it looked terrible.

Eventually, we abandoned the idea of getting a bar built in; which meant I was on the hunt for a piece that would finally have a home in this area, to serve as a bar/buffet.

Of course, it would be too easy to find an actual bar or buffet. I found a dresser on Kijiji. It was cheap, it was the right size, it was The One.

He barely fit in the back of my truck, with the two 'bonus' nightstands. Recognize them?*

I got started on this guy as soon as I got home. Good thing, because he took every minute I had for a few weeks. He was complex, this guy. Lots of pieces, lots of hardware. I took him apart piece-by-piece and then gave him a good overall sanding. 

 

He was in good shape, so instead of sanding all the finish off, I roughed up the surface and then used a really good stain-blocking primer (Gripper) all over. 

Gripper = less sanding. Semi-gloss paint = scrubbability. 
(yes, it's a word)

The final finish was going to be dark, so I had the primer tinted dark to match.

Primed and ready. 

Once he was all painted and finished with a clear polycrylic for durability, it was time to put the hardware back on. 

Hardware is like the accessories for your outfit. Anyone who knows me knows I love the accessories. Bolder, bigger, better. 

 Originally I thought this guy would look great with some antique gold/brass hardware. But that wouldn't jive with the decor in our basement. So maybe a silver/pewter finish? I tried painting one set of pulls to try it out: 

Top: original hardware. Bottom: hardware painted silver.

Right away I knew the silver wasn't doing it for me. But just to be sure, I texted the picture above to Anna and Terra. Unanimous decision: stick with the black. 

I love the subtle black-on-black, it feels very masculine to me. Not 100% my style, but I think I really like it because it fits into our basement, the "man cave". 

Now the hunt is on for a narrow china cabinet for this space. I'd love to find one in oak, because this bar is oak and the texture of the grain through the paint is so rich-looking. But the grain was so deep, it took a couple of extra coats of brushing the paint to make sure I got good even coverage. The thought of doing that again makes me cringe. But probably isn't enough to keep me from doing it, so stay tuned! 

~J~