Two Tone Dresser + Pattern Pattern Pattern

I am fortunate enough to have people around me that know if they are about to throw away or donate a piece of furniture they should bring it to me first.  Our house is kinda like the Isle of Misfit Furniture Pieces if we are being honest.  So when our neighbors/cousins dropped off this dresser I immediately knew I could bring it back to life.

(I swear I took a real before shot... but apparently not.  Bad Blogger.)

We are always looking for more storage & the dimensions were perfect to replace my barcart nightstand.  No more open shelf for the littles to restyle EVERYDAY!

I decided this piece was the perfect opportunity for me to test out the ever famous Annie Sloan Chalk Paint. I know.  I can't believe I haven't used it yet either.  I wanted a matte velvety finish & new this product would give me the look I wanted.

After cleaning the piece & giving it a quick sand (I know it's not needed, but I felt I had to on this one) I got to painting.  I painted all of the drawers & decided to leave the frame of the dresser in it's natural wood.  After I gave it a little sand, most of the scratches disappeared leaving a beautiful patina of aged wood.  

Once all the drawers were dry, I gave them a quick sand with a very fine grade & added the Annie Sloan Soft Wax to seal it.  I am officially a convert to this wax.  LOVE!!! It is so smooth & silky.  I loved it so much I decided to wax the wood frame too.  It brought the piece to life.

I also decided, for fun, to line the drawers with really expensive wallpaper.  I have had some of the Cole & Sons Woods wallpaper leftover from Chloe's closet & I have had just a little left.  Not really enough for anything substantial.  So now I have something fun to look at when deciding what to wear every day. 

Then came the choice of hardware... There were only two of the original pulls left & I wasn't too inspired by them anyways.  So I instantly went to my favorite online hardware source.  D Lawless Hardware.  They have a great selection for any hardware need & have even better prices.  In fact, the prices were soooo good, I ordered two different sets of pulls & keyholes & still made it out for next to nothing.

I'm glad I ordered the extra sets, because I ended up mixing up the "pairs" I originally had in mind.  I really wanted to use the keyhole outline inserts, but the original holes were too worn... So I used the classic round escutcheon instead.

So after all was said & done... free dresser was scrubbed, sanded, painted & waxed, given some fancy new liners & adorned with new accessories I fell in love with my new nightstand.  

The best part is that the table surface is huge (for a nightstand) so I can actually keep some of it "styled" while being able to throw my glasses & water on my end without messing up the look.

I have also been talking about adding pattern to our bedroom.  So I officially took the plunge & got rid of our white bedding & went crazy.  It's not a look for everyone, but I love the mix & my goal this year was to be me... well this is me folks.

We upgraded our sheets to a 650 Thread Count Plum Set (thanks to a gift card from the in laws!), added the West Elm Chevron Duvet Cover & I got crafty with a little Suzani Fabric & some black ball fringe.  Does it all match? No.  Do I care? No.  It is just fueling my love of eclectic gathered spaces even more.  I am breaking all the "Rules" that someone mysterious created long long ago so just call me a Rebel.  Go on... I Dare YOU!

Have you done anything daring in decor lately?  I'd love to hear about it!

btw... The canvas was a project I did with Shutterfly follow this link to read how to create your own!

xo-